You are here

All Recent Comments

Creature Feature: The American Marten

Sep 2nd - 14:37pm | Lindsay S.

We saw one in Yellowstone last week while doing some back country hiking near Shoshone Lake. We didn't know it at the time, but all of the descriptions I have read lead me to believe that our little guy was in fact a marten. We were able to get a several photos of him as he tried to scare us away with his growling and chirping. Adorable if you ask me!

Have High Gas Prices Deterred Travel within Theodore Roosevelt National Park?

Sep 2nd - 13:46pm | Ted Clayton

I assume that Theodore Roosevelt Nat'l Park is a proxy for examining the wider potential impact of rising fuel costs on Park visitation.

Sep 2nd - 11:07am | Kirby Adams

I don't buy the fuel cost scenario. Roosevelt may be right on an Interstate (literally), but it's a long drive from anywhere and not even all that easy to fly into. If someone has driven there, they aren't going to blink at driving another 75 minutes to the North Unit, regardless of gas prices.

Paying To Understand U.S. History in the National Park System

Sep 2nd - 10:46am | tahoma

The NPS Public Use Statistics Office can be found at: http://www.nature.nps.gov/stats/ The counting methodology apparently varies by NPS unit and through time, but most seem to use a traffic counter multiplied by some constant (assumed average occupants per vehicle).

Sep 2nd - 09:29am | Ted Clayton

RoadRanger; Absolutely & dramatically, Olympic Nat'l Park is counting visitors multiple times. Furthermore & worse, I believe they are counting those who merely drive through at certain points, because the highway cuts through the Park.

Sep 2nd - 01:43am | RoadRanger

Re Kurt's comments on the 275 million or so visitors in the parks last year. Those who support fees as a means of significant funds for park budgets need to keep in mind that this figure counts visits, not visitors. Does the NPS have any idea how many individuals made multiple recreation visits to parks last year?

Sep 1st - 22:35pm | Kirby Adams

Two words: Corporate Sponsorship. Anyone been to a sports stadium lately? Who wouldn't want to visit the "Frito Lay National Military Park at Gettysburg"? Or perhaps "General Motors National Park"? (It's in Maine. The tallest mountain there is already named for a GM brand.) -Kirby.....Lansing, MI

Sep 1st - 20:58pm | Kurt Repanshek

Sounds good Frank....until you work the economies of scale, no? You're not talking about one or two locations, a city zoo here, or an art museum there.

Sep 1st - 12:44pm | Mark_(not the r...

As science fiction great Heinlen said, TANSTAFL, There ain't no such thing as a free lunch. I might accept that there is a compelling interest for the government to set aside area deemed special for historical, geological/ecological, or aesthetic reasons (although I'm not sure where the Constitution gives it authority to do so), but as a basic rule:

Aug 31st - 20:54pm | RoadRangers

Interesting that this post came up when it did. My wife and I are retired NPS with over 65 years of combined experience. Our children grew up in and love the parks. Yesterday, our son and his fiancee drove from Potomac, Maryland to Shenandoah NP to enjoy a dinner and a day on Skyline Drive.

Aug 31st - 20:41pm | RoadRanger

Interesting that this post came up when it did. My wife and I are retired NPS with over 65 years of combined experience. Our children grew up in and love the parks. Yesterday, our son and his fiancee drove from Potomac, Maryland to Shenandoah NP to enjoy a dinner and a day on Skyline Drive.

Aug 31st - 03:12am | Lone Hiker

And this is an exemplary point of why the entire NPS system should be removed from federal "management".

Aug 30th - 22:59pm | Kath

You pay to ride the buses in Denali, which is the only way to access the park after the 15 mile mark. You pay to access the Channel Islands by boat, or Kenai Fjords by boat, again the only access to most parts of the park. You pay for the tours at Mesa Verde to see most of the cliff dwellings, no tour, no access. We can't pretend that this Gettysburg thing is something new.

Aug 30th - 18:25pm | Kurt Repanshek

Point made, Barky. But don't you run the risk of alienating more potential park advocates by constantly raising the fees to this truly American attraction? The parks I don't think should be equated with a commercial business (and that's what seems to be happening at Gettysburg and elsewhere in the system). Once that's done, they head down the elitist highway.

Aug 30th - 17:37pm | Barky

Generically, I am actually in favor of fees at National Parks. Nothing in life is truly free. Someone has to pay. It's either us, the national park enthusiasts and occasional tourists, who pay through fees, or it's the generic taxpayers.

Aug 30th - 16:48pm | Ted Clayton

Bob Janiskee, I greatly respect your academic credentials, and your literary contributions. It is not the object to gratuitously demean Gettysburg's facilities, but the term I used to describe does clarify effectively that they function indistinguishably from, and rely upon the same transactional premises as any cheap and private tourist-trap.

Aug 30th - 16:26pm | Bob Janiskee

Gettysburg's new museum and visitor center may be a lot of things, but "roadside tourist trap" is certainly not one of them.

Aug 30th - 16:10pm | Ted Clayton

It's darn tricky & risky to invest money in a tourist-facility, without losing your shirt. Even if you know what you're doing, and are good at it.

Plague Kills Many Prairie Dogs and Black-Footed Ferrets in Grasslands Near Badlands National Park

Sep 1st - 19:27pm | Lone Hiker

Nope, missed the sarcasm completely due mainly to multiple references in prior threads pertaining to the same culprit as the basis for all the world's ills, along with the same self-righteous fool of an ex-VP being touted as the "hero" of the planet.

Sep 1st - 17:14pm | griz

Actually the extended allergy season has nothing to do with goldenrod. The pollen of goldenrod is too large to be carried by the wind and cause allergies. The real culprit is likely ragweed.

Sep 1st - 13:38pm | Ted Clayton

Anonymous; For sure, I took your sarcasm hook-line-and-sinker. ;-) The reason I did, of course, is: Going by Anonymous, I have no idea who's talking, and... ... I read identical (but earnest!) language every day!

Sep 1st - 13:03pm | Lone Hiker

Bob-

Sep 1st - 12:58pm | Anonymous

Perhaps you didn't recognize the sarcasm! Everything bad gets blamed on global warming and my comments were intended to be tongue and cheek. In fact in VA they recently attributed the extended goldenrod season and resultant elevated allergies on global warming - egad!

Sep 1st - 11:51am | Bob Janiskee

Lone Hiker, I'm a bit puzzled by that reference to "your dissertation." What makes you think that the (anonymous) person who made that statement has a doctorate or is working on one?

Sep 1st - 10:40am | Ted Clayton

Anonymous queries: "What dreadful man made act has caused this plague." The Wikipedia Misanthropy entry defines & describes it as:

Sep 1st - 10:12am | Lone Hiker

It appears that the rampant global warming that we have caused by our abuses has bought some time forre the treatment process.

Sep 1st - 08:14am | Bob Janiskee

Calling plague a bad thing, or laying blame on humans for causing/worsening it, takes us into very tricky ground. Sylvatic plague -- called "sylvatic" because it infects wild animals, not domesticated ones -- is endemic in the prairies.

Sep 1st - 06:42am | Anonymous

What dreadful man made act has caused this plague. It appears that the rampant global warming that we have caused by our abuses has bought some time forre the treatment process. Please send former VP Gore the information so he can use it in his next movie.

The Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial You See Over There By the Tidal Basin Is Not the Original

Sep 1st - 16:32pm | Ted Clayton

My aunt last year gave me a locally-published small book about the history of the logging community & industry on the "West End" of the Olympic Peninsula (NW Washington State).

At Golden Gate National Recreation Area, the Presidio Trust Ponders Where to Put a New Art Museum

Sep 1st - 12:16pm | MRC

On August 28 the Landmark Advisory Board declared the site on the parade ground of the Main Post "would not be compatible with the massing, size, scale, and architectural features of the historic Main Post buildings, and would therefore violate the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards." http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/?p=15876

Is Technology Compatible With The National Park Wilderness Experience?

Sep 1st - 11:29am | Dave O

I think it falls on each of us to determine what experience we want in the backcountry. I just don't want some do-gooder, thinking they know better than anyone else, pushing for a rule to prohibit us from taking along things I think will make the experience more enjoyable for me.

Aug 31st - 15:10pm | Ted Clayton

Anti-technology sentiment is a game-token that will prove to be 'off the board'. It isn't in play, never was, and those who devise a plan that relies upon using it will lose points. Technology & humanity are two sides of the same coin. They are one entity. There is no daylight.

Aug 31st - 12:39pm | Lone Hiker

Aron Ralston; (n) 1) a foolish child; 2) an accident waiting to happen.

Glacier National Park Officials Plan to Scale Down Search for Missing Hiker

Sep 1st - 10:57am | Ted Clayton

Anonymous (Sept. 1); It seems to me that "risk" & "daring" are important parts of the overall formula that attracts many visitors to our Park venues.

Sep 1st - 09:18am | Anonymous

In the future a hiker chould be required to carry a GPS unit that gives off a signal in case they need to be located. It could require a deposit with a refund upon return. This isn't really an invasion of privacy but a matter of safety for the hiker and those who come to the search and rescue effort.

Aug 31st - 12:31pm | JG

I'm praying for your safe return Yi-Jien Hwa.

Creature Feature: The Red-Throated Loon

Sep 1st - 10:06am | Jeri-Anne

It took me a bit to find your wonderful site! I too have been trying to find out which birds were habituating the lake my husband and I went camping at this year and last year. I was sure the two birds I have been seeing were loons, but the sounds they made and the red eyes and chest were what kept throwing me off. I am now glad to see that we were right in assuming they were loons.

Allegheny Portage Railroad National Historical Site Commemorates a Great Achievement in Early Transportation

Sep 1st - 09:48am | MRL

Thanks for putting this article on your site. This is an interesting location to visit if you have not been there. Although not in a heavily traveled area, it is worth the stop to see the ingenuity employed at by the people at that time to solve the problem discussed in the article above.

Considering a Hike up Half Dome?

Aug 31st - 18:47pm | Anonymous

The exclamation in the article about there having been climbers who are actually hiking in sandals is pretty ridiculous. Obviously the ascent to the top shouldn't be made in flip-flops or things like that. But after clicking on the link to see the hiker in sandals I saw that he was climbing in Chacos.

Bear Mauls Woman in Gates of the Arctic National Park

Aug 31st - 16:46pm | HIker JIm

I completely agree with the NPS, NFS, and others who stress LNT principles in the back country. I was not aware of them modifying food safety recommendations when in bear country. I spoke with a couple of friends who go hunting each fall in Alaska and they both said that when they are at their base camp set up they do their best to triangulate sleeping, eating and storing sites.

Aug 30th - 14:14pm | Anonymous

Did someone read a different article than I did? Did anyone read about the victim badmouthing "big oil"? I have had many non-threatening encounters with Grizzlies where I live in Alaska, but do respect their wildness.

Aug 30th - 11:14am | Ted Clayton

Hiker, I do not have direct experience with Gate of the Arctic Nat'l Park, but within the last couple years I did see an announcement & report out of the Park that may apply to the questions you raise.

Aug 29th - 23:26pm | Anonymous

Alyeska flew her out...bet she won't ever bad-mouth "big oil" again.

Black Bear Attacks Child at Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Aug 30th - 10:52am | grassfox

Ummm, the bear was in people territory. Bears are not landowners.

Presidential Politics and the National Parks

Aug 30th - 10:38am | Ted Clayton

Alaska Governor Sarah Palin, now also the Vice Presidential nominee for the Republican Party, is opposed by organizations like the League of Conservation Voters and spokes-figures like Gene Karpinski primarily because she (in order of importance):

Aug 30th - 07:09am | Bob Janiskee

Christy, I'm afraid that you're barking up the wrong tree here. There is no evidence that proximity to national parks breeds park advocacy.

Aug 29th - 23:34pm | Christy

If anyone even THINKS that Obama/Biden (with only 1 national park between them in their home states) will be better for our parks than McCain(19 park units)/Palin(17 park units) they need to have their heads examined! McCain and Palin will be the best ticket to ensure our parks are fully funded!

First Piping Plovers, Now Sea Turtles Descend on Cape Hatteras National Seashore

Aug 29th - 22:24pm | Anonymous

And you would be in error. Check the references at the end of the recovery plans......

Aug 29th - 21:21pm | Wheat

Corrected willingly. It should say non peer reviewed science based management policies at work. Wheat

Video: Birds and Bike Paths in Grand Teton National Park

Aug 29th - 20:08pm | Rick Smith

Kurt-- I drove through Grand Teton on the way to Yellowstone this summer. I was absolutely appalled by the amount of ground disturbance that was being caused by the construction of this bike trail. I cannot believe that NPCA was the principal supporter of this project since it is an organization that is supposed to protect parks, not develop them. I don't get it. Rick Smith

The Essential RVing Guide

The Essential RVing Guide to the National Parks

The National Parks RVing Guide, aka the Essential RVing Guide To The National Parks, is the definitive guide for RVers seeking information on campgrounds in the National Park System where they can park their rigs. It's available for free for both iPhones and Android models.

This app is packed with RVing specific details on more than 250 campgrounds in more than 70 parks.

You'll also find stories about RVing in the parks, some tips if you've just recently turned into an RVer, and some planning suggestions. A bonus that wasn't in the previous eBook or PDF versions of this guide are feeds of Traveler content: you'll find our latest stories as well as our most recent podcasts just a click away.

So whether you have an iPhone or an Android, download this app and start exploring the campgrounds in the National Park System where you can park your rig.