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Grizzly Bear Shot and Killed By Hikers In Denali National Park and Preserve

Sep 26th - 08:50am | TJ

In the Wyoming case, I would only say, was the guy poaching? ya know, hunting illegally. Sounds to me like he was not, hunting and merely trying to protect himself.

Reader Participation Day: Which Issue Resonates More: Yellowstone Snowmobiles or Cape Hatteras ORVs?

Sep 26th - 08:25am | YNP4everyone

Kurt thanks for acknowledging that the snowmobiles are restricted to the roads as you can see Randi and Ed don't seem to understand it in their comments. As you know there are also occurances of automobiles running off road in Yellowstone over the years yet there has not been a big push to eliminate them from the park.

Sep 26th - 07:09am | Bill H

Julie Kay Smithson

Sep 23rd - 17:08pm | Michele Munsky

When our children were young we were uncomfortable with the vehicles driving on the beach at Cape Hattaras especially near the campgrounds...at that time we did not have a 4-wheel drive vehicle. We have since discovered the joy of getting off by ourselves and spending the day on a beach where we seldom see other people.

Sep 23rd - 16:48pm | Kurt Repanshek

Julie, A philosophical bent, eh? Let's keep things in their proper context. I was merely assessing your comparison of the impacts of nature -- hurricanes, cold, snowfall and blowdowns -- with those of motorized vehicles. I never said humans were not part of nature. They are very much.

Sep 23rd - 15:58pm | Anonymous

My family and I visited Yellowstone last winter and did the snowmobile trip with a guide from West Yellowstone . What a wonderful adventure it was. I have bad high blood pressure and there is no way I or most visitors could hike all the way to most of the park-- especially in the winter. The guides were very cognigent of the impact on the park.

Sep 23rd - 15:55pm | Julie Kay Smith...

Winter can be silent, but I prefer hearing the sound of woodpeckers working in dead trees, the sounds of ice popping and cracking, or snow plopping as it is warmed just enough by the sun to lose its perch, etc. Winter is usually not all that quiet!

Sep 23rd - 15:52pm | Anonymous

Hate to say it, I use the closed off beaches all the time, walking over from my car. Rarely do we not find tire tracks through them.

Sep 23rd - 14:57pm | matt Stubbs

Robert, I agree about seeing YellowStone in the Winter. I grew up in Michigan and what a delight to see Mackinac in the winter.

Sep 23rd - 12:47pm | Robert S

Haven't seen Yellowstone in the winter, but hope to soon. To me, winter is about the silence. Hopefully, we can work to preserve that soundscape. Living close to Hateras and having driven on the beaches, I would like to see an option that let's all people enjoy all the beaches, not just the priviledge few that have 4 wheel drive vehicles and the desire to take them on the beach.

Sep 23rd - 10:31am | Dave Crowl

The worst part is if you had a solution that 99% of us agreed on, the 1% would still produce a lawsuit that will still cause us to spend 10 million to defend. Maybe that was your point, Kurt. As for my opinion I am for Snowmobiles with limited numbers etc.. that T.J. and William Hardy best described. I do enjoy reading everybody's view including those who differ from mine.

Sep 23rd - 09:36am | Kurt Repanshek

Matt, Indeed, debate over how the seashore should be managed and utilized has been going on almost from its inception. My intended reference, which I could have made more clear, was to the legal fray stemming from the lawsuit brought in 2007 by Audubon and Defenders.

Sep 23rd - 09:24am | matt Stubbs

Kurt, I will say I am impressed by your website taking on this issue again.

Sep 23rd - 08:40am | Ryan

Kurt, This is a tantalizing statement: "Human-caused impacts are decidedly not part of nature or a natural infliction."

Sep 23rd - 08:19am | Kurt Repanshek

YNP4Everyone, while it's certainly true that snowmobiles are restricted to the roads in Yellowstone, it's not true that everyone obeys that regulation. Things have been improved from the pre-guide years, but from time to time there have been incidents of off-road travel.

Sep 22nd - 22:45pm | Ed E.

I've never been able to understand why anyone would need to drive on the beach at Hatteras when a blacktop road parallels the beach. Is it the walking or carrying that is objectionable? I just shake my head at the thought that either is a consideration. Lazy, lazy. My grandmother used to tell me that "nothing good comes easy".

Trails I've Hiked: Deep Creek/Martins Gap/Indian Creek Loop In Great Smoky Mountains National Park

Sep 26th - 05:21am | TnHiker

This is a nice route for fall foliage views, however, Danny mischaracterizes the Deep Creek segment by failing to mention the large number of "finger ridges" hikers must traverse along Deep Creek trail between the Loop trail and Martins Gap trail. The average elevation grade along this section is 14% and some sections have grades as severe as 28%.

Padre Island National Seashore: Wintering Grounds For Sandhill Cranes

Sep 25th - 20:44pm | Margaret

I am located just outside of Noelville Ontario. On my way home from the dump today I happened to see something odd out the corner of my eye. Approximately 100 Sandhill Cranes doing some clean up work in a cut down corn field. I was not sure what they were so I went home and got my husband and his camera. After examination of the photos we determined what they were.

Updated: Possible Increase In Climbing Fees at Denali, Mount Rainier National Parks Condemned by Climbers

Sep 25th - 09:05am | tahoma

This fee increase to support safety programs may have unintended consequences at Mount Rainier. Denali climbers often spend many thousands of dollars on specialized gear and transportation, but Rainier is accessible to a much less affluent and often less experienced crowd.

Record Summer of Turtle Nesting at Cape Hatteras National Seashore Spawns....Debate

Sep 25th - 07:07am | Anonymous

This is great news for the Seashore that has suffered so long under the wheels of destructive ORVs. Its been 3 straight record years for sea turtles after the NPS finally began to control vehicles on the beach. This is no coincidence.

Sep 24th - 16:07pm | Anonymous

Sea turtles, and turtle hatchlings, have been crawling onto and off of those beaches for eons. Wheeled motor vehicles have been doing so for decades. When the Park Service mission is both to protect and preserve these places AND allow for their recreational enjoyment, it's not that hard to come down on the side of the turtles during the relatively small window of time they need to reproduce.

Sep 24th - 09:46am | Pam Lambert

Having respect for nature is the bottom line. There is no reason that the public must drive on the beach. I think mankind does enough damage to nature that this seems like a small thing to request.

The Rest of the Story – Tricky Clean-up at Crater Lake National Park After Car Goes Over the Edge

Sep 24th - 23:57pm | Don MacKay

My comment is inspired by mention of the dog that fortunately escaped serious harm. I worked at a hotel in the Columbia River Gorge near Hood River Oregon a few years back. Behind the hotel was a viewing area that looked out over the river. It was in a natural rock setting with a wall built at the edge. Below the wall was a 200 foot drop straight down.

Sep 24th - 18:23pm | Jim Burnett

Anonymous - Good eye, and congratulations on catching the third "Swanson" connection in the story! In case some readers missed it, that was also the name of the company that provided the helicopter for the clean-up. It's in the seventh paragraph of the story.

Sep 24th - 18:22pm | Crater Lake Lover

I was at the lake when this unfortunate incident occurred. (My name is NOT Swanson) My main concern was for contaminants entering the soil/water. I'm reassured that everything possible is being done to clean up this mess before the winter storms. My sincere thanks to all involved in the recovery of the debris.

Sep 24th - 15:49pm | Anonymous

I think the "lack of luck" for the Swanson name ended when the Kmax came to recover the "car" successfully. Truly a great story and was wondering when someone was going to write something about the SWANSON/SWANSON/SWANSON connection.

Sep 24th - 14:14pm | Anonymous

Regarding who pays for it; whether the park pays, or the insurance pays, we all pay. Park=tax dollars. Insurance=higher premiums for all. just saying.

Sep 24th - 12:28pm | pkrnger

My own preference is for the inner caldera and lake to be managed as a most sacred place. This is presently the situation for at least 9 months of the year when snow prohibits lake access. Throughout the spring, fall, and winter months, the inner caldera of Crater Lake is essentially pure wilderness.

Sep 24th - 12:00pm | Jim Burnett

Island Paddler: Good question. In such cases, standard procedure is for the NPS to recover costs from the owner's insurance company. That applies for incidents such as aircraft crashes as well as vehicle accidents.

Sep 24th - 11:39am | HSW

That story reminds me of a coincidence at Roosevelt-Vanderbilt NHS. An elderly gentleman backed out of parking space, forgot to put the car in drive, then excelerated - backwards. His car headed down an embankment but not before hitting some visitors sitting on a park bench. Luckily nobody was hurt.

Sep 24th - 10:40am | Island Paddler

I'd like to know who pays the bill for the clean up. The Park Service, meaning U.S. taxpayers, or the driver's insurance?

Sep 24th - 10:12am | y_p_w

William E Hardy: If you were aware of just HOW pristine the water at Crater Lake is, you would NOT question the concern for the "small amount" of contaminant involved. ANY amount is a diasaster in as clean an environment as Crater Lake offers!!!

Sep 24th - 09:17am | William E Hardy

If you were aware of just HOW pristine the water at Crater Lake is, you would NOT question the concern for the "small amount" of contaminant involved. ANY amount is a diasaster in as clean an environment as Crater Lake offers!!!

Sep 24th - 08:26am | Jon Merryman

I heard they quoted the dog after the rescue as saying: "That's Swan small step for dog, one Swan leap for dog-kind."

Sep 24th - 08:24am | Anonymous

Really folks - isn't the amount of "contaminant" that could run the equivalent to a "drop in the bucket" given the size of Crater Lake?

Sep 24th - 07:48am | Jim Burnett

Anonymously-Yours Well, in fairness to the Swanson clan, in this month's accident the car didn't belong to Mr. Swanson; he was just a friend traveling with the owner of the VW. The unlikely connection of the names to both situations was just too good to miss for a little tongue-in-cheek comment, though. What are the odds??

Sep 24th - 07:11am | Anonymously-Yours

maybe they should screen for people named "Swanson" at the entrance? Or post a sign in that area saying that if your last name is Swanson and your car goes over, you're liable for all clean up costs? Just a thought...

Sep 24th - 06:24am | vagobond

A very comprehensive article, makes one completely informed about the topic in hand. A really good effort by the Park management, and the dog is indeed "lucky"!! Good to hear that no one was injured, thought the incident clearly advocates the need for taking the utmost care while on trips.

Tracing The Postage Stamp-Sized History of the National Park System

Sep 24th - 21:58pm | Anonymous

I recently visited the following website, which gives values for both mint and used: http://values.hobbizine.com/stamps/index.html.

Got Time For A Fall National Park Visit? These Lodges Have Room

Sep 24th - 19:04pm | Carolyn Botell,...

While Yosemite National Park is often full almost year round for in-park accommodations, in the fall, winter, and early spring months many of the inns & lodges in the Gateway Communities to the Yosemite, such as the gold rush town of Groveland on Highway 120 where the Hotel & Cafe Charlotte is located (which are both highly ranked on Trip Advisor) have rooms availability, and often at d

No Clues in Disappearance of Angler in Glacier National Park

Sep 24th - 16:19pm | Anonymous

The fishing pole was not fully confirmed to be his by his family.

Sep 24th - 07:37am | Kurt Repanshek

Thought about that Gary, and concluded that the fishing pole, like the man's truck, was evidence that he was indeed there, but didn't indicate what happened to him. Thus the phrasing that there were no clues "as to what happened" to him.

Sep 24th - 04:19am | Gary

Doesn't a fishing pole count as a clue?

Fall Into Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone Kills California Woman

Sep 24th - 12:23pm | Anonymous

Family is fine, Mom moved away. She had a very discrete ceremony. We miss her a lot!

Doggone! Car with Canine Aboard Goes Over the Edge at Crater Lake National Park

Sep 24th - 10:02am | y_p_w

Sounds like a scene from the movie "Risky Business" where a kid forgets to set the parking brake, accidentally knocks the shifter out of gear, and his dad's Porsche ends up rolling down to a pier which collapses under the weight into a lake. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bodVVtqmbZE

Trust For Public Land Helps Improve Carbon River Entrance of Mount Rainier National Park

Sep 23rd - 19:48pm | Meg

OH. Wow. That is simply *terrific*!

NPCA Criticizes Utah Decision to Allow Strip Mine Near Bryce Canyon National Park

Sep 23rd - 16:19pm | Anonymous

Utah could have its power and its beauty, too!

Ill-Advised Leap Leads to Rescue from the Subway at Zion National Park

Sep 23rd - 15:03pm | Anonymously-Yours

Gee, 8 to 10 feet doesn't sound like much, but I guess if you're landing on rocks like those in the pic, that makes for a pretty good likelihood of spraining an ankle. Big Horn sheep we ain't!...

Theodore Roosevelt National Park Turning to 240 Volunteers To Help Reduce Elk Herd

Sep 23rd - 09:47am | justinh

Anonymous on September 23, 2010 - 8:14am, RE: Your last three paragraphs. You're entirely missing the point. National parks are some of the few remaining ecosystems where folks can see (non-human) predators, prey, and their interaction. It's hard to imagine millions of people visiting the parks hoping to catch a glimpse of a hunter shooting an elk.

Sep 23rd - 09:14am | Anonymous

Here, again, are numerous examples of people with little knowledge of the situation, or area, spouting off with their illogical ideas.

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