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Secretary Norton Urged by 36 House Members to Stop Management Policies Overhaul

Feb 16th - 16:06pm | Jeanne

Do you have a source for this letter? I would like to know the other representatives who signed it.

House Subcommittee Told There's No Need for Mangaement Policies Rewrite

Feb 16th - 13:04pm | x-ranger

Here's a question for you Kurt: Why would Delaware North testify in favor of what most American's view as a disastrous weakening of the Park Service's Management Policies as they did this past Thursday? A park concessionaire in my mind shouldn't flex it's political muscle on issue so important to the American people. Their support is in bad taste and is tacky.

Feb 16th - 07:43am | Bill Wade

During the testimony yesterday, Mr. Bill Horn (formerly Asst Secy of Fish, Wildlife and Parks and now a paid attorney and lobbyist for snowmobile and other OHV interests) revealed information that surprised even Deputy NPS Director Steve Martin. Horn said that within two weeks after the current administration took office, the 2001 NPS Management Policies were targeted for review and revision.

Ursack: A Welcome Alternative to Food Canisters

Feb 11th - 16:12pm | M. Barbara Graham

Kit - Thanks for your info and links you've sent to Annette. I'm one of the "possibles" for the July backpack trip on the JMT. I grew up in California and have hiked Mt. Whitney, and now I live in Colorado Springs and have hiked Pikes Peak several times. Also I hiked up St. Patrick's mountain near Westport Ireland last May! What a journey. No bears any of those places yet.

Feb 8th - 10:13am | Tom Cohen

As the inventor of Ursack, I am not familiar with the specific photos referred to by Kit at Sequoia, but I have several comments. 1. The Hybrid is a new design, and there is no record of a bear anywhere getting into one. 2. The original Ursacks, starting in 2000, were made of Kevlar, which like Vectran is yellow. There were some failures of the Kevlar bag.

Feb 7th - 11:34am | Kit Stolz

I dislike carrying the traditional cylindrical bear cannister, and would be thrilled to be able to use an Ursack instead, but last time I was in Sequoia-Kings Canyon, at one ranger station (I can't remember which one) they had posted pictures of more than one Ursack ripped up by bears. Hence I'm surprised to read they were approved for the Sierras...perhaps the Hybrid is a new design?

President Bush's Budget Proposes $100 Million Cut for NPS

Feb 7th - 12:18pm | x-ranger

Great summary Kurt.

Are Park Inholdings Good Partnerships?

Feb 2nd - 09:41am | repanshek

Thanks for clarifying the status at Isle Royale, Supt. Longstreet. The distinction between inholders and leaseholders is major, one I had overlooked. With dwindling federal dollars, and more on-the-ground necessities to address, parks no doubt will have to search for those innovative partnerships you mentioned to preserve places like the homesteads at Isle Royale and elsewhere.

Feb 1st - 18:20pm | Jlongstreet

There's a critical distinction between INHOLDERS and LEASEHOLDERS in national parks. Inholders own their land and whether or not the NPS should acquire that land is indeed a valid debate. In the case of Isle Royale and many other parks, however, the NPS long ago purchased the land, and often the buildings, of the former owners and was required by law to pay fair market value.

New Survey Shows Park Visitors Enjoy Quiet, Wildlife and Scenery

Feb 1st - 17:49pm | Alan

I'm not at all surprised at the survey's findings. People often tell me (I'm the outdoors columnist for a daily newspaper in PA) that solitude and quietness are chief among their reasons for visiting state parks in our vicinity. The appreciation of quietness -- of being able to listen to the wind, not human-caused racket -- is a very much underappreciated and un-fought-for resource.

Did IMBA Negotiate in Good Faith With NPS?

Jan 26th - 18:12pm | Alan

So the parks are really all about having fun -- dirt-and-dust versions of the Vegas-style temple of fun and entertainment. That, apparently, is what the IMBA has concluded. Why stop with mountain bikes? Why not put water slides on the slopes of Mt. Rainer. And why stop with canoes on the Delaware River as it winds through Delaware Water Gap NRA? Jet Skis would so much more "fun!"

How Big Is the Park Service's Backlog?

Jan 26th - 07:44am | DSmith

Thanks for the information. I hope President Bush and Congress gives our parks the funds they need. P.S. I enjoy your site very much. Reading your posts are part of my daily routine. It's great to be informed about the Parks I have come to cherish.

Jan 25th - 09:54am | repanshek

Excellent question. I should have included some examples to reflect the maintenance problems.

Jan 25th - 08:14am | DSmith

In the last year I visited Acadia, Bryce, Cedar Breaks, and Zion. They all looked just spiffy. Yet I constantly hear how about how are parks are falling apart. Understand, I love our National Parks so I ask this question out of concern and a genuine desire to understand. Where is the problem?

Jan 23rd - 19:17pm | jersu

Great article Kurt. I've always been bothered by the dollar figure discrepancies quoted for the maintenance backlog. The number seems to change with every article I read on the subject. The Park Service should put extra effort into nailing down an exact figure. It's hard to ask for help if you can't define the problem.

Has Public Lands Preservation Become Obsolete?

Jan 23rd - 07:26am | x-ranger

The simple truth of the matter is that hunting, fishing, horseback riding and other outdoor pursuits is declining. Until the conservation community and low-impact recreationists make greater headway in working together, more and more public lands will be developed and opened up to noisy recreation, and fewer places for solitude and peace will remain.

Jan 21st - 11:03am | Alan

I've been lamenting the apparent passing of the "John Muir" movement for a few years now. Having lands to wreck-re-ate on is a fine thing. Hell, public lands! That's where the future of fish-and-wildlife conservation is. But when places are saved because of their recreation potential (whether for ATVs, mountain bikers, hikers, what-have-you), we're in trouble.

Newspaper Suggests Pennsylvania Take Valley Forge Back

Jan 20th - 09:17am | tom berriman

I actually testified before the House Subcommittee in 1975, favoring absorbtion of VFP, attended President Ford's bill signing and worked as a congressional staffer against the NPS introducing entrance fees to the park located less than a half mile from my childhood home.

Nov 16th - 14:43pm | I wish I were ...

egads! i`ve seen a number of state parks. some good. many just ok. some terrible. i`d wager that few states have the moolah to maintain their own parks in addition to taking over national parks. the only places where i think this could work is where a national park abuts a state one. like big bend in texas, or redwoods in california.

If Director's Order 21 Takes Effect....

Jan 18th - 20:15pm | I am Jack's Bl...

Does the Park Service even question the environmental soundness of these companies before it takes their money and plasters their names everywhere? Or is the Service so desperate that it allows itself to be used to Greenwash the images of these donors for a few bucks?

Congress Can't Afford its Appetite for National Parks

Jan 18th - 19:53pm | Tyler Durden

No, congress will never adequately fund the Parks. While it looks good for congress to designate new parks, funding them does nothing for the overall image, so why do it?!

Who's Viewing Traveler?

Jan 14th - 12:48pm | Taco Pescado

I found you in the Jan-Feb issue of Audubon Mag!

Jan 3rd - 17:11pm | repanshek

Hey Robot Vegetable, Great photos! You're absolutely right about Little Wild Horse Canyon, too. Back in the '30s, I believe, there was talk about turning the San Rafael Swell into a national park, but it never got off the ground. Now the BLM is struggling to preserve it from rambunctious ATVers and folks who enjoy shooting at rock walls. Keep up the good work. Kurt

Jan 3rd - 16:32pm | the Robot Vegetable

The vast majority of photos in my Utah archive http://www.middle-fork.org/archives/utah/index.html were taken in National Parks. And places that deserve to be in the park system, such as Little Wild Horse.

Jan 3rd - 16:25pm | the Robot Vegetable

They're getting tips on what should be moved into private ownership.

Trying to Turn Parks into Something They're Not

Jan 14th - 12:15pm | Chimichanga

"Why is there a perceived need that parks...be financially self-sufficient? Why can't they simply be what they were intended to be by the Park Service's founders?" No one will say this, but it's because this idea is too "socialist" for our government to stomach.

Are NPS "Listening Sessions" Directed to Deaf Ears?

Jan 14th - 11:11am | Chili Concarne

"wouldn’t you think the agency would ensure that the representatives it sent to those meetings would be well-versed in the proposed revisions?

Dick Proenneke's Escape to Alaska

Jan 11th - 12:16pm | Jeffrey Davies

There is an interesting (but difficult) article and some outstanding photos of Lake Clarke available here: http://www.photo-mark.com/articles/lakeclark/

Legacy of a Grizzly Attack

Jan 10th - 13:35pm | jersu

Kurt, Thanks for the book suggestion. The author of that book, Stephen Herrero, is quoted on the back cover of my copy of "The Bear's Embrace". He says "her story gives me new energy for my research into helping people prevent bear attacks."

Jan 10th - 08:55am | repanshek

Jeremy,

New Budget Woes Beginning to Surface in Parks

Jan 7th - 08:16am | Alan

I think the privatization angle is on-target. The Bush administration has done the same with other Interior agencies, notably the Fish and Wildlife Service. A case study is the Pennsylvania Field Office in State College. The office has lost 5 biologist positions in five years and was forced to close its Pocono branch office. All this because of budget cuts.

Should Park Entrance Fees be Eliminated?

Jan 1st - 16:25pm | repanshek

Thanks for your feedback, Supt. Longstreet. You raise some good points regarding the financial struggles the Park Service is grappling with.

Dec 30th - 10:54am | JLongstreet

Eliminating park entrance fees, while an attractive concept, isn't as simple, nor likely to be as successful, as Scott Silver and others suggest. Why? 1. The authority to impose and collect fees is established by Congress, not the NPS. Congress clearly intends fee revenue to supplement their own less-than-adequate appropriations for the national parks.

Another Parks Blogger Joins the Ranks

Dec 28th - 13:28pm | jersu

Thanks Kurt, I think you've got a really great blog going here. Between new management policies, solicitation for private dollars, continued threats from development, not to mention hiking, camping and traveling, there is so much going on in the National Park Service, we will probably have a hard time keeping up with it all!

Give to the Parks

Dec 26th - 20:19pm | Kristen Brengel

Happy Holidays! May the new year bring more (not less) protection and enjoyment to our national parks.

New River Gorge Superintendent Speaks Out Against Rim-top Development

Dec 22nd - 17:48pm | Alan

The New River superintendent is right. How could anyone argue otherwise. I would go even further in the strict preservation mode. Too many conservationists are too willing to settle for too little these days. Compromise is the name of the game. Bah humbug. Where's the John Muir model?

Slowly Starving the Parks

Dec 7th - 13:37pm | ex-ranger

Great article Kurt! It's truly a sad state of affairs these days with the American Recreation Coalition and other commercialization/privatization groups making significant gains in using the starving the beast strategy as a major vehicle in turning our parks and forests into amusement parks.

Dec 6th - 11:48am | repanshek

Kathy, a great way to get involved is to comment on what Park Service officials in Washington are trying to do.

Dec 6th - 10:51am | Kathy Rottier

How can a private citizen get involved to help protect the national parks?

Dec 5th - 09:58am | Ranger Bob

Bingo! You have connected the dots that some in the Bush Administration ideologue camp hoped would not be made. It should be added that it is not "all-them" involved in this effort. There are current career NPS employees working to develop some of these changes.

Manson Resigns from Interior Department

Nov 22nd - 10:35am | hayduke

A quick note: While I do not support Manson's policies, you need to research the reason he's leaving-- it is health related. He's not just walking out, his health is forcing the decision. Thanks for the great blog.

Nov 21st - 20:21pm | DRP

Cool blog on parks. Good to get the Manson story out there. I've also got a perspective on it at http://dpatterson.blogspot.com

Rainier's Paradise Inn Closing for Rehab

Nov 18th - 01:19am | sam

It's inevitable that travel accommodations like these have to be repaired. At least, even if the lodge is temporarily unavailable, it is being improved to serve its guests better. It also means having more time to enjoy the panoramic view of the mountains.

NPS Managers Directed On How to Evaluate Employees

Nov 16th - 14:33pm | Terri Connell

I still work in the 9-5 world. ;-) I've been at 3 different companies in the last six years. Many of them have moved to a review format like this one. (In fact, my current company uses the exact same 5-point designation.)

A Story Congress Should Be Told

Nov 16th - 14:25pm | boojumsnark

I wonder if at times we aren't fighting losing battles on more than one front. I think we tend to fund accessibility projects to a far greater degree than basic conservation projects. Case in point is the $150 million that's now need to rebuild the Going-to-the-Sun highway. True, we haven't been keeping up with maintenance on that road, so the bill is now due.

Should We Delist Grizzlies in the Yellowstone Ecosystem?

Nov 15th - 09:07am | Clinton

It seems that if the Grizzlies could be removed from the list, it could justify and vouch for the idea of endangered species protections in general... So, is the population strong enough in numbers to survive without protection?

Retired NPS Employee Laments New 'Loyalty Oaths'

Nov 13th - 19:05pm | Ranger Bob

You have to love this one. The Bush folks are getting paranoid I would say. First, remember that all federal civil servants take an oath to defend the U.S. Constitution. That has been done, well, for a long time (here is a link addressing that history: (http://www.opm.gov/constitution_initiative/oath.asp.)

Joshua Tree's Landfill: Battle Not Over

Nov 11th - 18:30pm | Chris Clarke

Well, I was going to comment with a rather unconstructive "oh, crap," but your last para - and Howard's elucidation of it - gives me a constructive response to this project that will not die.

Nov 11th - 08:00am | hogro96

Whether or not Kaiser follows through on their promise to appeal, and whether the BLM joins them, will affect the near-term course of events in the fight against the unneeded and ill-conceived Eagle Mountain landfill. Regardless, park supporters should rest assured that all plaintiffs remain committed to fighting this project.

NPCA President Kiernan On Entrance Fee Hikes

Nov 10th - 10:58am | x-ranger

Many people avoid public lands with fees. Furthermore, the higher the fees the fewer the number of low-income visitors will visit the park. While a $5 increase may not seem like much to many Americans, it is for others. Especially those living in rural areas surrounding parks with steep entrance fees. From my experience, many locals avoid parks in their backdoors for this very reason.

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