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This Park Has Scenery, History and a Treasure Trove of Art and Photos

Dec 12th - 11:35am | JimB

MRC - Thanks for the additional information on the fossils and more on the living history. Jim - glad for the confirmation that this is one of those sometimes overlooked but very worthwhile parks.

Dec 12th - 11:18am | Jim

We came by Scotts Bluff one sunny morning back in October and were delighted with our visit. As often with Park Service units it has been the most unassuming and less well known that have been the most enjoyable. Scotts Bluff was certainly one of those. The visitor centre is something of an antique and well worth preserving.

Dec 12th - 04:35am | MRC

Thanks for bringing attention to this often overlooked gem in the NP system. Scotts Bluff is amazing in its variety, from the history of the Oregon Trail (and not to forget the California Trail, the Mormon Pioneer Trail and the Pony Express, which all ran together on the same route in their respective times), to nature with the rocks, cliffs and bluffs, to art by Jackson.

Wal-Mart Request Would Put a Super Center Next to The Wilderness Battlefield

Dec 11th - 21:27pm | Anonymous

There's so many good textbooks written on the subject of mallization of America. City planners have fought for years to stabilize regional planning fiascos that corporate interests tries to shove down are throats...Walmart is one of them with their jaded wing tip shoe lawyers.

Dec 11th - 18:54pm | Dan

This string of comments makes clear that there are three competing issues here.

Dec 11th - 09:38am | Anonymous

Haven't we developed enough land? I'm quite certain there is an empty building somewhere that Wal-Mart can utilize. When we moved into our home 4 1/2 years ago, we were able to hear the coyotes howling at night. Now we rarely hear them, maybe once a year. This is all due to development.

Dec 10th - 19:46pm | Warren Z

d-2: I'm newly aware of this situation, so I'm not familiar with the entire history of the site. But your first post in this comment string is educational in that regard. My own first post was a quick reaction to reading the article and commentary. As for the 1993 CWSAC, I will have to familiarize myself with that document before answering those questions.

Dec 10th - 19:29pm | Anonymous

Wal-mart needs to go somewhere else. On second thought, don't we have enough Wal-marts? Do we really need one more? I don't think so. They'll probably build this store, then build a bigger and better one a few years later, and this store will sit empty and broken down forever. Enough of corporate greed.

Dec 10th - 16:33pm | d-2

Dear Warren Z: I am not clear from your post: are you saying that the Priority I, Class A site should, or should not be preserved (IE:preserved by either adding it to the park or some local equivalent protection)?

Dec 10th - 15:59pm | Warren Z

There is an excellent book that chronicles a similar situation with another Civil War battlefield in Northern Virginia.

Dec 10th - 14:37pm | Anonymous

It sounds as if this parcel was going to be developed no matter what. This is just a thought. In other parts of the USA, WalMart has built attractive buildings as well placed landscaping around the parking lot and the road that it was facing. Recently we were in New Hampshire and saw a WalMart that, if it hadn't had the sign, I would never have thought it was one.

Dec 10th - 13:43pm | d-2

Frank C., there have been multiple zoning discussions involving the Spotsylvania-Wilderness-Fredericksburg battlefields. No one is sitting on their hands, except perhaps for the fact that the local government does not have one overall land protection and development strategy for all these areas.

Dec 10th - 12:18pm | Chuck

Kurt: I agree. So I guess I will be "Preaching to the Chior". Basicaly, I have always believed that if you wish to control what occures on any piece of land, then you need to own that land. If you do not want to SEE what is done with somebody's land, then again, you need to own that land also.

Dec 10th - 11:35am | Kurt Repanshek

Beamis, as much as I'd like to hear your rebel yell...while Wal-Mart certainly is a favorite punching bag of many, I'd venture that folks would get similarly upset if Whole Foods or REI or Best Buy moved to develop this much acreage next to a park.

Dec 10th - 11:31am | dapster

Not too surprising, considering the "Yellow Tavern" battlefield just North of Richmond is the site of an expansive mall complex today. The site where JEB Stuart received his mortal wound can be found nearby, after a tedious search through suburbia, surrounded by homes.

Dec 10th - 11:27am | Kurt Repanshek

Frank and Anonymous, you both hit on a point that comes up time and again when there's talk of development beyond a park's borders, whether it's the case of the American Revolution Center near Valley Forge, this Wal-Mart proposal, or oil and gas drilling in Utah. Does an amicable solution exist? Where do a park's borders end, its viewsheds? What's appropriate in those settings?

Dec 10th - 10:39am | Anonymous

I agree with the previous comment that this is not about Walmart. Would people be as concerned if it were a housing development? If the land is privately owned, does not the owner have the right to use the property as he/she pleases?

Dec 10th - 09:50am | Anonymous

If it isn't Walmart, will it just be some other development? Walmart is always an easy target bash. The real issue is what to do about this property if it is important to the battlefield.

Dec 10th - 09:32am | Vigil One

Walmart = Greed.....plain and simple.

Dec 10th - 09:26am | OutdoorMary

NO NO NO NO NO!!! Have respect for this precious land! ! ! !...............there are ENOUGH Walmart's & shopping centers!!!!

What's the Latest On The Search for An Interior Secretary?

Dec 11th - 21:05pm | Anonymous

Frank C, if so choosen...please keep the NRA influence out of the National Parks...which I dare you won't do...Mr. Gun shop!

Dec 11th - 18:11pm | Anonymous

Time is short for planet earth, let's get a pro-active conservationist in the DOI. Let's tone down all of are afterburners with less energy and select a good man that can make it all happen. May I suggest several individuals: Mr. Grijalva is a good one but we need someone more dynamic. Perhaps somebody from the Stuart Udall family would like to throw in there hat.

Dec 11th - 15:30pm | dapster

Perhaps Mr. Berry can find a middle-ground where motorized use can be balanced with conservation at all levels. Having someone in that post who can objectively look a both sides would be a boon to the DOI, not at all a detriment.

Dec 11th - 15:15pm | Anonymous

Grijalva still remains the best choice, and people need to continue the push for him to be apppointed. Don't let insider politics drail the best opportunity we have to clean up interior and protect our public lands. he is staying in the hunt. His folks are saying that he is not giving up this fight for interior until the president elect makes the call.

Dec 11th - 13:59pm | Anonymous

Yikes! Well at least he's better than Mike Thompson (who voted against roadless areas in Tongass for example)!

Assateague Island National Seashore Rangers Troll Internet For Big Catch

Dec 11th - 14:28pm | Team ROCKIT

The woman was ignorant for bragging, it never gets you anywhere. As for posting incriminating evidence, that was without a doubt stupid. Not knowing the law is no excuse. Banning ORV from the beach is not the answer. There should be more patrols by rangers to keep the fishermen in check and inspect their catch. To keep the traffic at a minimum they (rangers) should use ATVs or SideXsides (ie.

Interior Department To Be Sued Over Cape Hatteras National Seashore Plover Habitat Decisions

Dec 11th - 14:20pm | Anonymous

This issue has been dictated by egos and money and plain ole personal gain by people that have no clue as to the history, area, and people that live there. It was promised as recreational, created and designated as recreational, and yet law suits are being fought over something that has already been designated as recreational.

National Park Service Draws Criticism for Winter-Use Plan for Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks

Dec 11th - 13:59pm | Anonymous

Sabattis - The timeline actually leaves out Brimmer's ruling altogether, and only mentions it in reference to the Bush Administration's referencing of it in publishing their rule in the Federal Register on Dec. 9th. The GYC is obviously picking what they want to put in their timeline and not being as thorough as they could be.

Dec 10th - 22:18pm | Sabattis

Kurt - Yes, I did confuse Judges Sullivan and Brimmer in my original post - I of course meant Judge Brimmer when I referred to Judge Sullivan. I blame it on too many judges and posting too late at night!

Dec 10th - 14:10pm | Anonymous

I have been following this issue for some time now from a completely legal perspective. As Judge Sullivan's most recent opinion reads, he struck down the NPS' new permanent plan as being "arbitrary and capricious," which is a legal term of art which basically means there is no rational connection between the facts found and the choice made.

Dec 10th - 10:37am | jsmacdonald

Following this, what I keep noticing is the somewhat more timid stance on the issue that GYC has taken. First, when it appeared after Sullivan's ruling that they could have stopped the entire winter season, they suggested that 280 or so snowmobiles would be appropriate as a daily limit for this season. Before that, NPS was suggesting there might not be a winter season.

Dec 10th - 07:04am | Kurt Repanshek

Sabattis, Correct me if I'm wrong, but I think you're confusing Judge Brimmer with Judge Sullivan when you refer to who wanted the Park Service to revert to the 720 limit "because of the inherent impossibility of going through all the necessary procedures to set a new limit in time for the 2008-2009 Winter Season."

Dec 9th - 20:53pm | Sabattis

The timeline provided by the conservation groups seems pretty disingenuous. Normally in a timeline you place events in the order that they occurred - only makes sense, right?

At Yellowstone, It’s Fluffy the Snuggle-Bud One, Coyotes Zero

Dec 11th - 12:56pm | jsmacdonald

I guess, Bob, that's why I'm in part not convinced that feral cats couldn't colonize Yellowstone, though there's no evidence that they have to date despite decades of visitors losing cats and people on the borderlands with cats. They strike me as very resourceful animals.

Dec 11th - 12:37pm | Bob Janiskee

I've heard lots of similar comments, Eric, and I have a theory. (Well, at least an hypothesis.) Cats that live in coyote territory either wise up or get eaten. The ones that become coyote-wise (perhaps because of a close call) are thereafter very good at coyote evasion. I recall one veteran feline that I encountered while pheasant hunting on a farm near Gregory, South Dakota.

Dec 11th - 12:05pm | eric

I live in ruarl farm land borderd by BLM on three sides. we have lots of feral cats, and lots of cyotes.

Dec 11th - 11:37am | Bob Janiskee

Thanks for filling out the story, Jim. I thought there might be another person out there who appreciates cats.

Dec 11th - 09:40am | jsmacdonald

This story came out a week ago just after the Thanksgiving Day holiday. When I read it, it brought a big smile to my face - because I love cats - and it seemed ironic because I had a conversation about escaped domestic cats in Yellowstone on Thanksgiving Day.

Petrified Forest National Park is Still Being Stolen One Piece at a Time

Dec 11th - 12:52pm | JimB

Thanks for a good reminder about a long-standing problem.

Dec 10th - 20:23pm | Kurt Repanshek

Isn't there a senator from Arizona with a park-friendly record, and a House member who chairs a parks subcommittee, who might be able to get some additional rangers on the ground for this park?

Dec 10th - 16:09pm | Warren Z

Bob: Thank you for putting this message out there. The theft of resources from our parks is a serious problem. Hopefully NPT readers will spread the word!

World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument is Established by Presidential Proclamation

Dec 10th - 23:31pm | Sabattis

MRC - There actually is a prominent memorial to Japanese internment already... the cumbersomely named National Japanese American Memorial to Patriotism During World War II is located just off the National Mall in Washington. It, along with other prominent memorials such as the Ulysses S.

Dec 10th - 10:25am | d-2

Why would President George W. Bush have used the word "Valor" to name this national monument?

Dec 10th - 07:11am | MRC

While I am certainly happy that those sites are protected as Monuments and Memorials , I hope this National Monument will not stay for long. This hotch-pot of nine different sites in three states and under the jurisdiction of four cabinet departments will be hell to administer and impossible to cherish as a visitor.

Interior Officials Want to Allow Concealed Carry in the National Parks

Dec 10th - 14:34pm | Deryk

As a CCW holder, I completely agree with the right to carry anywhere and see no reason national parks should be exempt from the right to carry! CCW holders have to pass background checks for both the state they have registered in, and the federal government. There's absolutely no reason they shouldn't be allowed to carry anywhere.

Shenandoah's Camp Hoover

Dec 9th - 16:33pm | Rick

My wife and I hike to Hoover Camp when we're in the neighborhood at Skyline Drive. Last year we had the opportunity to be the first "visitors" to receive a guided tour of the renovated facilities. What a treat! We were just nosing around peeking into the windows when the curator came over to talk to us.

NRDC Calls For Endangered Species Act Protection for Whitebark Pine Tree

Dec 9th - 14:28pm | Kirby Adams

Should we not be concerned for the trees because of their own qualities?

Interior Officials Release Rule Change to Allow National Park Visitors to Arm Themselves

Dec 9th - 14:13pm | Random Walker

Anyone have a link to the pre 1979 (?) NPS rules (exactly) before they initiated the ban on open weapons in the parks?

Dec 9th - 13:44pm | Bill R

Very well stated. I concur. I don't understand the panic of having a licensed and trained hiker or camper in the wilds with you. Some of these writers must go to some very trashy and over crowded campsites. Drunks? Guess I get too far off the beaten path in most cases.

Dec 9th - 10:56am | Warren Z

Capt:

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