Like visiting our fabulous national parks?

In celebration of the Juneteenth national holiday, the National Park Service is offering free admission to all its parks, monuments and other properties Thursday.

Juneteenth is a federal holiday that celebrates the 1865 abolition of slavery in the United States. To learn more about Juneteenth and park events planned for that day, go to nps.gov.

This free day can save you a $50 national park entry fee at many places or even more, but there are things to consider: These free days, which don’t cover other fees like camping, are popular. For maximum enjoyment, I suggest getting there when the park opens or at sunrise, before everyone else is even out of bed. No crowds, you can find parking, and sunrise is really beautiful, right? C’mon. You can do it this once.

The nine national parks in California are Channel Islands (boat ride is not free), Death Valley, Joshua Tree, Lassen, Pinnacles, Redwood, Sequoia, Kings Canyon and Yosemite. For that last one, you’ll need an online vehicle reservation to enter from 6 a.m. to 2 p.m. Thursday unless you have lodging or camping reservations.

This won’t be the last free Park Service admission day this year. Entrance fees will be waived Aug. 4 (anniversary of the Great American Outdoors Act), Sept. 27 (National Public Lands Day) and Nov. 11 (Veterans Day).

And enjoy!