# @nationalparkservice on Instagram

- **Type:** Image
- **Original URL:** https://www.instagram.com/p/C18QI1qrbSt
- **Gondola URL:** https://gondola.cc/posts/21020568-nationalparkservice-instagram
- **Thumbnail:** https://img.gondola.cc/tr:w-,h-,fo-auto/thumbnails/0b8999eb41.jpg
- **Posted:** 2024-01-11T01:24:48.000+00:00
- **Account Owner:** National Park Service (@nationalparkservice) — https://gondola.cc/nationalparkservice

## Caption

Uh-oh! Guess what day it is? Guess what day! Aww come on, I know you can hear me.⁣ 🐪
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It’s huuuummmmmmmmp daaaaay! Back in 1857, Lt. Edward F. Beale’s caravan of camels, surveyors and Army soldiers camped at what is now El Morro National Monument en route to California. The expedition was tasked to scout a new wagon route to the gold fields. It was also part of an experiment to test camels as beasts of burden in the punishing deserts of the American Southwest. The Army’s unique experiment with camels would come to be known by many as “The Camel Corps.” Although Beale was skeptical at first, the camels soon proved their worth. A camel could easily carry four times as much cargo as an Army mule. Camels could go for weeks without water. Not picky eaters, they happily munched prickly pear, thorny mesquite branches and whatever else the landscape afforded. While the camels proved to be hardy and well suited to travel through the region, the Army declined to adopt them for military use. The Civil War interfered with the experiment and it was eventually abandoned.⁣
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Image: A camels head facing toward the viewer with a strange smirk on it’s face. A tethered camel stands in the background at El Morro during a commemoration ceremony.⁣

#humpday #wednesday #camel #history #nationalparks #elmorro

## Stats

- **Views:** 0
- **Likes:** 36,064
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- **Comments:** 129

## Credits

| Name | Username | Profile | Role |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| National Park Service | @nationalparkservice | https://gondola.cc/nationalparkservice | Government Organization |

## Tags

elmorro, camel, history, wednesday, nationalparks, humpday

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