Visitation at America’s national parks broke records in 2014 as the National Park Service prepares to celebrate its centennial in 2016.

Mesa Verde National Park had a 9 percent increase in visitors last year, cracking the half-million mark for the first time since 2011.

Mesa Verde’s 501,563 visitors in 2014 was well short of the park’s record year in 1988, when it attracted 772,183 visitors.

The most-visited location in the national parks system was Golden Gate National Recreation Area, with 15 million visitors in 2014.

In 2014, there were 292.8 million visits to national parks, breaking the previous record set in 1999 when parks saw 287.1 million visits, the Park Service said in a news release.

Several national parks saw record-breaking visitation in 2014, including Joshua Tree, Rocky Mountain, Grand Teton and Glacier national parks, the agency said. The reopening of the Washington Monument 21 months after it was damaged by an earthquake also added to 2014 visitation numbers.

“As the National Park Service strives to share a more inclusive and well-rounded version of the American story through the places we care for, it is gratifying to see more people than ever coming to their national parks to enjoy nature, learn about history and spend time with their families,” National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis said in the news release.

Great Smoky Mountains National Park was the most-visited national park with 10 million visitors. Other notable national parks:

The Grand Canyon had 4.8 million visitors

Yosemite, 3.9 million

Yellowstone, 3.5 million

Rocky Mountain, 3.4 million

Olympic, 3.2 million

Zion, 3.2 million

Grand Teton, 2.8 million

Acadia, 2.6 million

Glacier, 2.4 million.

cslothower@durangoherald.com