National Park Service puts a spooky twist on Halloween with pumpkin carving challenge
The National Park Service offers eight pumpkin carving templates for inspiration or for creating your own design.
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THE TAKEAWAY
- The National Park Service is holding a pumpkin carving challenge.
- Each template features a theme related to the qualities of different national parks across the U.S.
- The NPS offers eight pumpkin carving templates for inspiration or for creating your own design.
As Halloween approaches, millions of Americans will celebrate the fun-filled tradition safely, including in national parks.
The National Park Service (NPS) is encouraging Americans to show off their carving skills with a pumpkin carving challenge ahead of Halloween.
The NPS offers eight pumpkin carving templates for inspiration or for creating your own design.
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Each template features a theme related to the qualities of different national parks across the U.S.
The autumn leaves template is one of the easier options to carve for the challenge, complementing the plethora of pretty fall foliage colors you can see at so many national parks.
Autumn leaves pumpkin template.
(NPS)
The batty one template is another option that complements the numerous roosting grounds or migratory stops for millions of bats.
Bat pumpkin template.
(NPS)
The close encounter option is a difficult template to carve, but sheds light on the dangers of viewing wildlife in national parks, which can result in serious injuries and even death.
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Wildlife dangers pumpkin template.
(NPS)
The full moon may be one of the best-looking templates the NPS has to offer, offering a chance to view the stars.
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Wolf pumpkin carving template.
(NPS)
National parks offer plenty of chances to enjoy the great outdoors for extended periods, which is why the NPS offers the camper option to carve your pumpkin.
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National parks offer plenty of chances to enjoy the great outdoors for extended periods, which is why the NPS offers the camper option to carve your pumpkin.
(NPS)
The NPS holds an iconic fat bear challenge every year, awarding the chunkiest bear in the country the title, so the fat bear is one of the carving options.
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The NPS holds an iconic fat bear challenge every year.
(NPS)
The final template for the pumpkin carving challenge is the web designer, a difficult task to carve carefully, but the final product can be spooky and eye-catching.
Not only are all living things in parks connected in a web, but are also part of a global network of ecosystems.
(NPS)
Choose any of these options and follow these simple steps to create festive park pumpkin art to celebrate Halloween.
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Pumpkin challenge submission
How to participate and submit your pumpkin:
Step 1: Pick your favorite template and print it to match your pumpkin’s surface area, or create your own pumpkin park artwork.
Step 2: Cut out the dark area of the template.
Step 3: Use the template to trace the image on your pumpkin.
Step 4: Carefully carve out the design (or close enough) with a knife.
Share your pumpkin park art on social media using the hashtag #FindYourPark.