One man visited the Waco Mammoth National Monument as part of his quest to set a world record.
Mikah Meyer, 30, said he’s been traveling across the country in hopes to become the youngest person to visit all of the National Park sites in the country. He says he also hopes to become the first to visit the parks in one continuous trip.
“I enjoy seeing beautiful places and going on hikes,” Meyer said. “We live in such a beautiful world and such a beautiful country that it would be a shame to not take advantage of this amazing biodiversity that we have in our own backyard.”
The Nebraska native said he started his 3 year trip in hopes to honor the memory of his father who passed away from cancer.
“When I was 19, my dad passed away from cancer and it just basically changed my worldview as far as showing me that we don’t have forever to follow our dreams,” Meyer said.
Meyer has been following his dreams along the East, the Southeast, and now the Southwest United States. He’s been stamping a national parks booklet to officially mark each step in his journey. His latest stamp is Waco.
Meyer said, “For Waco National Monument, this is National Park Service site 130 out of 417.”
The Waco Mammoth National Monument website said the park became an official national monument in 2015.
“So I had no idea that this was the nation’s first and only nursery herd of mammoths that’s ever been found,” Meyer said. “That’s what makes this place so special and that’s why it’s a national monument.”
In addition to breaking world records, Meyer said he aims to break stereotypes. As an openly gay traveler, he hopes to prove that people in the LGBTQ community can be outdoorsy. His message for Central Texas’ LGBTQ youth is that it gets better.
“I come from a state where it’s really hard to be out and open as a child, so I would like to encourage people that it gets better. Meyer said in reference to LGBTQ youth. “They can do whatever they want. They can set world records. They can do anything.”
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