Celebrate Park and Recreation Month

July 18, 2023

Park and Recreation Month is held annually in July to promote the importance of parks and recreation in our communities. And with summer’s longer days, there is no better time to take a stroll, picnic, or pursue other outdoor leisure activities. If you are into astronomy or a star-watching enthusiast, the U.S. Government Bookstore offers publications to help with outdoor recreation activities, such as stargazing.

Before setting out on a night-time adventure under the stars, pick up the Astronomical Almanac, where you can study a wide variety of technical and general astronomical information. It is a worldwide resource for fundamental astronomical data and contains data supplied by many scientists from around the world. The Astronomical Almanac is also an excellent resource for commercial pilots, sailors, and the military to strengthen safer travel and further assist in navigation by both air and sea.

One of life’s great experiences is to find yourself with loved ones in a campground tent, looking up at celestial wonders in a deep blue night sky. Take a trip to outer space by browsing our collection of resources produced by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), highlighting Earth’s beauty from space through photographic images covering Earth’s wonders.

There are many ways to celebrate Park and Recreation Month in your community:

  • Visit your local park or recreation center
  • Participate in a park and recreation program
  • Volunteer your time to help maintain a park or recreation facility
  • Attend a Park and Recreation Month event
  • Spread the word about the importance of parks and recreation on social media

No matter how you choose to celebrate, Park and Recreation Month is a great opportunity to appreciate the many benefits that parks and recreation provide to our communities.

The GPO Online Bookstore – Easy Access to Federal Publications

HOW DO I OBTAIN THESE RESOURCES?

Sign up to receive promotional bulletin emails from the US Government Online Bookstore.

Shop Online Anytime: You can buy a vast majority of eBooks or print publications —with FREE Standard Shipping worldwide— from the U.S. Government Online Bookstore at https://bookstore.gpo.gov.

Order by Phone or Email: Call our Customer Contact Center Monday through Friday, 8 am to 4:30 pm Eastern (except US Federal holidays). From US and Canada, call toll-free 1.866.512.1800. DC or International customers call +1.202.512.1800.  Email orders to ContactCenter@gpo.gov

Visit a Federal depository library: Search for U.S. Government publications in a nearby Federal depository library. You can find the records for most titles in GPO’s Catalog of U.S. Government Publications.

Find more than a million official Federal Government publications from all three branches at www.govinfo.gov.

About the author: Blogger contributor Ed Kessler is a Promotions Specialist in GPO’s Publications and Information Sales Office.

Images and additional content provided by Government Book Talk Editor Trudy Hawkins. Trudy is the Senior Marketing & Promotions Specialist in GPO’s Publication & Information Sales Office supporting the U.S. Government Online Bookstore (https://bookstore.gpo.gov).


Get Outdoors this Summer with Help From GPO

July 19, 2017

July is National Parks & Recreation Month in the U.S., which delivers a reminder of the staggeringly beautiful images from the thousands of national parks around our great Nation. Perhaps this is the year that you finally pack up the family in the car or RV and spend a long weekend camping in the hills and enjoying the incredible wonder that is our naturally beautiful landscape.

The U.S. Government Publishing Office (GPO) is here to help you with the research and planning that can make any summer vacation into the one you tell stories about for years to come. The most important step of that epic road trip is first and foremost choosing where to go and where to stay. The U.S. Government Bookstore offers more than a few options on how to figure that out.

The National Parks Index offers a complete administrative listing of the National Park System and can help you figure out which parks are in your area and what they have to offer. Also, if you’re a more visual person, there is the National Park System Wall Map Poster which would allow you map out your trip visually, and you could even hang it on the wall in your house and use pushpins to track your progress in visiting all the parks our country has to offer.

While you’re on your trip, you may want to bring along a camera to capture some of the breath taking scenes you’re sure to see. The best photographers know that the key to beautiful pictures is the inspiration, and the book A Photographer’s Path: Images of National Parks Near the Nation’s Capital is full of incredible photos that are sure to light your creative fires and inspire you to take a couple of photos worthy of printing and hanging on your wall.

Another great thing our national parks offer is free or discounted fees to visit for active duty and retired military members due to the National Parks Freedom Pass Act which was passed by the House of Representatives in 2011.

To find other bills and laws that Congress has passed to protect and preserve our park system, visit govinfo.gov and search “national parks.”

You can also search the Catalog of U.S. Government Publications to find a list of titles that will allow you to learn more about the parks and monuments available near you, like:

Make GPO your first stop when planning your next national park trip, and visit our sites to learn more about the great history of our Government preserving the parks for our future generations. Happy camping!

HOW DO I OBTAIN THESE RESOURCES?

Click on the Links: For the free resources, click on the links above in the blog post.

Shop Online Anytime: You can buy eBooks or print publications —with FREE Standard Shipping worldwide— from the U.S. Government Online Bookstore at http://bookstore.gpo.gov.

Shop our Retail Store: Buy a copy of any print editions from this collection at GPO’s retail bookstore at 710 North Capitol Street NW, Washington, DC 20401, open Monday–Friday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., except Federal holidays, Call (202) 512-0132 for information or to arrange in-store pick-up.

Order by Phone: Call our Customer Contact Center Monday through Friday, 8 am to 5:30 pm Eastern (except US Federal holidays). From US and Canada, call toll-free 1.866.512.1800. DC or International customers call +1.202.512.1800.

Visit a Federal depository library: Search for U.S. Government publications in a nearby Federal depository library. You can find the records for most titles in GPO’s Catalog of U.S. Government Publications.

About the author: Blogger contributor Scott Pauley is a Writer and Editor in GPO’s Library Services and Content Management office.