National Parks Traveler

Chance Finegan

Biography

I am a member of the University of Tennessee at Martin Class of 2012, where I am majoring in natural resources management and minoring in history. I hope to become a ranger with the National Park Service after university, and later I'd like to go into environmental law and politics. I believe there is inherent value in the environment, and the observation of nature in a setting removed from the hectic world of day-to-day life uplifts the human spirit. I also believe there is value in our history – without history, there is nothing to base neither one’s understanding of the present nor one’s dreams of the future. These resources – natural, cultural, and historical – are found in communities throughout the world. Their intrinsic worth is beyond monetary value, and I so value these things that I intend to protect them, even in the face of insurmountable obstacles, so that all citizens, rich or poor, may enjoy them forever. I served as the president of CHS SPEAK (CHS Students Promoting Environmental Action and Knowledge) and the founder and president of the CHS Campus Greens during high school. I am also a Campus and Community Organizer for the Sierra Student Coalition, and a member of the SSC Conservation Committee and SSC Publishing Group (www.ssc.org/resources). I also serve on the Stop I-3 Coalition's (www.stopi3.org) Volunteers, Supporters, and Affiliates Committee.

The views and materials contained in my comments and posts are not, and should not be construed as, those of the National Park Service, the Department of the Interior, the United States Government, the University of Tennessee at Martin, the UT System, the State of Tennessee, or as those of any entity other than myself except where expressly stated. And yes, my statement of values is pretty darn close to that of the Tennessee State Park System, because our state parks are amazing, even if TDEC does some strange things every now and then.

Chance's Most Recent Comments (view all)

8/11/2008 4:54 am - Collapse of "Wall Arch" Proves Gravity Does Work at Arches National Park : SaltSage236, Thanks for correcting me. This is particularly useful information for me to have since I volunteer and sometimes give interpretive programs at BISO.
8/10/2008 4:43 pm - Collapse of "Wall Arch" Proves Gravity Does Work at Arches National Park : There is one park in the system where you are allowed, and are encouraged to, walk atop some sandstone arches - Big South Fork National River and Recreation Area, on the Tennessee/Kentucky line. It is 7/10ths of a mile to Twin Arches in the western side of the park via ...
6/01/2008 4:29 am - Traveler's View: Concealed Weapons Have No Place In Our National Park System : I always find it ironic that pro-gun people say the gun control crowd has been duped/misled/confused of the truth by the Brady Campaign, when the pro-gun people have been 'duped' just as much by the NRA....
5/21/2008 11:54 am - NPS Retirees Oppose Carrying Guns in National Parks : Rick, I'm not trying to debate about guns in the parks or nitpick...but I do think it's worth pointing out that the links you provided are to reports/studies, etc that were done several years ago. The FBI, CDC, DOJ and PA links all referenced documents published no later than 2006. ...
5/16/2008 3:52 pm - Coal-Fired Plants Obscuring National Park Vistas : OK, so I could go on a massive anti-coal rant the points out the many ills of said nasty, foul energy, and the merits and truth behind how we can power America on renewable energy, but I won't. No, I'll keep my mouth shut (mostly) and be brief... Coal plants ...
4/25/2008 9:49 am - Are Blue Ridge Parkway's Historic Guardrails At Risk? : I think it's worth to point out that this isn't just about guardrails. The FHWA wanted a 12 foot clear zone, which would have meant that NPS would have been responsible for removing anything in that 12 foot zone. Trees, rocks, rock walls built by the CCC, etc would have ...
3/17/2008 4:48 am - Snowmobilers Continue to Roam Illegally Into Yellowstone National Park : No one is acting like with nutzo, environazi, quais-religious zeal. Indeed, we are *trying* to have intelligent discourse about the issue at hand, and us liberal crazies have so far refrained from name-calling (sad I can't say the same about others...) As Kurt says, there are more than 450 million ...
3/16/2008 11:14 am - Dinosaur National Monument Cutting Paleontology Staff : .
3/16/2008 11:12 am - Olympic National Park Releases General Management Plan : I have nothing against the Port Angeles Regional COC, but to use "they can't pay for what they have now" as an excuse for not expanding the park is pretty lame in my opinion - very few NPS units can pay for what they have now...it's a shame PARCOC couldn't ...
1/30/2008 5:40 am - Using Controlled Burns To Manage Stones River National Battlefield : That's an awesome photo. Stones River, by the way, is facing monumental threats because of development at Middle Tennessee State University, (located just across town, it's the fastest growing university in America), in the city of Mufreesboro, and in the Greater Nashville Mess of a Meglapolis itself. For example, TDOT ...

Chance's Most Recent Articles (view all)

Creature Feature: The Pacific Treefrog

If you've ever heard a frog doing its “ribbet” thing anywhere along the Pacific Coast, it's probably been a Pacific Treefrog. And if you’ve ever seen one of these little critters up close, you know why many consider it one of the most fascinating of all the amphibians.

Creature Feature: Texas Banded Gecko

Big Bend National Park is remote and dry – not exactly a place that most people think of right away when they plan a vacation. But the desert is full of interesting things, some of them so small that they might escape notice. Take, for example, the ghostly Texas banded gecko.

Creature Feature: The American Marten

The American Marten is a rare North Woods animal that you'll probably never see, save for paw prints in the snow. This brown, bushy-tailed little critter, which looks something like a cross between a mink and a house-cat, was prized for its luxurious fur and darn near trapped to extinction in the United States during the 19th century. Today, despite habitat losses and related problems, the American Marten still inhabits much of its historical range.

Creature Feature: The Red-Throated Loon

The red-throated loon is the smallest, most widely distributed, and most distinctive of the world’s five loon species. Annually migrating from summer nesting sites in the Arctic reaches of North America and Eurasia to wintering grounds in the Lower 48, Mexico, Europe, and Asia, this bird can really move.

Creature Feature: the Many-Colored Fruit Dove

A tiny clutch of islands in the South Pacific harbors not only the National Park of American Samoa, one of the National Park System’s oft-overlooked delights, but also some of the last vestiges of the many-Colored Fruit Dove, a colorful bird that long has captivated those lucky enough to spy it.

Are Blue Ridge Parkway's Historic Guardrails At Risk?

A hallmark of driving the Blue Ridge Parkway - and most national park roads - has always been the rustic stone or wood guard rails that line the roadway. But now, that could all change.

Creature Feature: Hellbenders

Despite their curious name, “hellbenders” are not demons of the night but rather amphibious environmental monitors of Southeastern creeks and streams. Known to some old-timers as “walking catfish,” these super-sized salamanders gained the “hellbender” moniker for their freakish size and dark, moody color.

The Wild Trees: A Story of Passion and Daring

California’s northern coast holds many secrets. The foggy landscape is full of imposing mountains, windswept beaches, and valleys that rival the hollows of the Smokies in terms of narrow inaccessibility. Bigfoot is rumored to live in the area, and somewhere the world’s tallest living being, a coast redwood (Sequoia sempervirens) named "Hyperion," stands witness to the passage of more than two thousand years.

Park History: Kings Canyon National Park

Kings Canyon National Park is an alpine wonderland, set amongst the rugged lands of the Sierra Mountains in California, just north of Sequoia National Park and to the southeast of Yosemite National Park. The park, administered with Sequoia, is one of America’s oldest. While it still protects the ancient sequoia trees of the Grant Grove that were the park’s original focal point, it is rapidly becoming known as one of America’s premier backcountry destinations.

Poaching Trees from Redwood National Park

Illegal poaching of resources from national parks has a long, unsettling history. In Great Smokies, it’s ginseng poaching. In Petrified Forest, it’s thievery of fossilized trees.