Visit the National Parks Without Leaving Your Desk
Glacier National Park. Image: Shane Stagner
A Google Earth applet lets you see beautiful natural monuments without the logistics of travelling, but cannot replicate adventure.
by Ellen Ng
When the first stay-at-home orders were imposed in March, people bemoaned the fact that they could no longer experience the beloved outdoors. Soon after, word of a virtual tour of the National Parks was making its rounds online.
The guided tour, which exists as a Google Earth applet, was launched last April, however was now in the spotlight as the parks themselves closed in light of the coronavirus.
When you enter the applet, you find yourself with a view of the lower 48 from space. Each park is marked on the map with a little bubble and photo. To explore a park, simply click on its bubble - and keep in mind that Denali NP in Alaska is just out of view on a standard 13” laptop. The right side of the screen also has a list of the parks so that you can directly navigate to any one of them.
In total, there are 31 parks featured in the applet. Each park has, on average, 10 tour stops, though the numbers are highly variable. Wind Caves National Park in South Dakota has the shortest tour with only 4 stops. Arches National Park comes in with a whopping 20 stops, although most of these are red sandstone formations.
The virtual tour layout in Google Earth.
Most of the stops are “photo spheres” - a 360-degree image of the location. A handful of stops are simply a bird’s eye view, probably taken from a drone or satellite. These are usually located in deep river canyons or steep cliffs that are challenging for a photographer to access by trail. The right-hand menu provides a description of the stop, though these are very brief.
Some photo spheres have street view-style arrows that enable you to follow a trail or road. Don’t expect to complete a full hike though, these all end at some point. Also, your hands get tired from all the clicking after a while.
Unfortunately, you will be disappointed if you are hoping to satisfy your wanderlust. Besides the aforementioned trail limits, the photo spheres are not always at the best resolution. For example, on the Mt. Rainier National Park tour, Mt. Rainier itself was a blurry shape in the distance. Some parks also had a limited number of stops. Denali National Park in Alaska had 5 stops, two of which were visitor centers.
What these tours can do is transport you to the parks’ key attractions. Ever wondered what it’s like to gaze up at Half Dome? Stare down at the Colorado River from the top of the Grand Canyon? Now you can.
With 31 parks available, it can be tough to choose where to start.
Best overall: Olympic NP
Crescent Lake is one of the stops on the Olympic National Park tour. Image: author.
This park offers the greatest variety of stops, from rugged beaches to the pristine Hoh Rainforest. Hole-in-the-Wall looks very impressive in 360 view. The Hall of Mosses resembles the swampy planet of Dagobah from Star Wars, but with people ogling a moose. You can gaze at Sol Duc Falls from one of the overlooking bridges. And the tour ends on Hurricane Ridge, a gorgeous overlook.
Best scenery: Glacier NP
There are only 7 stops on this tour, most along the Going-to-the-Sun road. But you won’t find anyone complaining. The photo spheres are all very high-quality and the 360-degree views are STUNNING.
Dark Horse: Badlands NP
This park in South Dakota has some amazing geologic formations. Yellow Mounds Overlook is one of the more unique stops in the applet. You can hike a considerable distance along Cliff Shelf Nature Trailhead, admiring the sweeping vista, juniper trees, and towering rock cliffs. And there are prairie dogs at the last stop - what’s not to love?
For the history buff: Dry Tortugas NP
Another short tour, but one that takes you around the 19th-century fort taking up the park. It is also right on the tropical coastline for the marine enthusiasts.
To go further back into the past, Colorado’s Mesa Verde NP showcases the ruins of ancient Pueblo dwellings tucked into impressive sandstone cliffs.
For the John Denver enthusiast: Shenandoah NP
Take Me Home, Country Road names West Virginia in the lyrics, but “Blue Ridge Mountains, Shenandoah River” are also viewable from this park in neighbouring Virginia.
That said, John Denver wrote more songs about Colorado, where he spent much of his life. Visit Rocky Mountain NP, with its beautiful alpine peaks, and you will understand why the musician fell in love with the state.