Virtual Visits during Quarantine: Park Units 128-132: Kenai Fjords, Dry Tortugas, Kawai'i Volcanoes, Carlsbad Caverns, Bryce National Parks

Google Arts & Culture Hidden Worlds of the National Parks

What a terrific resource we found today in our Virtual Visits of National Parks! These Google sites use 3-D panoramas - both still shots and videos that allow you to explore and feel like you are really at the parks!

We started with Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park because I've always been so fascinated by the active volcanoes in Hawai'i - since I was a child. I learned that there were major eruptions in 1959 so perhaps that is why this was a big deal when I was a kid. The views are terrific on this site- allowing you to explore a lava tube, visit the volcanic cliffs, watch a lava flow, and explore an active volcano by flying over it in 3-D views with a drone. We also viewed the videos of the 2018 eruption of Kilauea and learned about the geology. This is one of the top destinations on our bucket list for the future!

Bryce Canyon

Out next virtual stop was Bryce Canyon. This was my favorite national park visit as a child and I really enjoyed seeing all the photos - and especially a video of riding down into the canyon on a horse trail - which Janet and I did as children. Catherine was thrilled at how much it looked like Cedar Breaks that we visited on our return cross country trip from California. Another fabulous 3-D screen includes the night sky - amazing!! We wondered what it was like for ancient people who had that view every night. There's an interesting video about how hoodoos are formed in the park, and a 3-D view of the bottom of the park. The view are just stunning:

Carlsbad Cavern National Park

I was happy to visit Carlsbad virtually since neither one of us are really comfortable in caves. The best part of the 3-D views and videos is that you can virtually visit sections of the cave that we wouldn't normally see like trekking through the lower cave. We were able to fly with bats and feel what echolocation is like in the dark cave. You can examine the cave texture with 3-D videos as well. You get a good feel for the geology of the cave formations. From the website: High ancient sea ledges, deep rocky canyons, flowering cactus, and desert wildlife—treasures above the ground in the Chihuahuan Desert. Hidden beneath the surface are more than 119 caves—formed when sulfuric acid dissolved limestone leaving behind caverns of all sizes.

Kenai Fjords National Park

Catherine and I regularly discuss the challenges of getting to see the national parks in Alaska, so we appreciated being able to virtually visit without taking a seaplane! There are no words to really describe the grandeur and beauty of Alaska - and the 3-D videos and photos let you explore on your own. You can climb into a crevasse, watch a glacier melt and kayak through icebergs. We watched a video of a whale breach,  listened to icebergs underwater, and watched a glacier calve into the sea. This virtual visit made us want to go even more - and soon before the glaciers are gone.

Dry Tortugas National Park

The highlight of this virtual visit was swimming through a coral
reef and being able to look around and explore. This 100-square mile park is mostly water with seven small islands.  We dove through a shipwreck and explored Fort Jefferson, which is much like other forts of this time period. The beauty is the colors and clarity of the water. Simply beautiful and relaxing!


Here are the Virtual Stamps for our visits tonight: