Winter in the National Park System often brings to mind frosty snowscapes, places where you can skim on skinny skis, or clomp along in snowshoes that, though a bit cumbersome, help you go places you might not venture without them.

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.

Is it unethical to photograph park wildlife from your car?

A glance around the national parks shows opportunities to spend the year-end holidays in Yellowstone National Park's Lamar Valley, Native American celebrations at Grand Canyon National Park, and trail work at Great Smoky Mountains National Park.