If you visit Bryce Canyon National Park in winter, and there is snow on the ground and blue sky overhead, the one hike you must take is the Queen's Garden-Navajo Loop Trail.

Birds and human "snowbirds" aren't the only critters that enjoy spending the winter in Florida, and "The Wings of Butterfly Exhibit" at Big Cypress National Preserve offers beautiful photos and useful information about these lovely residents. The exhibit runs through February, and special programs and hikes featuring butterflies will also be offered in the park on December 11.

For an overwhelming majority of visitors, national parks offer spectacular vistas that provide surroundings perfect for enjoyment, contemplation, and relaxation. For a small, yet significant, number, though, the parks are where they decide to die.

A nearly $34 million contract has been awarded for continued work on the so-called "Missing Link" of the Foothills Parkway in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.