The National Park Service is turning 100 this year and hosting a yearlong celebration where citizens are recipients of the gift of nature.

On Aug. 25, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed legislation to create the NPS. Today, there are more than 400 national parks in the U.S., and each tells an important part of the American story.

National parks commemorate notable people and achievements, conserve magnificent landscapes, celebrate natural wonders and more — all providing an opportunity for Americans to make meaningful connections to nature, history and culture. So pack the kids in the car, put the dog on a leash or don your hiking boots, but definitely take advantage of all the natural beauty the national parks have to offer — for free.

The NPS has initiated several programs to encourage attendance during this centennial year. If you have a fourth-grader, admission to all national parks is free for the entire year, and applies to the whole family, thanks to the 100th anniversary program called "Every Kid in a Park." In addition, active duty military and citizens with a permanent disability can also get free passes year round.

There are 281 national parks around the country that always offer free admission. This year, the National Park Service is offering 16 days of free admission to the other 127 parks that usually charge entrance fees, including the Everglades, Yellowstone, Crater Lake, Alaska's Denali National Park and Joshua Tree National Park in California.

If you can't make it to a park in 2016, the Park Service does waive admission fees — which range anywhere from $3 to $30 — on certain special days every year. In 2016, seven more free days were added to the nine existing days, including National Park Week, held April 16-24; the annual National Park Service Birthday, Aug. 25-28; National Public Lands Day, Sept. 24; and Veterans Day, Nov. 11.

In honor of the anniversary, the National Park Service and National Park Foundation also created a list of 99 ways for visitors to enjoy a national park, including activities like climbing a mountain, taking a ranger-led tour, rafting down a river, viewing wildlife and hiking a glacier (like our family did in Alaska). A complete list of activities is available here.

America invites the world to discover the meaning of national parks to their lives and inspires people to both experience and become devoted to these special places. So find a park, post a picture and bask in the beauty of the national parks of America.

To look for a national park near you, visit the National Park Foundation's "Find a Park" page.