National Parks Trivia

Strap in for 390 questions about the wildlife, geology, history, and culture of the national parks in this fun and portable game! Also included are five 10-second challenge cards to get your creativity flowing and your friends arguing passionately about which park rules them all. Last, but certainly not least, I refuse to make anything about the parks that doesn’t include a map. Here is the publisher’s website for the game.

My co-author and I invented the structure of the categories (and the challenge cards!) and then delivered the manuscript on time and on word count.. The game is selling great and I couldn’t be more proud!

Below are four sample questions—one from each of the four categories of the game, with two easy questions and two hard questions.

Plants, animals, and water

sample Question 1 (easy)

Question: About how long has it taken the Colorado River to carve the Grand Canyon?

A. 5 million years B. 15 million years C. 500,000 years D. 50 million years

Answer: A. 5 million years. That might seem like a long time compared to a human life, but geologically speaking it’s not much time at all.

GEOLOGY & ASTRONOMY

sample Question 2 (HARD)

Question: True or False: the 200-million-year-old logs that give Petrified Forest National Park its name represent a species of tree that no longer exists.

Answer: False. The fantastic preservation of the wood has enabled scientists to identify at least a dozen species of trees—including gingko, which we can still see today, and trees related to modern monkey puzzle trees.

CULTURAL HISTORY

sample Question 3 (easy)

Question: What pioneering crusader for women’s rights, conservation, and other causes coined the term “river of grass” and was a major voice in fighting for the establishment of Everglades National Park?

A. Susan B. Anthony B. Minerva Hamilton Hoyt C. Claire Marie Hodges D. Marjory Stoneman Douglas

Answer: D. Marjory Stoneman Douglas. She was an accomplished journalist and activist whose book The Everglades: River of Grass helped cement the creation of the park.

TOURISM

sample Question 4 (HARD)

Question: The Alpine Visitor Center in Rocky Mountain National Park is the highest-elevation visitor center in the National Park Service at:

A. 9,796 feet B. 10,796 feet C. 11,796 feet D. 12,796 feet

Answer: C. 11,796 feet. It’s so high up that it’s typically only open about six months every year—from late May to mid-October—due to weather conditions. Most visitors also report at least some effects of altitude sickness.