It was a (hopefully not) one of those once-in-a-lifetime visits to a far off national park, and I was flat on my back. That, however, was not all bad at Virgin Islands National Park on the Caribbean island of St. John, where basking under the February sun on the sugar-sand beaches in between snorkeling adventures is de rigueur. Preferably with a cool drink in hand and a rattan mat beneath you.

Through its George Melendez Wright Climate Change Interns and Fellows program, the National Park Service enables university students to visit national parks to investigate issues related to climate change. Over the coming days we'll present profiles of what those students investigated.

If the recent winter months have you wishing for some time on an island in the South Pacific, here's a unique approach: the Home Stay Program at National Park of American Samoa lets you sample some beautiful scenery while living like a local in a Samoan village setting.