黄石国家公园的大棱镜泉鸟瞰图，美国怀俄明州 Aerial view of Grand Prismatic Spring, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming (© AirPano LLC/Amazing Aerial Agency)

黄石国家公园的大棱镜泉鸟瞰图，美国怀俄明州 Aerial view of Grand Prismatic Spring, Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming (© AirPano LLC/Amazing Aerial Agency)

“美国最好的想法”起源于此 'America's best idea' began here

National Park Week begins

Only a very small percentage of Yellowstone's total visitors see the park when it looks like this. In winter, when the park grows quiet, its hydrothermal features really stand out, like the rainbow-hued Grand Prismatic Spring near the center of this image, the most photographed feature in Yellowstone.

Just the inspiration we need as we start National Park Week, an occasion to celebrate the splendor of our park system and turn to thoughts of hiking, paddling, and camping. The 'Week' is actually a bit longer, starting today and running through Sunday, April 24. Yellowstone was established by congress 150 years ago as the nation's first national park. Today, there are 63, and they include the volcanoes of Hawaii, the giant sequoias of California, the Grand Canyon, and the desolate moonscape of the Badlands.

Perhaps no national park better captures the American landscape than Yellowstone, 3,500 square miles of lakes, canyons, rivers, mountains, waterfalls, hot springs, and its charismatic megafauna—bison, wolves, elk, and grizzly bears. But it's Yellowstone's hydrothermal sites that really set it apart. Old Faithful might be the most famous, but it's only one of 10,000 around here. Although the park is still chilly in April, you'll have the place mostly to yourselves. Only about 44,000 visit Yellowstone in April, compared to the nearly 1 million who gather each July. If you need more incentive, entrance fees today, in honor of National Park Week, are on the house.

国家公园周开始

当黄石公园看起来像这样时，只有很小比例的游客参观了它。在冬天，当公园变得安静时，它的热液特征真的很突出，比如这张图片中心附近彩虹色的大棱柱形泉水，这是黄石公园拍摄最多的特征。

这正是我们开始国家公园周时所需要的灵感。国家公园周是一个庆祝我们公园系统辉煌的时刻，我们可以考虑徒步旅行、划船和露营。“一周”实际上要长一点，从今天开始，一直持续到4月24日周日。黄石公园是美国国会在150年前建立的第一个国家公园。如今，这里有63座火山，其中包括夏威夷的火山、加利福尼亚州的巨大红杉、大峡谷和荒地荒凉的月球景观。

也许没有哪个国家公园能比黄石公园更好地捕捉到美国的风景。黄石公园有3500平方英里的湖泊、峡谷、河流、山脉、瀑布、温泉，以及迷人的大型动物群——野牛、狼、麋鹿和灰熊。但真正让它与众不同的是黄石公园的热液遗址。老忠实可能是最有名的，但它只是这里一万个中的一个。虽然四月份公园里仍然很冷，但你可以独处。4月份只有大约4.4万人参观黄石公园，而每年7月有近100万人聚集在这里。如果你需要更多的奖励，为了纪念国家公园周，今天的入场费是免费的。