For ages 5-7
Welcome to Great Falls Park!

You are invited to become a member of a very special group of people: 

The Junior Rangers.

What is a Junior Ranger?

Junior Rangers are people like you who care about our National Parks. Did 

you know that the National Park Service protects and preserves these unique 

places for everyone to enjoy? By becoming a Junior Ranger, you can help the 

National Park Service take care of over 390 of these wonderful places in the United 

States and its territories. 

How can I earn a Junior Ranger badge?

 First, attend either the slide show in the Visitor Center Auditorium or a Ranger 

program.

 Then make sure you have this book, a pencil, and an adult with you. Read 

about the Junior Ranger motto on the following page. 

 Follow the Junior Ranger Trail to complete all of the activities in the book. A map 

is included in this booklet. Remember, for some questions there are no right or 

wrong answers. You will be challenged to think and use all of your senses. Park 

Rangers and Volunteers are here to help! They can give you clues and tell you 

about Great Falls Park.

 After you have finished the activities, show a Park Ranger your answers. Talk 

with the Ranger about what you saw, heard, and learned today. Be sure that you 

mention your favorite things about Great Falls Park

 You may write the answers yourself, or tell an adult your answer and ask them to 

help you write. At the end of this booklet is a special page for your notes and 

sketches.

Be on the lookout for this symbol in the book. It means that there is 

something that YOU can do as a Junior Ranger to help Great Falls Park.

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Explore, Learn, Protect

The Junior Ranger Motto

Explore 

Pick up a trail map and go for a hike, discover new things, and explore your National Park.

Learn 

About the plants, animals, and history of our National Parks by 

becoming a Junior Ranger.

Protect

Your National Parks by learning about them, sharing what you 

know with friends and family, and finding ways to protect the 

parks for future visitors.

Name: 

Signature:

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Important Tips on Staying Safe

As a Junior Ranger, you can help yourself and your family stay safe during visits to 

Great Falls Park. Here is a list of things to know about how to stay safe during your 

visit. Go over the list with an adult before you start on the Junior Ranger Trail.

1. Know how to recognize poison ivy. It can cause an itchy rash if you touch it. Be 

careful! Here is a picture: 

2. If you see any wildlife, such as squirrels, birds, snakes, or insects, make sure 

you stay a safe distance away. Do not try to feed, pet, or pick up wildlife– both of 

you could get hurt. Great Falls Park has one type of venomous snake, the 

Copperhead. It is pictured below. Be alert!

3. Use caution while climbing on rocks. There are tall cliffs here and the Potomac 

River has strong currents. No swimming or wading is permitted. Make sure to 

stay at least one body’s length away from the edge of a cliff or the river. Be safe!

4. In the summer, it can get very hot. Remember to carry water with you and to 

make sure that everyone in your group has water. Be smart!

5. Most importantly, have fun! If you have questions, or need help, contact a Park 

Ranger. Great Falls Park’s main phone number is 703-285-2965.

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The Junior Ranger Trail

Here is the Junior Ranger Trail map. Each stop is numbered and 

listed in the legend at the lower left part of this page. Make sure you also bring a 

Great Falls Trail map and a self-guided tour map of the Patowmack Canal with 

you. You can ask for them at the Visitor Center desk.

Visitor Center

Stop #1 and #8

Stop #6

Stop #7

Stop #3

Legend

Stop 1: Visitor Center

Stop 2: Overlook 3

Stop 3: Matildaville Ruins

Stop 4: Lock #1 of the Patowmack Canal

Stop 5: The Holding Basin

Stop 6: Mather Plaque

Stop 7: River Trail at pot holes in the rock

Stop 8: Visitor Center

Stop #2

Overlook 3

Lock #1 Stop #5

Stop #4

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Use Your Senses!

This activity can be done at any time during your hike. Choose 

a place to stop and look carefully at what is around you. Use all 

of your senses to fill out the lists below. At the end, write down 

your favorite things about the place that you chose.

What do you smell? List your favorite things

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Where did you go? 

What do you see? What do you hear?
Do not feed the animals.

Help Us Protect Great Falls Park

Did you know that each National Park was set aside for its own special reason so 

that all people may enjoy them now and in the future? As a Junior Ranger, you can 

help protect the park so that future generations can enjoy it as well.

On your way to stop #2 at Overlook 3, look for the brown regulation signs near the 

wooden footbridge. Draw three below and tell an adult what they mean. A sample 

has been done for you.

Talk with an adult about why you think these rules will help keep you safe. 

Also, think about how these rules will help protect Great Falls Park.

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The Town of Matildaville

As you walk around the Holding Basin, you will find stop #3 on the Junior Ranger 

Trail: the remains of Matildaville. Find Matildaville on your map. This town was 

built to help service the Patowmack Canal. There was a springhouse, an inn, and 

a house for the superintendent. 

A man named Henry (Lighthorse Harry) Lee, who was a friend of George 

Washington and the father of Robert E. Lee, built the town. He named it 

Matildaville, after his wife, Matilda.

If you could name a town, what would you call it? Why would you pick that 

name?

Time to use your imagination! Go up the trail to the Superintendent’s House. 

Picture what you think the town looked like 200 years ago. Imagine the town 

with people, houses, water in the canal, and boats loaded with cargo. Draw 

what you think Matildaville looked like in the space below.

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The Patowmack Canal

1785-1828

Continue down the Canal Trail to stop #4 at Lock 1. Look at the self-guided 

map of the Patowmack Canal for some interesting facts on the Canal.

When the Patowmack Canal was built, over 200 years ago, special people 

called masons cut the rocks that were used to build the canal locks. As you 

walk through Lock 1, look for marks carved into the stones. There are ten 

mason’s marks. How many can you find?

Have you ever drawn a picture that you were very proud of? What did you do 

to make sure everyone knew who drew the picture? Maybe you signed it. The 

masons used their Mason’s mark for the same reason, to show who had cut 

each stone.

Each mason had his own mark that he designed. Now it’s your turn! Design 

your own Mason’s Mark in the box below.

A Picture of a Mason’s Mark

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Your Mark
Help protect your park! Do not feed, touch, or approach any of the 

wildlife you see during your visits.

Stop #5 on the Junior Ranger Trail is at the Holding Basin. In the past, boats waited 

here to go down into the Locks. Today, it is home to many animals and birds. Walk 

around the Holding Basin. Point out places where animals and birds might like to 

hide, live, or look for food.

Make a list of the animals and birds that you see in the Holding Basin using the 

lines below. Describe to an adult or a Park Ranger one animal home that you see. 

Hide and Seek in the Holding Basin

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The Rocky River Trail

The River Trail is marked with blue blazes on the trees. Follow it 

upstream to stop #6 on the Junior Ranger Trail. This is Mather 

Plaque, a nice place to see Mather Gorge.

Continue on the River Trail to stop #7. As you are walking along the River Trail, 

look at the rocks alongside the trail. See if you can find the rock with two holes 

big enough to stand in. These big, round holes are called potholes and are your 

next stop on the Junior Ranger Trail.

Talk to an adult or a Park Ranger about how you think the hole was made. 

Here’s a hint: you are standing where the Potomac River used to flow before the 

falls and Mather Gorge formed. 

Do you think the river here looks different than it does at the Falls? List some of 

the differences you see. Why do you think it is different?

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Your National Parks

It’s time to head back to the Visitor Center! This is your last stop on the Junior 

Ranger Trail. Once you go inside, take a look at the badges on display in the 

children’s area.

These badges show some of the parks that Junior Rangers help to protect. Did you 

know that there are many ways you can help protect these special places? Let’s 

name some of them.

One other way you can help is by learning about other parks. Look at the badges 

and pick one from the park you would like to visit next. Draw the park’s badge 

below. 

Write down the name of 

the park you chose:

When you get home, 

visit www.nps.gov to 

learn more about the 

park you have chosen.

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Talk to a Park Ranger

1. What is the Ranger’s name?

2. Tell the Ranger about your favorite thing that you saw today. You 

can also draw a picture of it below.

3. There is a picture of the brown patch that Rangers wear below. 

Each line points to a different part of the patch. Ask the Ranger 

what each part of the patch means.

The Arrowhead

The Buffalo

Trees

Mountains

Lakes

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Once you have successfully completed the activities in 

this handbook, ask a Park Ranger or Volunteer to go 

over your answers with you. Then you will be 

awarded the Junior Ranger badge. Congratulations!
Notes and 

Observations

Sketches

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COLOR THE NPS PATCH

Here’s a fun coloring activity for you to do at home! 

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