Collect NPS Passport Stamps Along the Floods Trail
If you’ve ever visited a national park, you’ve probably witnessed the obsession: a visitor who walks into a visitor center, eyeing a park ranger while making a stamping motion with their hands, or maybe you’ve heard the ultimate question, “where’s the stamp?”. These visitors are clued into one of the most fun ways to remember your national park vacations: the national parks passport. And although the Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail doesn’t have a specific National Park Visitor Center, there are a growing number of state and local visitor information centers with information about the Trail that have, or will soon have, official national parks passport stamps.
It may seem silly at first, but ultimately, this is a free souvenir program that you can participate in without spending any money! The national parks passport itself does cost money, but the stamps are free, so you can easily stamp small pieces of paper, national park maps, or anything else you’d like and it won’t cost you a dime. However, there are also options to purchase one of the official national parks passport books. Plus, purchasing these sends your money directly back to the national parks! Whether a casual collector or a serial stamp seeker, people are extremely passionate about the national parks passport program. Are you ready to jump on the national parks passport bandwagon? This excellent keepsake will quickly become one of your most treasured souvenirs, so it’s important to keep it safe and tidy. Here are some national parks passport tips:
- You don’t have to stamp a national parks passport – any book will do! Let your creativity shine and stamp blank journals or lined journals so you can jot down your memories. Or, use a dotted journal for more freedom to stamp, draw, and write!
- Many sites will have small pieces of scrap paper for you to stamp and glue into your book later. If you don’t want to purchase labels, this is a good way to take advantage of the free program.
- While travelling, keep your stamps in a sealable plastic bag, then place them into a passport book when you get home. This way your book doesn’t get lost, you don’t have as much to keep track of while travelling and you can stamp multiple times to ensure your memories are inked perfectly.
- If you miss out on getting your stamp, you can always contact the site and ask for one. Send them a letter including a self-addressed and stamped envelope and which stamps you’re requesting, and they’ll get them out to you as soon as they can.
Edited from “Why I’m Obsessed with the National Parks Passport Book” By: Riley (The Parks Expert)