The third national park the federal government ever created is inside a city

Rock Creek Park was officially authorised in 1890, which makes it **the
third national park designated by the federal government**. That date is the
surprising part: the idea of setting aside federal parkland was barely two
decades old, and the third example of it was not a canyon or a geyser field
but 1,754 acres of woodland inside the capital city.

It stretches from the Maryland–DC border to the Potomac River, offering an
escape from the bustle of the city: a refuge, recreation, fresh air, majestic
trees, wild animals, and thousands of years of human history.

Bigger than it looks on a map

Rock Creek Park also administers 99 separate neighbourhood sites. The park
on the map is the large green strip; the park as an administrative unit is
scattered across the whole city in small pieces, which is why its boundaries
are harder to state than most.

A large network of public roads gives access to every point it administers,
and there is ample parking for hiking, biking and the Nature Center at **5200
Glover Road NW**.

The weather, which is genuinely erratic

Two things the averages hide: **hurricanes may reach Washington in late
summer and autumn**, and light droughts are not uncommon in summer.

Location: Park, Washington, DC. Source: U.S. National Park Service.