NPS Photo Begin Your JourneyGet ready to discover the people, places, and technology that helped connect a nationDo your best to complete the activities on your own, but a parent, grandparent, teacher, scout leader, or another helpful adult may lend a hand. You can complete these activities at home, in a classroom, outdoors, or during a future visit to Golden Spike National Historical Park. If you have questions or need additional help, contact a park ranger Requirements
ActivitiesIndoor Activities: Outdoor Activities: Indoor or Outdoor Activity: Once you have completed the required number of activities and received approval from an adult, take the Junior Ranger Pledge and download your virtual badge and certificate. Good luck, Junior Ranger! 
NPS Photo Activity One: Park SymbolsEach part of the National Park Service arrowhead represents something protected by the National Park Service.
Golden Spike National Historical Park protects the place where the Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroads joined on May 10, 1869. The park also protects the original railroad grade, historic construction features, cultural landscapes, wildlife, and stories of the people who built the railroad. Your MissionDraw your own National Park Service arrowhead. Inside it, include pictures or symbols representing things you believe should be protected. For a Golden Spike arrowhead, you might include:
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NPS Photo Activity Two: Build a RailroadDuring the 1860s, the Union Pacific Railroad built westward while the Central Pacific Railroad built eastward. Thousands of workers prepared the ground, blasted through rock, built bridges and trestles, and laid wooden ties and iron rails. Railroad workers did not have modern bulldozers, excavators, or power tools. Much of the work was completed using hand tools, black powder, wheelbarrows, horses, and human strength. Your MissionBuild a small model railroad grade using materials you have at home. You may use:
Your railroad must cross one of these obstacles:
Decide whether you will build around, over, or through the obstacle. When you finish, answer these questions:
Remember to return outdoor materials to the places where you found them. 
Unknown Activity Three: Many Hands Built the RailroadThe first transcontinental railroad was built by tens of thousands of people from many backgrounds. Workers included Chinese immigrants, Irish immigrants, Civil War veterans, formerly enslaved African Americans, Mormans / Latter-day Saint workers, Native people, and other laborers. Their jobs included surveying the route, preparing the railroad grade, blasting rock, building bridges, laying track, caring for animals, cooking meals, repairing equipment, and carrying supplies. The completion of the railroad was an important technological achievement, but it also brought enormous changes to the lands and lives of Native peoples. Learning the complete story means recognizing both the railroad’s accomplishments and its consequences. Your MissionChoose one group of people who helped build or support the railroad. Create one of the following:
Include answers to these questions:
After completing your project, share it with a friend, family member, classmate, or teacher. 
Activity Four: Explore with Your SensesGolden Spike National Historical Park is located in a sagebrush-steppe environment. Although it may appear quiet, the landscape is filled with movement, sounds, textures, plants, and wildlife. You can use your senses to explore the environment around your own home, school, or neighborhood. Find a safe place outdoors and sit quietly for five minutes. Use four of your senses: sight, hearing, smell, and touch. Do not taste wild plants, berries, soil, rocks, or other unfamiliar objects. Your MissionComplete the following sentences: The sky looks ___________________________________________ The air smells ___________________________________________ The wind sounds _________________________________________ The temperature feels ____________________________________ The ground feels _________________________________________ Now list or draw something that is:
What was your favorite discovery? 
NPS Photo Activity Five: Telegraph ChallengeWhen the rails were joined at Promontory Summit on May 10, 1869, a telegraph operator sent the news across the country. The message was one word: D-O-N-E Telegraph operators communicated by sending electrical signals through wires. Short and long signals represented letters using Morse code. A short signal is called a dot. A long signal is called a dash. Morse CodeA · — Your MissionWrite the word DONE in Morse code. D: ______________________ O: ______________________ N: ______________________ E: ______________________ Now use Morse code to write your first name: Ask another person to decode it. For an additional challenge, use tapping, clapping, a flashlight, or sounds to send a short Morse-code message. Always use lights safely and never shine a flashlight toward drivers, aircraft, wildlife, or another person’s eyes. 
Activity Six: Web DetectivesThe Golden Spike National Historical Park website contains information about the railroad, the locomotives, the workers, the natural environment, and the park’s historic places. Explore the park website and write your answers on a piece of paper. Your Mission
Suggested links:
NPS photo You have completed the Golden Spike Virtual Junior Ranger Program. You are now part of a nationwide community of Junior Rangers who learn about, explore, and protect America’s national parks. 
NPS Photo Right click the image above and select "Save As" to save and print your Virtual Junior Ranger Badge! 
NPS Photo Right click the image above and select "Save As" to save and print your Virtual Junior Ranger Certificate! |
Last updated: August 5, 2026