Becoming a Junior Ranger at Maryland’s National Park Sites

by Melissa Moore

Two years ago my family moved to the Washington DC area from California so that my husband could work at Coast Guard Headquarters; like many families in the DC area we know that our stay here will be temporary.  So, whenever we have a Saturday with no commitments, I scan my list of historic sites - the places that we want to make sure to visit before we leave the area - and go check out one that is new to us.

Recently, my seven year old daughter has become obsessed with the National Park System’s Junior Ranger Program. We have completed many, but certainly not all, of the programs in the area.  By my count, there are about 15 of these programs available in Maryland alone.

Here is my list of many of the sites in Maryland run by the National Park service, a brief description of what your family can enjoy at the park and the details on what sort of junior ranger activities are available. 

Chesapeake and Ohio Canal National Historic Park
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Our family lives about 20 minutes from the Great Falls Tavern Visitor Center along the C&O Canal so it is my personal “go to” park for biking along the canal towpath, hiking, and nature walks out to Great Falls. Not only is this the starting point for the infamous Billy Goat trail – one of my son’s favorite hikes, but families can also enjoy a historic trip in a canal boat through the canal lock right by the visitor center.

Notes on the Junior Ranger Program:
The booklet is available for download online and covers the entirety of the canal – not just the portion around the Great Falls Visitor Center. My kindergarten-age son was also able to complete this program.  

Important Forts – Fort McHenry and Fort Washington
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If you’re only going to visit one historic site in Maryland, it should be Fort McHenry National Monument and Historic Shrine in Baltimore; this site commemorates the location of the Battle of Baltimore from the War of 1812 that inspired Francis Scott Key to write the poem that became the United States national anthem. At the end of most days at Fort McHenry, families can help take down the massive flag that flies over the fort. While you’re at the fort, be sure to watch the video in the visitor center; it’s of excellent quality and has a surprise ending.

My kids also love visiting Fort Washington Park. There is a small visitor center with helpful rangers, but this park feels more or less like abandoned fort with plenty of nooks and crannies to freely explore. Unless you make an effort to grab the junior ranger packet, a visit to Fort Washington ends up more like a visit to a playground than a historic site – which will keep the kids asking to come back over and over again. 

Notes on the Junior Ranger Programs:
At both sites, the junior ranger program was simple enough for my kindergartner to complete.  The Fort McHenry booklet is available online and takes about an hour to complete; the Fort Washington booklet is available on site. 

Civil War Battlefields – Antietam and Monocacy

If you’ve spent any time driving around Virginia and Maryland, surely you know that there are plenty of preserved Civil War Battlefields in the region. Maryland’s two national battlefield parks are Antietam National Battlefield, located between Shepherdstown, WV and I-70 in Maryland, and Monocacy National Battlefield, located along the 270 corridor near Frederick. Of course, the stories told at these two battlefields are most compelling when there is a special event or living history reenactment, but their visitor centers are open almost every day of the year. Both parks have a visit center that describes the battle and is worth a 15-30 minute visit. 

Notes on the Junior Ranger Programs:
​Monocacy National Battlefield recently published a new junior ranger booklet which is available at their visitor center; children receive a badge and/or a patch depending on the amount of activities which they complete. Antietam offers different junior ranger booklets (available online) based on a child’s age and grade level; both my kids were able to complete the booklet for younger children. I was particularly impressed with the fact that Antietam’s program introduced young children to the site without focusing on the blood and gore of battle – this being the bloodiest one day battle fought on in the US. 

Thomas Stone National Historic Site
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If your kids are learning about the Declaration of Independence or are really into the junior ranger program, I recommend taking the drive out to Southern Maryland to tour the Thomas Stone house. This obscure site has some of the friendliest rangers, a historic copy of the Declaration of Independence (which Thomas Stone signed), and an interesting colonial-era story to tell.

Notes on the Junior Ranger Program:
Junior Ranger booklets are available online or at the site and take about an hour to complete. The rangers at this site are particularly enthusiastic about the junior ranger program and educating the next generation of history buffs. We found several additional junior ranger booklets including one for the Star-Spangled Banner National Historic Trail and another for the Captain John Smith Chesapeake National Historic Trail.  My kindergarten-age son was able to complete the booklet at this site. 

Catoctin Mountain Park
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Catoctin Mountain Park is a great place to go for a hike in Maryland’s mountains less than an hour away from Washington DC; it also happens to the home of the Presidential retreat, Camp David. (Though, of course, Camp David is not open to the public.)

Notes on the Junior Ranger Program:
The junior ranger booklet can be printed out at home and requires several activities that required academic skills too advanced for my kindergartener. It is the perfect activity to keep a 2nd or 3rd grader busy in the car on the drive out to the park.

More Places to Visit

Assateague Island National Seashore, Hampton National Historic Site, Oxen Cove Park, and Glen Echo Park all appear to have junior ranger programs available for children; however, our family has not yet had the opportunity to check out the programs available at these sites. There is also a program offered in conjunction with the Clara Barton National Historic Site which is projected to be closed for most of 2016 due to rehabilitation.

General Junior Ranger Tips
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Often we print out the booklets at home so that my daughter can complete the word searches, mazes and coloring activities on our drive to the national park site. In order to print out a booklet for a specific park: go the park’s website, click on the “Learn about the Park” drop-down menu, and select “Kids & Youth.” This is the best place to find out if a park has a junior ranger program available and see if there are materials available for download.

​For more family travel adventures, follow the author, Melissa Moore, on Twitter and Instagram as @DCTravelMom and read her articles as the DC, MD and VA family travel guru on the acclaimed national website, Trekaroo.