National Park Service celebrates 97th birthday with free entry
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Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune
Mindy and Colby Tueller take in the beauty of one of Utah's most famous icons followiKnown as one of the darkest places in the country, Bryce Canyon National Park in southern Utah is a spectacular place to view the
Francisco Kjolseth | The Salt Lake Tribune
Mindy and Colby Tueller take in the beauty of one of Utah's most famous icons following their 1.5-mile trek to Delicate Arch in Arches National Park in late May.Known as one of the darkest places in the country, Bryce Canyon National Park in southern Utah is a spectacular place to view the night sky. Captured on a film exposure of 6hrs, stars form long trails as the earth rotates on its axis during a recent dark new moon cycle. The formation located along the Fairyland Loop in Bryce Canyon was chosen for its South facing orientation. Using a Hasselblad SWC medium format camera on a tripod at an aperature of 3.5, the shutter was opened once the sky was completely dark. For the first few minutes the rocks in the foreground were exposed with a high powered flashlight with an orange gel making sure not to shine the light in the direction of the camera. From then on it's a waiting game, hoping for a clear sky all night and little or no wind so as not to shake the camera. The final and most important tool for a successful star trail exposure is an alarm clock. Without an alarm clock its easy to wake up to a sun filled sky, overexposed film and a missed opportunity. Photo by Francisco Kjolseth/The Salt Lake Tribune 5/15/2004
This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The National Park Service is celebrating its 97th birthday with fee-free entrance Aug. 25 to more than 400 national park units across the country.
In Utah, that means free entry to Zion, Arches, Canyonlands, Bryce Canyon and Capitol Reef national parks. Monuments and national historic areas managed by the National Park Service are also included in the fee-free day.
Other fees, like camping, will still be required.
Two more entry-free periods will be observed by the National Park Service in 2013. Free entry will be allowed on National Public Lands Day, Sept. 28, and on Veterans Day weekend (Nov. 9-11).