News Release

Calling All Junior Rangers -- March 17!

Date: March 9, 2018
Contact: General Park Information, 305-242-7700
Contact: Media Queries, 305-242-7860

HOMESTEAD, Fla. - On Saturday, March 17, 2018, Everglades National Park will host Junior Ranger Day! This annual event highlights youth in national parks and the Junior Ranger Program which engages kids and families while they visit National Park Service sites.

Three of south Florida’s national parks—Everglades National Park, Biscayne National Park, and Big Cypress National Preserve—have a joint Junior Ranger program. Junior Ranger Activity Books are available in English, Spanish, and Haitian-Creole from any park visitor center. The program is designed for kids 8-12 years old, but is available to kids of all ages. Everglades National Park also has a Deputy Junior Ranger program for younger children.

On Junior Ranger Day, kids of all ages can participate in special activities and earn a Junior Ranger badge, at either of the Everglades National Park areas below.

Shark Valley Visitor Center – 36000 SW 8th Street, Miami, FL 33194 – located on US Highway 41, 25 miles west of the FL Turnpike

• Event is from 9:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.

• A free ranger-led tram tour at 10:00 a.m. will take you into the heart of the Everglades. Seating is limited, so call to make a reservation at [phone].

• Aspiring Junior Rangers can also participate in family-friendly activities around the visitor center and short ranger-led hikes.

• Bike rentals and other tram tours are available for a fee.

• At 2:00 p.m. there will be a ceremony to award new Junior Rangers with their badges!

• Park entrance fees apply.  

Royal Palm – 40001 State Road 9336, Homestead, FL 33030 – 12 miles west of Homestead on State Road 9336

• Event is from 10:00 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Families may participate at their own pace.

• Aspiring Junior Rangers and their families can explore the Anhinga Trail where rangers will be stationed with touch-tables for children.

• Junior Ranger badges will be awarded individually as children complete the program.

• Free Trolley rides to Royal Palm from Homestead’s Losner Park or from the Ernest F. Coe Visitor Center include free entrance to the park. See website for trolley times: http://www.cityofhomestead.com/index.aspx?nid=357

• Park entrance fees apply, except for those arriving by Trolley.

All participants will receive a Junior Ranger Activity Book and earn Junior Ranger badges upon completion of the program. Come out to Explore, Learn, and Protect your national park!

For more information about what you can see and enjoy at Everglades National Park, please visit www.nps.gov/ever.  

-NPS-