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Contemplating the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service that occurs Thursday, memories of dozens of special moments at parks throughout the United States come flooding back.
What documentary filmmaker Ken Burns called "America's Best Ideas," the national parks provide memorable glimpses of history and the natural world.
Personally, there are so many wonderful moments at so many different parks to remember.
One of my first memories as a kid was traveling to Yellowstone after the great earthquake of 1959 and catching dozens of cutthroat trout on the opening of the fishing season on the Yellowstone River.
There was the adventure of lowering myself down a waterfall at the Subway in Zion National Park, rumbling down the Flint Trail in Canyonlands National Park into the Maze, rock climbing at Joshua Tree or feeling "Colorado caffeine" while been blasted with a wave running through Granite Rapid in the Grand Canyon.
How about wildlife encounters such as hearing wolves or being confronted by a black bear at Voyagers, watching Roosevelt elk walk in the morning mist at Olympic, being confronted by an an angry bison on a Teddy Roosevelt hiking trail, watching deer in the Capitol Reef campground or seeing alligators at the Everglades?
Quiet moments of stunning scenery come quickly to mind.
There was the time we brought in a new year at the Delicate Arch, looking out at Bryce Canyon after a big snowstorm, watched Old Faithful erupt alone on a frigid winter night at Yellowstone, seeing the "smoke" in the Great Smoky Mountains, and viewing the Yosemite Valley for the first time.
I've watched the sun rise over Haleakalā and hiked across a steaming crater at Hawaii Volcano. Kids have viewed petrified wood in Arizona, played in the sand under Arches Sand Dune Arch and roasted marshmallows over countless fires at so many park campgrounds.
I've spent a night listening to the wind and snow in the Maze, seen a grizzly bear on a Glacier Trail, gone horseback riding in the Tetons and driven over a high mountain pass at Rocky Mountain.
There were tours of ancient ruins at Mesa Verde, historical tours of Mammoth and Wind Caves and a quiet personal tour of Lehman Caves with the Great Basin superintendent.
Speaking of caves, I remember hearing about Carlsbad Caverns in an elementary school radio program and deciding I had to go there once. Walking into the massive cave opening after so many years, I was so excited it was difficult to contain myself.
Rangers have enhanced so many trips. There was the guided walk at Great Sand Dunes, where the ranger pointed out tracks of small insects on the moving sands and the evening program at Bandelier where the Native American speaker told us about an amazing program at a nearby pueblo.
I may be nearing 66, but there are still dreams of visiting national parks I haven't seen. Alaska's Denali and Texas' Big Bend top the list.
So, happy birthday National Park Service. Here's hoping you survive another 100 years with the wisdom of managing and preserving these sacred sites for future generations.
Twitter @tribtomwharton