Owen Hoffman


Biography

Former NPS Park Ranger-Naturalist, Crater Lake National Park (1966-68), Zion National Park (1969), Yosemite National Park (1969-71).

Member of the Coalition of National Park Service Retirees (www.npsretirees.org)

Member of the Board, Crater Lake Institute (www.craterlakeinstitute.com)

President and Director, SENES Oak Ridge, Inc., Center for Risk Analysis (www.senes.com)



Owen's Most Recent Comments (view all)
  • 8/25/2008 8:07 am - Giving a Name to Yosemite Area Peak for Longtime Ranger Carl Sharsmith. : Some of you might remember Larry Nahm, one of Yosemite National Park's first librarians. Larry worked with many of us who had the privilege of residing in Yosemite during the early 1970's. I just received the following account from Larry of a recent hike he took up to the summit ...
  • 8/14/2008 9:36 am - MSNBC’s Top 10 National Park Lodges List Draws Curmudgeonly, but Gentle Criticism : My favorite lodge in the Canadian Rockies is Num-Ti-Ja Lodge in Banff National Park. It is located on the shores of Bow Lake, just off the Icefields Parkway. This facility was personally designed and constructed by mountain man, adventurer, guide, and big-game hunter Jimmy Simpson. I highly recommend Room 13. ...
  • 8/14/2008 9:02 am - Traveler's Picks for Where to Get Wet in the National Park System : Of course there's the chance to get wet by wading or swimming in the deepest lake in the USA at Crater Lake National Park. Hike down the Cleetwood Trail to Cleetwood Cove and let your feet dangle off the boat docks, or better yet, go for a swim. Take a ...
  • 8/13/2008 2:04 pm - Star Party Scheduled for June 21-28 at Grand Canyon National Park : More than likely they were two bright meteors occurring 1/2 hour apart that were part of the show of the spectacular August 11 and 12th Perseid meteor shower. At 9:30 PM at night at the Grand Canyon, the waxing gibbous moon would have been high in the southern sky, causing ...
  • 8/08/2008 6:45 am - Odes to the National Park Rangers Who Wear the Grey and Green : Frank, is the problem really one of recruiting subtandard employees, or is it the absence of training, auditing, and mentoring? If it's the former, how does the NPS as a Federal agency rise above the plethora of restrictions and preferences placed on hiring and pormotion of women and minorities that ...
  • 8/06/2008 8:29 am - Odes to the National Park Rangers Who Wear the Grey and Green : Who would lead us on hikes if there were no rangers? In 2006 my wife and I visited the Canadian Rockies. We found a few park wardens in uniform, but none were involved in leading hikes. When we stayed overnight at Moraine Lake Lodge, the Lodge offered guided walks and ...
  • 8/06/2008 6:28 am - What Suggestions Do You Have For the National Park Service? : "The National Park Service likes to promote that visitors give the National Park System a 96 percent approval rating." Kurt, One of the problems I have with this statistic is with its implications when compared to the total visitation to our parks. For example, if we were to say that ...
  • 7/22/2008 12:51 pm - Cedar Breaks National Monument : During the heat of summer, camping at Cedar Breaks National Monument at over 10,000 feet offers welcome relief from the extreme temperatures experienced at lower elevations. In fact, nighttime temperatures can go below freezing, even during July. The night sky at this elevation is outstanding. Looking at the above photo, ...
  • 7/05/2008 2:52 pm - Cascade Pass, North Cascades National Park : I have hiked this trail several times. I consider it to be among the very best short hikes in the entire National Park System. Owen Hoffman Oak Ridge, TN 37830
  • 6/08/2008 4:21 pm - How Can We Build Advocates for the National Parks? : Kurt, Thank you for raising this issue on NPT. It's difficult for most people, for whom parks are one-time travel destinations, to become interested in the details of park funding issues when personal finances and free time become more restrictive and gasoline prices soar above $4.00 per gallon. For most ...


Owen's Most Recent Articles (view all)

Exploring the "Other Half" of Our National Parks: Stargazing Under Protected Dark Skies

The renowned amateur astronomer and telescope maker, John Lowery Dobson, 92, once said, "National Parks are special places where dark skies and curious minds collide." Dobson and the famed Sidewalk Astronomers have spent three decades taking their home-made telescopes to the national parks to meet park visitors willing to stay out after dark to help them explore the "other half" of their parks.

A Winter Visit to Grand Canyon National Park's Phantom Ranch

From the South Kaibab Trail in Grand Canyon National Park, the first view of Phantom Ranch reveals that the trees, Fremont cottonwoods, do not know that it's winter.

Interpretation on the Tallgrass Prairie

Owen Hoffman has just returned from a trip across Kansas. He has provided us with a detailed trip report from his visit to the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve. The wide open skies and history of the area piqued his interest, but the interpretive program on-site left something to be desired.

How Are Entrance Fees Affecting Visitation?

Two weeks ago, on Earth Day, I had the opportunity to visit Shenandoah National Park. The drive along

Centennial Listening: First Impressions

    I attended yesterday's National Park Service first "listening session" on the needs and goals for the 2016 NPS centennial.  The meeting was held at the Mills Auditorium near the Gatlinburg Convention Center in Gatlinburg, Tennessee, a major gateway community to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.