The Simpsons Visit the National Parks

I must admit that I have been a fan of the TV show "The Simpsons" for a long time. Can you believe it's been on the air for 17 years so far? Every once in awhile, the characters will visit some place that has some connection to the National Parks. Last night was one of those episodes. The whole family visits a place called "Carl's Dad Caverns". Once inside, Homer Simpson wants to take a tiny piece of a sacred stalactite. As he hits the rock with a tiny hammer, he manages to have the entire stalactite fall from the ceiling and break open a new hole in the cave floor. Somehow all the Simpsons fall into this hole and get trapped. They do manage to escape by the end of the episode without help from any park rangers.

But, 9 years earlier, they did need the help of a park ranger after Homer had somehow been trapped in an avalanche. Some of my favorite lines from that episode (found on The Simpsons Archive):

The family visits "Mt. Useful" for a company retreat that Homer must attend
Marge: Don't worry, kids. This is a national park. We can have lots of fun!
Ranger: Oh, I'm afraid that's no longer true, ma'am. Budget cutbacks have forced us to eliminate anything the least bit entertaining. [long pause] Well, uh, see ya.

At the Mt. Useful Visitors Center, the kids are looking for something to pass time. Bart tries a Smokey the Bear robot.
Smokey: Only who can prevent forest fires? [Bart chooses the "You" button over the "Me"] You pressed "you," referring to me. That is incorrect. The correct answer is "you".
Bart: [kicks the robot] Mom, can Lisa and I play outside -- away from the bear

Everyone at the lookout post is preparing to rescue Mr. Burns and Homer.
Ranger: Okay, search party, before we set out, let's take a moment to humor the children. [to Bart and Lisa] Kids, your father's gonna be just fine! Okay, everybody, put on your corpse-handling gloves, we've got two frozen bodies buried somewhere in this mountain.
Bart: Did you hear that, Lis'? Dad's gonna be just fine.

Read More:

• Simpsons Episode: The Seemingly Never-Ending Story
• Simpsons Episode: Mountain of Madness
• NPS: Carlsbad Cavern