Why Do I Write Park Remark?

The post earlier this week about Delaware North in Yosemite seemed to draw a lot of attention, at least more than my usual posts. A comment was attached to that post yesterday asking about what my agenda was with this website. So, I thought I'd write a quick one here about where the idea for Park Remark came from, and where it is going.

Last November, I was sharing a round of beers with a few of my friends who work for the National Park Service. Our conversation drifted towards the Hoffman Rewrite of the National Park policies. It was great to hear their feelings about these proposed changes, and at that moment I had wished that others could hear their voice too. We kicked around the idea of a blog as a way to air their grievances without jeopardizing their careers in the NPS. It seemed like a good idea at the time, but after I put together this site, my friends still felt a bit standoffish about putting their thoughts out for the rest of the world to read.

So, that's the seed that started this site. And while I can't bring you the inside scoop like I had originally hoped, my goal is to bring you news about the parks that you might not find otherwise. I've learned through this process that there is a lot of news happening across the 390 units of the Park Service every day that is really interesting. I try to filter the "noise" and highlight some of the topics that I find of particular interest. Unfortunately, there is more out there being written than I can keep up with, I wish I had more time! Ultimately, I write this blog because I enjoy it. I enjoy reading news about the parks, I enjoy visiting the parks, I enjoy the wide open spaces of some parks, I enjoy the preserved history of other parks, and I enjoy sharing these experiences with my readers. I try to keep my posts brief and to the point, while embedding as many links as I can allowing you to read more on the subject if it interests you. I try to keep the tone of my posts positive, because I find reading and writing negative editorials depressing. As a friend reminded me recently, no one wants to jump on board a sinking ship. In the future, I hope to bring more voices and perspectives to this website. Are there features that you would like to see included on this site? I do appreciate your feedback.

Other sites with quality daily news about the National Park Service:

• National Parks Traveler
• NPS Digest
• NPS Daily Headlines