About The National Parks Traveler
National Parks Traveler is a webzine dedicated specifically to covering the National Park System and the National Park Service. The Traveler is not a travelogue, but rather strives to follow issues involving the parks. Our mission is clear: National Parks Traveler works to educate the general public about the National Park System, increase awareness and understanding of issues affecting the national parks and the National Park Service, and build a stronger advocacy for protection and sound stewardship of the parks.
The Traveler endorses and actively supports the National Park Service Organic Act of 1916 that mandated a high standard of protection for the parks, as well as the Redwoods Act of 1978 that reemphasized the Organic Act’s stewardship provisions and affirmed that they are to be applied on a system-wide basis.
Traveler seeks to work in ways that are consistent with the National Park Service’s fundamental purpose for managing the parks, which is “to conserve the scenery and the natural and historic objects and the wildlife therein and to provide for the enjoyment of the same in such manner and by such means as will leave them unimpaired for the enjoyment of future generations."
What's Going On Here?
The Editor:
Kurt Repanshek built his journalism career atop a 14-year stint with The Associated Press that saw him rise from a general assignment reporter to correspondent-in-charge for the state of Wyoming. Since embarking on a freelance career in the fall of 1993, his articles have appeared in Smithsonian, National Geographic Traveler, Audubon, National Wildlife, Hemispheres, Wilderness, and other publications. He launched NPT in August 2005 because of his love, and concern, for national parks. His other credits include an article on ... Contributors:
While serving 33 years on the faculty of the University of South Carolina, I taught a national parks course, helped get Congaree National Park established, and worked as a V.I.P in that park. Now retired as Emeritus Distinguished Professor of Geography, I want to continue visiting parks, thinking about parks, and writing about parks until I assume room temperature. To help keep me focused and busy I teach “America’s National Parks” and several other courses through the University’s Independent Learning ... 
I am a high school senior in Tennessee, and a member of the University of Tennessee at Martin Class of 2012, where I will major in natural resources management. I hope to become a ranger with the National Park Service after university, and later I'd like to go into environmental law and politics. I believe there is inherent value in the environment, and the observation of nature in a setting removed from the hectic world of day-to-day life uplifts the ... 
Comments
Brodie Farquhar (not verified)
Very nice new look and the content remains solid. This is gonna be fun!
Andrew Dean Nystrom (not verified)
Kurt - great new design, thanks for the update. I've updated the URL on travel.latimes.com.
In sustainable adventure,
~ Andrew
Sr. Editor/Producer, travel.latimes.com
Los Angeles Times Interactive/Tribune Co.
coolstud
This is my first time visiting National Parks Traveler and I must say Kurt and Jeremy I am impressed,I really like it,keep up the good work, Phil Craggs, Bradenton,Florida
Ken Bers (not verified)
Great site packed with good info. Keep moving the site to greatness. I will become a advid reader.
John Eagle (not verified)
Great website. Good to see you guys expanding.
Good Luck
Michael (not verified)
I run a on-line travel site for anyone looking to go on vacations so i have been serching the web to find other sites that give informatioin about thier place of vacation and this site has excellent informatioin on Nationial Parks Iam using my Yahoo group to put links so people can see all the beautiful places they can go before they book on my site. My yahoo group page is called Next Stop Vacations and it is new and my vacations site is www.nextstopvacations.com Iam still learning how to make it more fun for everyone to come to my site. Its a work in progress :)
Donna (not verified)
Hi, I just stumbled onto your site by accident. Great site!!! Since I've been a road tripper for the past several years, I've logged miles on my truck visiting many different National Parks, Monuments, etc. From the little I've seen so far, great going guys. I've bookmarked you so I'll be sure to be back. Good information, I love it. thanks.....
mexico adventure (not verified)
I would recommend a national park vacation for old people of families for camping but a real vacation means exploring new countries and cultures
Steve Sergeant
mexico adventure wrote:
I'll grant that this definition supports your business model well.
But I think a more accepted definition is simply: ...a period spent away from home or business in travel or recreation.
Notice that it says "in travel -or- recreation."
Most Americans are at this point are predominantly urban and suburban dwellers. I argue that an escape to a natural, undeveloped setting, such as a wilderness area of a national park, would be a sufficiently foreign experience as to profoundly broaden their understanding of the world around them. In contrast, most financially successful commercial tours to "foreign" countries wind up providing the traveler with the same kinds of civilized comforts that they've come to expect at home, which makes their "cultural experience" in that foreign country pointlessly superficial. To be fair, most tourist trips which stick to the developed areas of U.S. national parks could also be seen as pointlessly superficial.
(Editors: I realize that my and mexico adventure's comments are way off topic for this thread, and I would not object to the deletion of both.)
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10-minute weekly documentaries to help you appreciate our wild public lands.
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53 National Parks (not verified)
Kurt and Jeremy! Nice job on the website. Making a cool looking site like this is hard. I love your color scheme and graphics. Peace, and happy travels.
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