It was just over a month ago when the federal government was staring at the possibility of a shutdown. Well, little seemingly has changed in the ensuing four weeks, other than that the House of Representatives has a new speaker in Mike Johnson from Louisiana, and the full chamber has settled on its budget numbers for fiscal 2024…which started back on October 1.
While most national parks likely will close if there is a government shutdown on November 17, what is more pressing for the National Park Service is what budget numbers Congress will settle on for the current fiscal year and whether President Biden will go along with them.
Our guests today are John Garder, the senior director for budget & appropriations at the National Parks Conservation Association, and Mike Murray, a long-time NPS employee and superintendent who now serves as chair of the Coalition to Protect America’s National Parks. They’re here to discuss the current situation facing the Park Service and Park System.
By Jess Repanshek - November 12th, 2023
0:02 National Parks Traveler introduction
0:12 Episode Intro with Kurt Repanshek
0:52 Beyond the Reef - Tim Heintz & Grant Geissman - Seascapes: A Musical Journey
1:16 The Everglades Foundation
1:28 Potrero Group
1:55 Xplorer Maps
2:16 Interior Federal Credit Union
2:49 Great Smoky Mountains Association
3:17 Episode 248 - Budgetary Blues
20:04 Wabanaki - Nature’s Symphony - The Sounds of Acadia
20:34 NPT Promo
20:46 Yosemite Conservancy
21:07 Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation
21:29 Grand Teton National Park Foundation
21:58 Washington’s National Park Fund
22:31 Friends of Acadia
23:01 Episode 248 - Budgetary Blues Continues
42:41 Wonder Lake - Various Artists - The Spirit of Alaska
43:04 Episode Closing
43:26 Orange Tree Productions
43:58 Splitbeard Productions
44:09 National Parks Traveler footer
Did you know that there are some five and a half million acres of our National Parks that are underwater? There are sunken ships and aircraft. There are remnants of industry and mining. There are coral reefs and underwater caverns.
Summer is almost here. The upcoming Memorial Day weekend is the official kickoff to the summer travel season, and I’m happy to say that the National Parks Traveler will be continuing to bring you news about the parks and how you can enjoy them.
As much as Editor-in-Chief Kurt Repanshek was looking forward to retiring, listener and reader support has enabled the news organization to continue on with its editorially independent coverage of National Parks and protected areas.
With the summer vacation season not too far off, no doubt many National Park Service Superintendents are trying to figure out how to manage the crowds and avoid impacts to natural resources in the park system.
Smokies Life, which most of you who closely follow Great Smoky Mountains National Park know was previously known as the Great Smoky Mountains Association, produces educational and informational materials for Great Smoky Mountains National Park. This week we’re joined by Laurel Rematore, the chief executive officer of Smokies Life, to discuss the name change as well as how her organization lends a big hand to the Park Service staff at Great Smoky.
Have you ever closely inspected the landscape when you’re touring the National Park System, particularly in the West? You never know what you might find.
Back in 2010 a 7-year-old attending a Junior Ranger program at Badlands National Park spied a partially exposed fossil that turned out to be the skull of a 32-million-year-old saber-toothed cat.
If you’ve ever visited Petrified Forest National Park you’ve no doubt marveled over the colorful fossilized tree trunks. There are also fossilized trees on the northern range of Yellowstone National Park, but nowhere near as colorful.
Support Journalism about National Parks!
National Parks Traveler is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit.
The Essential RVing Guide
The National Parks RVing Guide, aka the Essential RVing Guide To The National Parks, is the definitive guide for RVers seeking information on campgrounds in the National Park System where they can park their rigs. It's available for free for both iPhones and Android models.
This app is packed with RVing specific details on more than 250 campgrounds in more than 70 parks.
You'll also find stories about RVing in the parks, some tips if you've just recently turned into an RVer, and some planning suggestions. A bonus that wasn't in the previous eBook or PDF versions of this guide are feeds of Traveler content: you'll find our latest stories as well as our most recent podcasts just a click away.
So whether you have an iPhone or an Android, download this app and start exploring the campgrounds in the National Park System where you can park your rig.
Add comment