An early summer heat wave will bring dangerously hot temperatures this week to some Southwestern units of the National Park System, including Death Valley National Park, which could see temperatures flirting with 122° Fahrenheit by Thursday.

It's mid-February, the Super Bowl is behind us, Spring Training is just beginning (but meaningful ball games are six weeks away), and many national parks are still under snow. But if you need to get away to a park, we have some candidates for you.

Armed with binoculars, spotting scopes, cameras, and notepads, and assisted by experts who immediately can tell the difference between a Western tanager and a goldfinch, or between a Downy woodpecker and its Hairy cousin, devoted birders across the hemisphere will be heading to plots with a 15-mile radius over the next three weeks to see what they can see during the 124th annual Christmas Bird Count.

Among the comments we received last week on best lodging experiences you've had in the National Park System, one reader mentioned favorite front country campground experiences. So let's focus on those this week.