| Page 1421 | National Parks Traveler

"If Guns Kill People, Do Pencils Write Mistakes"? This was in the back window of a car in front of me the other day. The point of all of this is people right? Those of us who are charged with day to day operations in parks were ready for the gun law. It's our job. It's also our job to understand intent of the law.

Mar 2nd - 02:33am | Anonymous

Just make it like old west and let everyone open carry! Ok everyone who is legally entitled to carry. This concealed is crap! Makes me look like I got a hip tumor!!!

Going to Olympic National Park this Summer? Plan Ahead Due to Major Bridge Work

Mar 3rd - 09:06am | Kirby Adams

When we were out there last summer we usually used the ferries to get places. I was stunned at how smoothly and efficiently (and inexpensively!) the whole procedure was conducted every time. If that was the East Coast it would be anarchy.

Accessibility in the National Park System

Mar 3rd - 00:34am | Ray Bane

In terms of "least accessible" I would nominate Gates of the Arctic Nat. Park & Preserve. It is a vast wilderness park in the central Brooks Range in northern Alaska. Most of it is only accessible by small bush aircraft. It offers some truly rewarding personal or guided float trips that can be combined with short day hikes.

Mar 2nd - 14:23pm | Kurt Repanshek

Preston, Some quick thoughts:

Mar 2nd - 13:51pm | Preston

I'd like to know what you travelers consider the LEAST accessible parks. I have polio, which is only getting worse as I get older, so I'd like to see some of the more challenging parks before it's too late.

A Major Overhaul at Ford's Theatre National Historic Site Raises a Few Eyebrows

Mar 2nd - 11:31am | JimB

I didn't run across any information on Henry Riggs Rathbone in my research for this article. Perhaps some of our readers are familiar with this story.

Mar 2nd - 11:23am | Anonymous

Would there happen to be any information about Henry Riggs Rathbone and the (supposed, yet unverified as far I can tell) Bill he presented before Congress on behalf of a museum in Lincoln's honor at Ford's? I am currently working on a research paper and I am tring to tie Henry Riggs involvement back to the theatre.

Condors To Be Released into the Wild at Vermilion Cliffs National Monument

Mar 2nd - 04:47am | MRC

In Pinnacles National Monument, California, a number of condors were released in January and February and more are scheduled for this year.

Stimulating the National Parks: Good For the Short-Term, But Then What?

Mar 2nd - 01:46am | RoadRanger

Kurt, thanks for stimulating us with your thoughts on the funding realities the NPS faces. You are correct that the American people hold the future of the NPS and its mission in their hands. Many may say that's an obvious answer with an easy solution, but it presents a huge dilemma for the Service.

March 1st was a Big Day for More Than One Park

Mar 1st - 20:37pm | Mark Van Baale

Great article about the Buffalo National River. Our family really enjoys going to this area often. Especially in the fall when the trees are changing. We like to find nice, isolated cabins to stay in and go hiking around the area. Hawksbill Crag is one hike that brings you to a rock cropping that sticks out from a bluff.

The "Yellowstone Creation Myth": A Good Tale, But Little More Than That

Mar 1st - 19:27pm | Anonymous

I have read the book and absolutely agree that "..it wasn't particularly important for the history that follows..", but that doesn't mean that some sort of BS session conversation didn't occur. "Hey, sure would be a shame to see a town sprout up right here. Should be some kind of park or something...." Move on to other topics and forget about it until years later.

Mar 1st - 15:07pm | jsmacdonald

Read the book; the case is pretty convincing. That doesn't mean that it didn't happen; what does seem evident is that it wasn't the way Langford describes it in the book. They did not immediately set on making the idea happen; Haines traces it to a message from Jay Cooke and Co. to Hayden (I think).

Mar 1st - 11:41am | Anonymous

Who's to say whether such a conversation ever took place? I have sat around enough campfires to know that most of what is discussed is quickly forgotten. And how many fires did these gentlemen sit around on this trip? Even Mr.

Mar 1st - 10:31am | Kurt Repanshek

MRC, Whittlesey and Schullery cited Huth's paper in their footnotes. Had time allowed, I would have delved into it and noted the annual "Madison Junction Pageant" that he objected to. Thanks for providing the link.

Mar 1st - 09:05am | jsmacdonald

Whittlesey and Schullery's book on the creation myth is a pretty good one that goes not only into the myth but the history of trying to debunk the myth. Previous Yellowstone historian Aubrey Haines had to deal with a lot of angst within the Park Service to publish against the myth that men like Horace Albright worked so hard to keep in tact.

Mar 1st - 08:34am | MRC

Are you familiar with the once influencial essay "Yosemite: The Story of an Idea" by Hans Huth from 1948 in the Sierra Club Bulletin? It is obviously almost forgotten, Richard Sellars doesn't even mention it in his history of the National Parks. It is at least not prominently named in Heacox "An American Idea", so I didn't find it thumbing through.

Grand Teton National Park: Subterfuge Led to This Masterpiece

Mar 1st - 16:25pm | RAH

I believe that Rockefeller was responsible for other NP and Banff in Canada, Acadia in Maine. He was a great lover of the beauties of America and since he was a very rich man( no income tax) was able to bestow much of the land that has become our NPS. We owe a lot to the rich robber barons that built lodges and loved the wild places and wanted to protect them for the future.

Mar 1st - 13:30pm | Jackson Hole

It is a great and beautiful place. Thanks for the great history lesson about Jackson Hole. It is a very controversial thing that happens when lands are "closed off" and "protected". I too am glad that this place was handled the way it was and continues to be.

Mar 1st - 10:20am | Betty H

All I can say is thank goodness this area was saved and the national park was created ! How can anyone who has ever seen this spectacular place not be thankfull to all who helped make it happen ? It is indeed a grand place !

Of Gray Whales, National Parks, and Climate Change

Mar 1st - 14:50pm | JimB

Bob - A nice, and timely, piece. I've not had the chance to see whales from the California coast, but it sounds like a fun activity. Thanks for the update.

What Would Wildlife Say About Concealed Carry in National Parks?

Mar 1st - 14:22pm | RAH

At the last NRA convention. People were allowed to carry with a CCW. The only venue that disalllowed was when McCain spoke due to Secret Service rules for security. This convention was held in Lousville KY which allows open carry and conceal carry.

Feb 27th - 14:04pm | eabbey

Oh but Tom when was the last time you read the 2nd Amendment and the old version of 36 CFR 2.4 in the same sitting? It doesn't take a lawyer to figure out that this is not a 2nd Amendment issue. Granted it makes a nice soap box and people will listen if they think their rights are restricted, but it's just a wolf in sheeps clothing.

Believe it or Not, Yosemite National Park Once had a Zoo

Mar 1st - 09:31am | Bob Janiskee

I'll bet there are hundreds of similar photos out there. (I vaguely recall seeing a photo of a ranger petting a deer in that Yosemite "zoo.") I'd especially like to see a photo of kids with the mountain lion.

Feb 28th - 21:43pm | Anonymous

I have a picture that was in a box of old family photos, of a woman in a 1920's era dress, feeding a bear standing on it's hind legs from a presumable Coke bottle.

GPS Unit Leads Couple Into Trouble Near Glen Canyon National Recreation Area

Mar 1st - 04:19am | Doug & Kathy

I was on Cottonwood Wash Road in October of 2008. We had a great drive from 89 S to Tropic. It was a bit rough in Kane County section, but smoothed out. There is no reason to trust any kind of electronic navigation system unless you are with the CIA or the Army out in the backcountry west. You need to use a good map and a compass.

Mar 1st - 04:17am | Anonymous

"Give A Lincoln" To Help Preserve National Park Service Sites Tied to the Former President

Feb 28th - 20:52pm | JimB

A nice effort - hope it will pay off.

Considering a Hike up Half Dome?

Feb 28th - 15:32pm | tv antenna

Why is this even allowed? I understand allowing a certain amount of people to hike up at one time, but allowing a whole trail to march up at the same time? Seems irresponsible to me...

Desert Solitaire Review

Feb 28th - 12:29pm | Hobblefoot

Darn, where did I leave that Monkey- wrench? Edward Abbey is one of the great misanthropic icons of The American West. I was particularly entertained by his notions of feeling cramped by the closeness of the living things in the woods of the Northwest. Truly 'The Desert Rat'.

Feb 27th - 17:17pm | Anonymous

Re: "Desert Solitaire" review: I too have been touched by the beauty of canyon country and desert lands, but I won't be leaving the old lady and the brats behind on my upcoming trip; I'll be taking my husband and the kids to experience God's earth together.

Critics: Changing Gun Laws in National Parks Would Open a "Pandora's Box" of Problems

Feb 28th - 10:02am | Roger

Fred, How nice that you are able to protect yourself and your family. I wish I was afforded that "right" myself. Too bad our supreme court doesn't understand the phrase "shall not be infringed." Sign me, unprotected and wondering why....

The Essential Arches

Feb 28th - 09:36am | Fran Fruit

This is a question, not a comment. A couple of years ago, my husband and I visited Zion, Bryce and Sedona. We found online a hiking guide to the Sedona area that included turn-by-turn trail instructions, with *photographs* at each stage. The creator of the guide offered a downloadable PDF version for sale at a very reasonable price. We bought it, and it turned out to be very helpful.

A Church in the Wilderness

Feb 27th - 18:25pm | Jonna Marsh

Georgeous! Been there a few years ago and would love to go back.

Bryce Canyon National Park: This Small Corner of Utah Packs a Colorful Punch

Feb 27th - 17:45pm | Anonymous

These are my thoughts exactly. The highlight of my childhood was a family roadtrip across the U.S. visiting many national parks and other wondrous sights. The entire trip was three weeks, the length of my father's vacation. We did very little hiking but I drank in the magnificence of those places. Now, I try to take my children to see our beautiful country.

Klondike Gold Rush National Historical Park Lands Windfall In Donation of Historic Buildings, Memorabilia

Feb 27th - 16:43pm | JimB

Sounds like a positive development for this park. This speaks well of the relationship between the park and the local community.

Another Yellowstone National Park Wolf Reaches Colorado

Feb 27th - 15:04pm | Anonymous

Click-click. (round in the chamber)

Alaska Game Officials Being Asked to Ease Off On Killing Bears and Wolves in National Park Preserves

Feb 27th - 14:12pm | Betty H

Whatever insane law that allows the State of Alaska to control hunting on National Park land needs to be changed. National Park lands belong to all Americans, not just Alaskans. National Park lands are for the protection of all native flora and fauna, not for providing trophy hunting under any circumstances !

Feb 26th - 22:58pm | Ray Bane

Thank you for an excellent report. You have touched a controversial issue re: the management of wildlife in national preserves in Alaska. In all-too-many instances the National Park Service has failed to be an effective advocate for national preserves, particularly in the management of sport hunting.

Presumed 400-foot Fall Kills Man in Zion National Park

Feb 27th - 11:32am | Darrel

Zion has more abrupt drop-offs than most Parks. Canyon Overlook wouldn't be a hard place to lose your footing and slide over the edge.

Feb 27th - 05:09am | volpe

It appears to me, and I have no facts or figures to support my thinking, that there seems to be more visitor deaths at Zion than other parks.

About That Stimulus Package for the National Parks: Nothing Worthwhile Is Easily Attained

Feb 27th - 07:01am | Sabattis

I've reflected on this a little more, and realized that the other possible storyline here (i.e. other than the possible storyline about the limits of the NPS to absorb and manage additional spending) is what a phenomenal missed opportunity this was for the Parks.

Feb 26th - 23:22pm | Sabattis

I've wondered previously, why other National priorities like education and transportation received much bigger allotments in the stimulus package than National Parks - but the fact that it is going to take the National Park Service and Department of the Interior four months just to figure out where to start spending the money seems to point in the right direction.

Feb 26th - 20:05pm | Kurt Repanshek

The National Park Service runs the program, the Historic Preservation Fund, that the money is being funneled through.

Feb 26th - 18:56pm | Anonymous

* $15 million for historic preservation projects at historically black colleges and universities. What does that have to do with NPS?

New Visitor Center Coming to Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Feb 26th - 20:43pm | On Da Road

Sounds like a fabulous center .. nice to see the park service being green!

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