National Parks Traveler

Kurt Repanshek

Biography

Kurt Repanshek built his journalism career atop a 14-year stint with The Associated Press that saw him rise from a general assignment reporter to correspondent-in-charge for the state of Wyoming. Since embarking on a freelance career in the fall of 1993, his articles have appeared in Smithsonian, National Geographic Traveler, Audubon, National Wildlife, Hemispheres, Wilderness, and other publications. He launched NPT in August 2005 because of his love, and concern, for national parks.

His other credits include an article on national parks of the world for Microsoft’s Encarta CD-Rom as well as three guidebooks to the national parks. A contributor to the Travel Arts Syndicate, his stories have appeared in the Miami Herald, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Denver Post, and other newspapers.

During his AP career Kurt helped direct and contribute to AP coverage of the 1988 forest fires in and around Yellowstone National Park; covered statewide, congressional, and presidential campaigns, and; closely followed public lands issues in the Rocky Mountain West. A freelance story he wrote on the collapse of the WordPerfect software designer won top honors from the Society of Professional Journalists, Utah chapter.

Kurt's Most Recent Comments (view all)

1/05/2009 5:22 pm - Bush Administration Publishes Proposed Rule For Mountain Biking in National Parks : Actually, if you create a profile in the [b][i]Traveler's[/i][/b] system you have the option of being notified when a comment has been attached to a post that you've commented on. One more reason to join the club!
1/04/2009 4:27 pm - Yosemite National Park Officials Looking For Suggestions on Preserving Badger Pass Ski Lodge : Actually, there's a small alpine resort on Hurricane Ridge in Olympic National Park...
1/02/2009 2:27 pm - Yosemite National Park Officials Looking For Suggestions on Preserving Badger Pass Ski Lodge : Frank, Interesting concept, but..... ...You paid 16 pounds per ticket, which works out (today) to about $46 and change for the two of you to tour the Tower. So a family of four could be expected to pay between $75-$100 just to gain entrance for one day? So you're OK ...
1/02/2009 12:26 pm - Yosemite National Park Officials Looking For Suggestions on Preserving Badger Pass Ski Lodge : Geez, Alexander, Happy New Year to you, too! I don't see where I was telling a "sob story" at all. All I was merely pointing out (after noting that [i][b]I was not taking a stand[/b][/i] one way or another on the business practices of concessionaires) was that the Jacobs family ...
1/01/2009 7:25 pm - Yosemite National Park Officials Looking For Suggestions on Preserving Badger Pass Ski Lodge : C'mon Frank, this is America. Isn't becoming a success the American dream? Don't you aspire to better yourself and your family? The Jacobs' family success [i]is[/i] the American dream, with three brothers earning their start in business selling peanuts and popcorn at ball games. Now, I'm not taking sides pro- ...
1/01/2009 12:33 pm - Resolved: I’ll Visit at Least These Five National Parks in 2009 : Good point, DWalker. For several years I've been pondering a backpack trip there, and since it's in my backyard, relatively speaking (what's a 5-hour drive?!?), I should add that to my 09 list.
1/01/2009 12:24 pm - Resolved: I’ll Visit at Least These Five National Parks in 2009 : 2008 was a good year for me, park-wise, as I made stops in Great Smoky, Cape Cod National Seashore, Fredericksburg & Spotsylvania National Military Park, New Bedford Whaling National Historical Park, Yellowstone, Grand Teton, Death Valley, Yosemite, and Devils Postpile. But......there still are many units out there that I have ...
12/31/2008 12:05 pm - Brady Campaign Sues Interior Department over Concealed Carry in National Parks : Frank N, [url=http://www.nationalparkstraveler.com/2008/03/violent-deaths-national-parks]this is probably the story[/url] you're recalling considering crime stats for the national parks.
12/30/2008 10:58 pm - Pouring Sand Down a Rathole: The $100 Million National Visitor Center Fiasco : During a recent, temporary, two-year stint my wife spent in Washington, with an apartment a few blocks from Union Station, I got to know this structure well enough to get through it. Though not as grand as Grand Central Station in that fair metropolis to the north, I've found Union ...
12/30/2008 4:26 pm - What's Driving All The Shaking At Yellowstone National Park? : Jim, Thanks for pointing to your newspaper. There definitely are some bizarre posts out there in cyberspace. I particularly liked the one titled, "We are all going to die..." I wonder if there's going to be a run on DVDs of [i][b]Supervolcano[/b][/i]?

Kurt's Most Recent Articles (view all)

Accessibility in the National Park System

The other day I read a story about efforts at Cape Lookout National Seashore to install an ADA accessible ramp. And that got me to wondering about how accessible the National Park System is.

Earthquakes Continuing to Rattle Yellowstone National Park

Call it an earth scientist's dream: Swarms of earthquakes are continuing to rattle Yellowstone National Park. What they're indicating is the question we're all waiting to hear an answer to.

Weekly Snowshoe Treks Coming to Glacier National Park

Winter is one of the easiest seasons to follow the movements of wildlife in the national parks. Not only can their every move be captured in the snow, but on rare occasions you can follow the interplay between animals.

Yosemite National Park Officials Looking For Suggestions on Preserving Badger Pass Ski Lodge

Would it be blasphemy to suggest that Yosemite National Park get out of the ski business?

Some Things We'd Like 2009 To Bring to the National Park System

Well, here it is, January 1. Out with 2008, in with 2009. And that means it's time to look ahead to the new year and dream about what we'd like to see happen across the National Park System in the coming 12 months.

Happy New Year from the Traveler!

We at the Traveler would like to wish all our readers a very Happy New Year! May 2009 bring you many adventures in our National Park System.

Wanted: Expert on Lassen Volcanic National Park

Wanted: Expert on Lassen Volcanic National Park. Topic: Snowshoeing.

Update From Sequoia National Park: Lodgepole Is Back In Business

It took a coupla days, but the power is back on at Lodgepole in Sequoia National Park.

Brady Campaign Sues Interior Department over Concealed Carry in National Parks

The Brady Campaign has filed a lawsuit against the Interior Department over its plans to allow national park visitors to arm themselves. While the rule change is set to take effect January 9, the lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia also seeks an injunction to prevent that from occurring.

What's Driving All The Shaking At Yellowstone National Park?

It's no secret that Yellowstone National Park is volcanic in nature. Still, scientists are raising their eyebrows over a recent swarm of earthquakes that have been shaking the park's underpinnings.