Be A National Park Service Junior Ranger!

Date: April 23, 2009
Contact: Wouter Ketel, [phone]

Harkers Island, NC – Cape Lookout National Seashore Superintendent Russel J. Wilson invites children throughout the region to take part in National Junior Ranger Day at the seashore on Saturday, April 25.  “Becoming a Junior Ranger is a fun way for children to explore and learn more about the National Parks and how they can help protect these important sites,” stated Wilson.  

Free Junior Ranger Activity booklets will be available at the Visitor Center on Harkers Island and at the Light Station Visitor Center on South Core Banks. Once the appropriate number of activities has been completed, the child will receive a certificate and an official Junior Ranger Badge. These Junior Ranger programs are designed for ages 5 to 13.  There will be an additional fun-filled scavenger hunt activity available at the Visitor Center on Harkers Island. Once completed, the child will receive a special Junior Ranger Day certificate and a sticker.  The visitor centers are open daily from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM.

The National Park Service Junior Ranger Program began in the 1960s and was developed to encourage kids and their parents to “Explore, Learn and Protect” their national parks.  Thousands of future Park Stewards has been certified as Junior Rangers over the years.  Over 300 National park sites offer Junior Ranger programs.

Children who cannot visit a national park site in person are invited to take part in the national “WebRangers” activities at www.nps.gov/webrangers.  On WebRangers, kids can explore more than 40 activities, view park webcams, and share their park stories and pictures.

National Junior Ranger Day is part of this year’s commemoration of National Park Week, April 20 – 25, 2009.