Show your love for Joshua Tree and help the National Park win a preservation grant by participating in the #VoteYourPark campaign through July 5th.
Twenty historic sites in National Parks across the country are vying for portions of a total $2 million committed by American Express as part of the Partners in Preservation campaign, created by American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The public will vote on which Parks should receive their full grant requests, and the rest of the $2 million will be split up among the remaining parks. You can vote for up to five different parks each day of the campaign (each park only once a day) at VoteYourPark.org. You can check out the parks' best photos and see who else is voting by searching the hashtag #VoteYourPark, and raise awareness of the campaign by using it yourself on all those JTree Instagrams we know you have.
Big bonus: By voting, you'll also be entered into a sweepstakes for a chance to win a trip to Yellowstone National Park, sponsored by National Geographic.
More cool news: In honor of the #VoteYourPark campaign, all the participating National Parks will be hosting open houses this weekend. Joshua Tree has planned a "Keys Ranch Adventure to the Wild Wild West." Visitors will have access to Keys Ranch on Ranger-guided, 90-minute tours (6 per day, free of charge), which will cover the entire history of Keys Ranch and the Keys Family with stops at the School House, Barn, Windmill, Orchard, Garden, Main House, Stamp Mill and Bill Keys' scrap yard. The tour will also include a brief presentation of the Partners in Preservation project by the park's archeologist and historic landscape architect, in addition to offering visitors the unique opportunity to talk with the park's cultural resources experts. A great way to spend Father's Day!
Free tours will be offered on Saturday, June 18, and Sunday, June 19, at 8am, 9:30am, 11am, 4pm, 5:30pm and 7pm. Reservations are required and can be made by calling the park at 760-367-5522.
