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The National Parks Service is celebrating its centennial year in 2016, adding more free admissions days and offering free entry to every fourth grader (and their family) in America. And while we're dreaming of driving the country in a vintage VW camper, stopping at parks along the way, one pair of brothers is essentially making that dream a reality, camera in hand.
Will and Jim Pattiz have recently set out on a quest to visit all 59 main national parks, from Joshua Tree to American Samoa, and produce short films in each. Their most recent trip took them to Zion National Park in Utah, the sixth most-visited national park, where they filmed for 24 days—even through a snowstorm—to create their latest four-minute ode to the great outdoors. The hours of footage standing in the snow, protecting their equipment from the elements with their own jackets, was condensed into just eight-and-a-half seconds of the final film's timelapse.
All in all, the brothers have filmed six parks, visited 13 in their lifetime, and only visited their first national park a few years ago. "I still remember the feeling from when we entered our first national park, Petrified Forest in Arizona," Will told Traveler. "It was like setting foot on another planet. We started thinking to ourselves... 'We’ve got to share these wonders with as many folks as we can.'" Posting their videos and experiences on their website, More Than Just Parks, the brothers are doing just that. Looking for some photography from the great outdoors? You can also purchase select photos taken by the brothers in the parks.
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