Zion National Park
Have a BLAST learning!
2-9 yr olds
NOW ENROLLING
Preschool programs
Ages 2 yrs – 5 yrs
Summer Classes
Ages 2 yrs – 9 yrs
Children enjoy fun & exciting
programs that help LAUNCH
them into academic success!
9400 Transit Road,
East Amherst
716-688-1772
www.launchpadforlearning.com
Quality Preschool Education
Enroll Your
3 or 4 Year Old Today!
Six Centers Serving
Buffalo & Tonawanda
✓ Buffalo Universal Pre-K On-site
✓ Before & After Care Services Available
Funded through HHS/CAO
Call 852-8373
Visit us at www.holycrossheadstart.org
FAMILY TRAVEL continued...
River operations have even resumed in the Grand Canyon.
Snagging seats on Grand Canyon rafting trips was impossible
just a few months ago. However, pandemic driven cancellations
by international travelers has opened up seats for
some of Western River Expeditions 2020 departures. These are
definitely trip-of-a-lifetime adventures and provide the perfect
anecdote to the stress of the pandemic life.
Although most of the grand iconic national parks are in the
west, Shenandoah National Park, is within a day’s drive of
Western New York. It is in the process of reopening and hiking
trails and other features have already opened. Skyline Drive
runs 105 miles north and south, along the crest of the Blue
Ridge Mountains and is the only public road through the park.
It is a narrow mountain road with 75 marked scenic overlooks
and more than
500 miles of hiking
Shenandoah
trails. The road was
National Park
designed to give urban
residents from the East
Coast the national park
experience that had
become so popular in
the great parks of the
west such as Yosemite,
Zion and Grand
Canyon. The southern
entrance of the park is
25 miles west of Charlottesville,
Virginia.
Travel Tip of the Month: For New York State parks visit
parks.ny.gov and find information on individual parks and
telephone numbers. Campgrounds have opened and it may be
possible to snag a reservation this summer. For national parks
visit nps.gov. For Presque Isle State Park visit dcnr.pa.gov. For
Grand Canyon raft trips and trips in Utah and Idaho visit www.
westernriver.com.
Deborah Williams is a veteran travel writer whose work has
appeared in national and international publications. She lives
in Holland, NY and is the recipient of the Society of American
Travel Writers’ Lowell Thomas Gold Travel Writing Award.
July 2020 WNY Family 37