National Parks Traveler

Kurt Repanshek

Biography

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 national parks of the world for Microsoft’s Encarta CD-Rom as well as three guidebooks to the national parks. A contributor to the Travel Arts Syndicate, his stories have appeared in the Miami Herald, Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Denver Post, and other newspapers.

During his AP career Kurt helped direct and contribute to AP coverage of the 1988 forest fires in and around Yellowstone National Park; covered statewide, congressional, and presidential campaigns, and; closely followed public lands issues in the Rocky Mountain West. A freelance story he wrote on the collapse of the WordPerfect software designer won top honors from the Society of Professional Journalists, Utah chapter.

Kurt's Most Recent Comments (view all)

2/05/2010 3:01 pm - Point Reyes National Seashore Superintendent Promoted to Yosemite National Park : And who says fact can't be stranger than fiction? Let's put aside for a moment the questions of scientific integrity and touch on two other questions as an exercise of sorts to extend and broaden the discussion: 1. If Congress directed that this area be designated official wilderness, and the ...
2/05/2010 10:58 am - Voyageurs National Park Biologists Looking For a Few Good Moose to Collar For Climate-Change Studies : Dang! I thought I had caught that one. Nice catch...the "bull" will now disappear from this post.
2/04/2010 7:04 pm - Mike Snyder, Intermountain Regional Director for the National Park Service, Opts for Retirement : Folks, we're getting a few comments that go over the line, and that's why they're not showing up. Let's try to keep a measure of civility or two.
2/04/2010 11:48 am - Point Reyes National Seashore Superintendent Promoted to Yosemite National Park : There certainly are undercurrents to this story. However, here are some additional comments the [b][i]Traveler[/b][/i] just received that apply to the Drakes Bay matter: In a memo to Ben Becker, director of the Park Service's Pacific Coast Science and Learning Center and author of one of the studies on harbor ...
2/03/2010 8:21 am - Reducing The Federal Deficit Is Essential, But Are the National Parks A Logical Place to Cut Spending? : Anon, I do recall President Bush saying he was going to wipe out the backlog, then estimated at about $4.9 billion, during his first term, but I never saw the appropriations you mention. I'll make some inquiries. Don't forget, though, that what presidents propose Congress needs to endorse, and that ...
2/02/2010 2:46 pm - Spring in Arches and Canyonlands National Parks: The Logistics : Janet, Watch for updates to our checklists for both Canyonlands and Arches. As for the Fiery Furnace tour, if you're in moderately good shape it shouldn't be a problem. Greatest problem you might have is acclimating to the altitude -- 3,900 feet and higher -- and dealing with the dry ...
2/01/2010 6:29 pm - Reducing The Federal Deficit Is Essential, But Are the National Parks A Logical Place to Cut Spending? : Anon, Not sure where you came up with Congress appropriating $700 million a year to address the backlog. Can you find a paper trail that reflects that? I haven't seen one. As for the annual underfunding, according to NPCA it just recently came down to @$600 million, that it had ...
1/31/2010 6:07 pm - Reducing The Federal Deficit Is Essential, But Are the National Parks A Logical Place to Cut Spending? : Anon, the backlog isn't being wiped out because, according to NPCA, the Park Service's annual budgets fall about $600 million of what the agency needs each year.
1/30/2010 5:32 pm - Fishing, Boating, Surfing, Permits Available for Gateway National Recreation Area Beginning Feb. 1 : Anonymous, here's what the park's website says re [url=http://www.nps.gov/gate/planyourvisit/permits.htm]fishing permits[/url]: [quote]The Gateway Fishing Permit is required at all fishing sites in Brooklyn, Queens and Staten Island, and for night fishing at Sandy Hook. It is an annual permit good for the calendar year. The cost is $50 and the permit ...
1/29/2010 10:41 am - When Is Conservation of Park Lands Prudent, and When is the Spending Wasteful? : Rick, Thanks for digging a little deeper into Castle Nugent. It'd be interesting to see the land appraisal process. And if the owners' bottom-line interest is to preserve the land, the same end could be achieved through a conservation easement, which wouldn't provide them with $50 million but would have ...

Kurt's Most Recent Articles (view all)

Zion National Park Commemorative Coin Out of This World

An astronaut aboard the space shuttle Endeavour is carrying with him a Zion National Park commemorative coin, an expression, perhaps, that the park's red-rock landscape is other worldly.

Dinosaur National Monument Crews Recognized For Removing Ruins From Recommended Wilderness

Not all proposed wilderness areas are always pristine. Some have waning vestiges of an early day. In Dinosaur National Monument, for instance, there long have been some falling down structures in an area along the Green River that has been recommended for wilderness designation. It took a while, but crews from the monument were able to remove all the facilities from the setting.

1,000-Mile Yukon Quest Dogsled Race Under Way in Alaska

In one of the "Iron man," or perhaps "Iron dog," events of sled-dog racing, the 1,000-mile Yukon Quest race is under way, with 24 teams mushing from Fairbanks, Alaska, to Whitehorse in the Canadian Yukon. The trail follows historic Gold Rush and Mail Delivery routes from the turn of the 20th Century, and passes through part of Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve.

Much Work Remains to Complete A Wilderness Landscape in the National Park System

The Wilderness Act was enacted in 1964. After nearly a half-century, the wilderness edifice of the national park system is only half complete. Ten years ago, Wes Henry, the NPS Wilderness Coordinator, directed that a report document the unfinished wilderness agenda of the parks. Some progress has since been made. The year ahead may be a good year. Much remains to be done.

Obama Administration Draws Criticism for Declining ESA Protection To Pikas

A diminutive creature that struggles with warmer temperatures brought on by climate change will not receive Endangered Species Act protection for its predicament, the Obama administration has decided in a move that brought quick condemnation from some corners.

Regulatory Landscape For Guns to Change in National Parks on February 22

A controversial rule change concerning firearms in national parks takes effect February 22, a change likely to cause confusion and raise concerns over personal safety, but one also that could go largely unnoticed and give some a measure of personal security.

Art in the Parks: Cape Cod National Seashore and Bandelier National Monument

For going on 150 years the landscapes of the National Park System have been inspiring artists. Thomas Moran, Albert Bierstadt and Maynard Dixon are just three of the long, distinguished roster of artists who found their proverbial muse in places such as Yellowstone, Yosemite, and Zion national parks. Here are two more you can add to that list, one contemporary, one from the early 20th Century.

Paddling The Nobel Hammock Trail In Everglades National Park

I must admit that the only paddling I've done south of the Mason-Dixon Line was on the white-water rivers of West Virginia. The thought of paddling the watery tendrils of Everglades National Park conjures thoughts of swarms of insects that'd keep me swatting the air more than paddling the water. But a recent report by the park on paddling the Nobel Hammock Trail has given me a change of heart.

Voyageurs National Park Biologists Looking For a Few Good Moose to Collar For Climate-Change Studies

If all goes as expected, 14 moose that roam Voyageurs National Park soon will be wearing the latest in radio-collar technology. Not only will the collars track the animals' movements, but they're expected to shed some light on how the moose are reacting to climate change, as they'll also keep tabs on the air temperature wherever the moose roam.

Rockfalls In Yosemite National Park Are Part of Life

My first visit to Yosemite National Park back in June 1999 coincided with a rockfall that forced me out of a tent cabin in Curry Village and into one in Tuolumne Meadows. Ever since, I've been intrigued by rockfalls in the park's iconic valley. While the frequency of rockfalls in recent years might be alarming to park visitors, they are calling cards evidencing the active geology that's ongoing in Yosemite.