Recent comments

My wife and I stopped at TRNP South Unit for an afternoon on our way out to Olympic this past summer. We were really entertained by all the prairie dogs along the road. And the bison nursing her calf in the middle of the road. We had to wait for them to move! And the color of some of the rocks remind us of Zion NP. We hope to spend a night there next summer on our vacation and also catch the northern unit.

I'm astounded... speechless. Americans love their National Parks, of this there is no doubt. It is one of the only efforts our government makes that actually preserves the natural beauty and historical sites of this country, and actually touches the lives of regular Americans. But a museum???? to the NPS???? Are they NUTS??? What a horrible waste. Right now there is a huge backlog of maintenance for NP sites, and they are going to spend money aggrandizing a government department? What's next -- a museum of the General Accounting Office?

"It will house significant artifacts drawn from national parks" - WHAT? They will remove artifacts from National Parks and re-locate them from where they have any relevence to some building in West VA?

Yes - this has Byrd poop all over it.

Haunted Hiker said: Devil's advocacy aside, the NPS seems to have much more urgent problems than to spend precious funds "planning to plan" in order to open a channel up to boaters."

As long as the process dictates that the NPS perform an EA to undertake what is specifically removing a couple of feet of silt and rock from the now dry lake floor, then so be it. The Castle Rock Cut widening project is a win for the environment (less gas and carbon generated by boaters) and safety (shaves at least an hour off first responder times). The NPS process has been perverted by environmentalist to slow down (aka preserve) the status quo at NRAs. In the case of Lake Powell, the Castle Rock Cut issue gives them hope that if the drainers stop this project, they can eventually get the Glen Canyon Dam removed. Pipe dream of the Abbey followers for a long time. It is time they get a clue, boaters have rights to the NRA they recreate in and we are going to make sure our requirements for safe/quick passage are recognized by the NPS in what should be a trivial administrative process to get the CRC open to boaters at 3600’

May I offer another person that should be banned from the national park quotation lexicon: Freeman Tilden! His sappy blather has guided the interpretive process in the NPS for well over a half century and it's high time that the agency stepped out of its darkened shadow. I offer a couple gems from this supposed genius:

"The true interpreter...goes beyond the apparent to the real, beyond a part to the whole, beyond a truth to a more important truth."

"I have always thought of our Service as an institution, more than any other bureau, engaged in a field essentially of morality--the aim of man to rise above himself, and to choose the option of quality rather than material superfluity."

Tilden's work has not only faded into a quaint anachronism, but has mired the field of interpretation in its murky syrup for way too long. If Abbey goes-----I say Tilden too!

Hey HH-

Glad I could be of service. But let's say it was more of a heavy simmer than a rolling boil. I'll try harder next time.

Many scientific conclusions, as well as the ever popular public opinions, are apt to be drawn from flawed information. That's why, as mentioned by your's truly in post after post, I'm a BIG proponent of "good science", which lends itself to a far lesser degree of misinterpretation of data than do bad data and general opinion, but still ain't perfect by any means. Science is not now, nor ever was a source of perfection, in no small part due to the fact that we're constantly dealing with a state of flux in our knowledge base. As techniques and tools develop to assist in collection of additional volumes and more accurate evidence, hypothesis have to be amended, and that is a good thing. It goes a long way towards lending "street cred" to our field, showing our ability and willingness to admit errors were made that were based on previous sampling, but that these previous conclusions were the best we could do at the time, based on the evidence that was available at the time. Now, as access to better methodology evolves, we readily (and sheepishly) admit our past ineptitude, and take a stand behind the new, cleaner, more substantial body of evidence. That new stance will remain, until the next generation of technology and enlightenment bring us to the next intellectual level and we are able to scale the next mountain. All science is capable of is the best it can do at any given time with what it has to work with, just like every other facet of our society. I don't think that makes us evil-doers, or the products of a "flawed" system. If we are to be labeled as such, then every other aspect of our character is likely equivilently flawed as well. I seem to recall a story about a certain group of people about 2000 years ago, who killed someone in a rather barbaric manner, and almost immediately upon achieving their goal, some say, realized their mistake, and all anyone could say was "oops". In the current scientific climate we try and limit the "oops" factor to the best of our ability, but there are still folks out there who have a notion that publicity is more desireable than accuracy, and run off at the mouth long before enough evidence is gathered to render a competent verdict.

I'm not one to utilize a sole source of information to formulate my stance on any issue either. Science is nothing other than one arrow in the quiver. Limited scope produces limited and fundamentally skewed results. I'm in the discovery business, and we can't afford the "blinders on" view of the world.

By the by, I don't think it was I who endeavored to resolve the term "unimpaired" for you. I can list the "official" Funk & Wagnalls for you, and I have my own addendum to their terminology based on the focal point of the discussion, but I'm fairly sure I'm innocent of all charges on that topic. But you're right, even our path to the stars isn't unimpaired, what with all those little nuisances orbiting the globe these days. In a purist sense, they qualify as "annoyances" since you'd have to schedule departure so as to avoid them, so your point is well taken.

Next time I promise to really make your day and allow myself to achieve full-blown case of "The Bends"!!

Kurt, an interview with the management at Chickasaw would be a good perspective to have here regarding the Rec Area vs. Park Service issue, and whether these areas really belong under NPS. They seem to have perennial problems with rowdiness, litter, boozefests, weapons, and the like, and I'd wager that it's a common thread among other Nat'l Rec Areas too.

Mack P. Bray,

You said, "I was not aware that any for-profit, trail building businesses existed."
In response, though supported by IMBA and a host of other groups, the Texas Trail docs are 501(c)(4) non-profit. Talon Trails are a for-profit organization that constructs a variety of trails, including hiking-only, depending on their customers' desires.

Your comment "The fact that they exist says it all," doesn't quite say anything other than you're not contributing meaningful dialogue to this discussion, but rather relying on blanket statemtents like "Mountain bikes/bikers are a cancer in National Parks" to try and prove a point. This really doesn't seem very productive as far as reaching any sort of consensus is concerned. If you're not interested in consensus, then perhaps at least the prudent thing to do would be trying to educate the other readers rather than lambast those points of view that aren't your own.

Frank and Bart, I'm enjoying the dialogue.

PS: Two books on workaholism:

Work to Live: The Guide to Getting a Life, by Joe Robinson
CrazyBusy, by Edward Hallowell

Three cheers for TRNP! Like Merrylnd, I've olny been once, but I loved it! I've been trying to save money for another trip up there, but going from TN to ND isn't cheap..

---
jr_ranger
"Good Planets are Hard to Find"
http://tntrailhead.blogspot.com
http://zinch.com/jr_ranger
http://picasaweb.google.com/north.cascades
President, CHS SPEAK (CHS Students Promoting Environmental Action & Knowledge)
Founder and President, CHS Campus Greens

Moving some dirt and rocks around the bottom of the lake is not such a big deal. Doing so will save it's total cost probably in the first year. When the drought ends, (which it can in a single year), it's all covered with water anyway. Safety is also a major concern and such is a major concern for the NRA managers, the NPS. Dredging this small cut will wave lives, property, trauma, lawsuits and peoples investments in THEIR chosen method of recreating.

As to the issues about NP's vs. NRA's and their joint management by the NPS. Well quite frankly a National Recreation Area is NOT a National Park! They should have very different management goals and the personel staffed at Rec areas should have a different mindset than what the NPS system provides. I think the Dept of Interior should create another division specifically aimed at managing rec areas and staffed with like minded people as well. They are different and require a different point of view in their management. (Yeah I said that twice)!

For you science and history lovers, May I recommend reading "Forbidden History" by J. Douglas Kenyon.

We travel to Wymong as often as we can. Each time, we visit the Badlands and twice have camped there. In addition to running water and toilets, there are showers, a General Store and even a play area for the kids. The first time, we camped in a tent; subsequently, we "camped" in their Camping Cabins which can comfortably accomodate four adults. The sunrise and sunset is magical with its creeping shades of tan, rose and gold on every rock formation. As you stand in the quiet of the place, you feel as if you've returned to a land of long ago. The Badlands is one of my favorite places to visit. It's a place of serene beauty.

I had the experience of visiting this vast land filled with, what ilooked like giant sand castles. It was truly unbelievable. If one can think of the history that has past though this unforgiving land, it is remarkable. From the dinosaurs to the early homesteaders, to our native Indians, to present day vacationers. I was awe struck. At times I felt as though I was on a distant planet, until a mule deer, chipmunk, prairedog,wolf and many other wildlife past in front of our car. I am hoping to return agoin with our grandchildren.