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Traveler's Top 10 Picks For Movies Involving National Parks

Apr 24th - 07:13am | Bob Janiskee

Because Traveler readers are among the brightest and best, I was mildly surprised to learn that I was the only person able to spot Laura Linney in Dances with Wolves.

Apr 24th - 03:35am | MRC

There are of course many more, just search IMDB.com for national park in the field for filming location (http://www.imdb.com/Search/locations). There was Vertigo (1958) by Hitchcock, with the famous scene under the Golden Gate Bridge at Fort Point National Historic Site.

Apr 23rd - 16:45pm | Kath

"Maverick" has some lovely scenes shot in Yosemite National Park; one in Leidig Meadows. And one scene from "The Caine Mutiny" was shot in the Ahwahnee Hotel, which was used as a hospital during World War II. And you forgot "Grand Canyon" in which Kevin Kline, Mary McDonnell and Danny Glover have a 'come together' moment at the movie's namesake.

Apr 23rd - 15:57pm | Norm

All good selections but my favorite is The Long, Long Trailer [1954] with Lucille Ball and Desi Arnez. [Yosemite National Park was one of the filming locations.]

Apr 23rd - 15:53pm | pkrnger

I'm surprised you haven't listed my personal favorite: "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" (1969), with Robert Redford, Paul Newman and Katharine Ross. Much footage was filmed in and near Zion National Park, UT. The famous Rendevous House was located in the present ghost town of Grafton, UT, on the south-side of the Virgin River from Rockville, UT a few miles outside of the park boundary.

Apr 23rd - 15:35pm | Rangerone

Instead of movies that pretended to be in national parks (Thelma and Loiuse) there are more and better examples of actual national park locations. Some examples: Journey to the Center of the Earth (James Mason version) filmed in Carlsbad Caverns. Close Encounters filmed at Devils Tower. Splash, filmed at Statue of Liberty. Rocky II - Independence NHP.

Apr 23rd - 15:23pm | Kurt Repanshek

Good catch, Kraig. I always liked Mary better, anyway!

Apr 23rd - 15:13pm | Kraig

Wait! Laura Linney is in Dances With Wolves? Where? And how could you select her over the wonderful Mary McDonnel?

Apr 23rd - 14:20pm | MRC

Star Wars Episode VI - The Return of the Jedi (1983): Remember the Ewoks? Living on the forest moon of Endor? Those small, bear like creatures hunt and live in one of the most spectacular forests ever seen on the big screen.

Former National Park Service Directors Urge Interior Secretary To Keep Guns Out of Parks

Apr 23rd - 23:05pm | Lone Hiker

Another brief history lesson. The Nazi Party was in existence prior to Adolf Hitler being elected Chairman. One tends to equate the Nazis with Hitler, but in actuality, he was nothing more than a catalyst, giving the people what they wanted, and in many cases, what they needed after suffering though their own trials and tribulations post-WWI.

Yellowstone National Park Bison Agreement: How Big A Step Forward Is It?

Apr 23rd - 18:14pm | Anonymous

I love the bison and want them protected but this is the most ridiculous waste of taxpayers money ever. $2.8 million to save only 25 bison !! Do these people expect the bison to stand inside Yellowstone and starve to death ? Is that nonsense how they have managed to survive all these years ? Rubish, they are wild animals who must migrate to find food during all seasons.

Apr 21st - 01:40am | jsmacdonald

I know I seem to be the only one commenting here, but I wanted to point you to an essay I just wrote, which is in part a criticism of the CUT deal and the rationale cited here by those mainstream environmental groups who support it.

Apr 19th - 09:28am | jsmacdonald

By the way, there has been independent confirmation on the NPS claims of 2,300 bison alive (that is, 2,400 dead). The biggest came out today in the Jackson Hole News & Guide.

Apr 17th - 21:39pm | jsmacdonald

What a sad day for the buffalo. As someone else pointed out on a forum, there's no calling those 25 bison wild and free. What happens if those bison want to return into Yellowstone? How free are you when you are constantly tested and monitored? And, how many winters must we endure like this winter where we have lost over half the bison and perhaps more than two-thirds.

GYC Explains Value of Latest Agreement for Yellowstone National Park Bison

Apr 23rd - 15:36pm | be

the deal marks yet another illustration of the bankruptcy of the collaborative model for species advocacy in the west - as it relates to the livestock industry. When will GYC be willing to fight for what it alleges to believe in ?

Apr 23rd - 13:40pm | jsmacdonald

I cannot agree that there is any value to the latest agreement and argued as much in a recent essay on my blog (see link for Jim's Eclectic World) below. Let's look at Amy's response more closely: She writes

Lake Powell Expected to Rise 50 Feet This Summer

Apr 23rd - 14:35pm | Fred Miller

Nicely said Mr. Anonymous. I'm not convinced that there is a "climate crisis". I also doubt that there is very little, probably nothing, that we could do about it anyway. Here's an interesting piece you might enjoy reading:

Apr 23rd - 08:51am | Anonymous

What a bunch of baloney! Science has not spoken! There is not a scientific consensus on "Global Warming." Many legitimate scientists disagree with the idea that Global Warming is caused by man or that Global Warming is even occurring. So what happens if we have this same kind of winter for about 3 years in a row? Will the alarmists start shouting that man is causing a new ice age?

Are Blue Ridge Parkway's Historic Guardrails At Risk?

Apr 23rd - 11:49am | Rob

The look and feel of the parkway will be at risk once the modifications are made. Replacing and adding new railing will change the look, especially for those that frequent the parkway. It seems pretty straight forward to me.

Apr 22nd - 10:03am | RangerTyler

Guardrails at risk? A parkway remaining unmarred? Hmm.

Apr 21st - 15:53pm | MMH

Title of this article is a bit misleading, as the issue has already been settled. I expect better from NPT.

Apr 19th - 09:08am | Sabattis

Two brief notes: First, the standard abbreviation of the Federal Highway Administration is "FHWA." Typically, "FHA" refers to the Federal Housing Administration.

NPCA: Health of Everglades National Park Requires a Longer Bridge Along the Tamiami Trail

Apr 22nd - 19:36pm | Sabattis

The opening of this blog post reads as if the Tamiani Trail was built "through Big Cypress National Preserve." Of course, Big Cypress Naitonal Preserve was not established until 1974 - some 44 years after the construction of the Tamiani Trail.

Apr 18th - 13:31pm | Fred Miller

It sounds like we need to do this. Unfortunately, it looks very expensive. Our Federal government has a little trouble with its spending priorities sometimes. But let's be optimistic.

Proposed Settlement Filed in Cape Hatteras National Seashore ORV Case

Apr 21st - 22:41pm | Bernie McCants

Respectfully, to suggest that "(t)he settlement, in effect, does what the National Park Service hasn't done -- provide some guidelines for off-road driving along the seashore" is to believe the distortion of the facts by the plaintiffs.

Groups Sue Park Service Over ORV Use in Big Cypress National Preserve

Apr 21st - 17:18pm | Duckabush Traveler

Preserve Superintendent Karen Gustin has just been transferred to my park: The Olympic National Park in Washington state. Please help me understand the kind of changes this person might implement. I feel like we need to get ahead of her on the information front. We don't want ORVs or even bicycles in our Olympic NP Mountains or anywhere near its beaches.

Should Canyon de Chelly Be Given to the Navajo Nation?

Apr 21st - 14:40pm | Anonymous

None of the land is owned by the National Park Service. The land is still owned by the Navajo Nation, while the monument is administered by the National Park Service. It's a very interesting arrangement for everyone involved!

Apr 21st - 10:38am | RangerTyler

I find the word choice in the article's title interesting and revealing, especially the choice of "given". Given implies original ownership. I think "returned" would be a better word choice, especially in light of the history of America's original inhabitants their treatment by the federal government.

Apr 20th - 09:06am | Barky

Removing Canyon de Chelly would be a tremendous shame.

Strange Bedfellows: The National Park Service and the American Recreation Coalition

Apr 20th - 20:08pm | Anonymous

Laverty would be a nightmare for the NPS and he should be opposed at all cost. http://www.denverpost.com/sportscolumnists/ci_5630828

Creature Feature: Hellbenders

Apr 20th - 14:49pm | Tina Kelley

Chance, I am so happy to see the start of this new article. As a youngster I was always looking for any and all animals. I am really going to enjoy reading these articles and reliving some of my youth! To explore and find animals was always my favorite thing to do. Just ask your mother! Love ya lots....

Apr 16th - 14:55pm | john kennedy

There has been much discussion about the overuse and abuse of the Spring River in and around Mammoth Spring. The decline of the Hellbender is taken very seriously by a lot of residents in the area.

A Winter Visit to Grand Canyon National Park's Phantom Ranch

Apr 20th - 12:59pm | MRC

I never bothered with the schedule of the cross-canyon-shuttle before, but checked it out now and you are right. Unfortunately you always have to spend one night at the North Rim, no matter which direction you go. So my advice would be to check occasionally for cancellations till your trip and check again once you got to the park.

Apr 20th - 01:26am | avsfan

A question for you veterans. I just got two nights confirmed at Phantom Ranch. Is it worth staying two nights at the bottom? I want to hike from North to South, Park at the South Rim, take the shuttle to the North Rim,camp and hike back to the south. The problem is there is no space available at the North Rim Campground.

Should Uranium Mining Be Allowed Outside Grand Canyon National Park?

Apr 20th - 10:15am | Ted Z.

An update on this post - on April 4, a U.S. District Court in Arizona blocked further drilling for uranium mining until the Forest Service completes additional environmental analysis. This is a victory for the conservation groups involved (and for the Park).

A Sad Sign of the Times: NPS Promotes Body Armor Options To Rangers

Apr 19th - 11:30am | Anonymous

From the FBI National Crime Statistics for 2006, the last year for which data is complete:

Battle Mounts Over Off-Road Vehicles at Cape Hatteras National Seashore

Apr 18th - 21:58pm | Anonymous

What a comment to post. that fox looked pretty calm to be a sick one. i grew up hunting and a fox will sit and study you before fleeing. looked pretty innocent to me. but remind you of the massive round up of animals if you haven't read the 2007 piping plover report the NPS put out. Where did they take the animals too?

Apr 18th - 21:02pm | sherry

Snowbird06

Apr 18th - 14:03pm | Anonymous

You want a reason. Here you go. If you take away Offroad access YOU HAVE TO PROVIDE alternate access. This is public land. So, they don't like 2200 vehicle on 80 miles of shoreline. Then PAVE access to the shoreline and Provide 4400 parking spaces. No one has proved the decline of any species in the Cape Hatteras Seashore Receation Area. So, this law suit and ruling is strict BS!

National Park Service Helps Expand Bison Range North of Yellowstone National Park

Apr 18th - 12:01pm | Frank N

This deal is a joke! CUT can laugh, once again, all the way to the bank. If this "deal" had been in place this year, 1576 bison would have died instead of 1601! AT A COST TO TAXPAYERS OF 2.8 MILLION DOLLARS! PLUS, ALL THE HAZING, TRUCKING AND SLAUGHTERING GOES ON AT TAXPAYER EXPENSE!!

Apr 17th - 19:00pm | jsmacdonald

A quick follow-up on what I wrote. By the way, I just received this regarding the number of buffalo. Here’s a bit more news. The slaughter apparently is over for the season on both boundaries. There will be hazing but no more slaughter.

Apr 17th - 18:13pm | jsmacdonald

This is an absolutely atrocious deal, and there are a lot of other environmental groups not quoted here (Buffalo Field Campaign, Gallatin Wildlife Association) who think this is a rotten deal.

Senators' Letter to Open National Parks to Concealed Weapons

Apr 18th - 10:53am | Anonymous

Get real! I hope you never encounter an angry bear or mountain lion.

The Consequences of the Legal Bear Hunt in Katmai

Apr 17th - 19:00pm | Anonymous

i am no expert on hunting animals but i believe that it is flatly cruel. It is the major reason for the extinction of many animals and it also the reason we dont have variatio of animals any more as to prevent animals from extinctiont they are selectively breed.

Considering a Hike up Half Dome?

Apr 17th - 02:19am | MRC

Valerie, you don't need a harness of any kind to hike Half Dome. The trail is a well trodden highway for hikers until you come to the very last slope, which is sheer rock. There you have the cables to hold on and the traverses to step on. Unless you are doing something extremely stupid, you will not be in the situation to need any technical equipment.

Apr 16th - 15:28pm | Valerie

Gaby, Do you have a photo of your Via Ferrata harness? I am currently looking to purchase one. I thought I saw somewhere on another blog, you or someone had posted a picture of this particular harness and I am having a difficult time trying to locate it. I am planning to hike Half Dome the end of June this year.

Centennial Projects: Do They All Prepare the National Parks for the Next 100 Years?

Apr 16th - 16:23pm | Prairie Dog

Just a couple thoughts after looking back at some of the above responses. This is my first, foolish attempt at participating in one of these newfangled blogs. I look forward to the installation of my chip within a few years, so I won't have to use an external device to merge with the universe.

Bear #399, And Other Grizzlies, Are On the Prowl In Grand Teton National Park

Apr 16th - 16:16pm | Anonymous

It's so exciting to see these bears out again. Watching them all summer last year, you sort of feel like you are seeing old Family again when you see them. Lets hope they have a safe and incident free season.

Gettysburg National Military Park: Of Cycloramas, Museums and Visitor Centers

Apr 16th - 13:22pm | Matt M.

$103 million? Yikes - are these private interests also providing sustainable funding for the operation and maintenance of this visitor center? Its one thing to build these grand facilities. Its another to maintain the funding necessary to keep them going over time and not become a burden to the park and people they are supposed to serve.

Apr 16th - 09:43am | Anonymous

Kurt, this is another example of our historical and natural heritage being short changed by are present administration that has it's priorities backwards (as usual). Scrounging around for private funding for the national parks is a horrendous effort by the most dedicated who care.

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