When I was a volunteer at the desk at Oconaluftee Visitor Center at Great Smoky Mountains National Park, the most frequent question on the phone was, "Is US 441 open through to Gatlinburg?"
That was easy to answer officially, either "yes" or "no."
But they were not all that easy. A woman called and asked if I knew where in Cherokee, North Carolina, the movie Digging to China was filmed. She was looking for the motel in the film. My first thought was, "It's a good thing that I answered this phone. I just happened to have seen this obscure movie."
I don't call a national park lightly. I scour the website several times for the information before I telephone. Then I ask to talk to someone who will know the official answer. And if the right person is away, he or she has actually called me back -- something that rarely happens when I call a company or store.
So the question is: Have you ever called a national park with a question that was not answered on the website? What has been your experience? Has anyone in the park called you back, if needed, with the information you requested?
Bonus question: If you work for the National Park Service and have worked in a visitor center, what was the most unsual question you've ever been asked?
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Um, yeah. I have been to around 100 NPS sites and I call every single one of them at least once before coming. Most of the rangers and volunteers are awesome and provide great info not found on the website. Events are not frequently posted for some sites which is important in getting the best experience. I also frequently get the best restaurant advise!
It's usually hard to get thru to the front desk of any of the parks lodges to ask questions-- you typically need to go thru Xanterra or something similar and if its short notice they never have an opening. If you can find the # to the dining room however you sometimes can get them to transfer you directly to the from desk. I've done ot twice--- at Grand Canyon( El Tovar) and Yellowstone (Old Faithful Inn) and got reservations at the last minute after Xanterra told me they were all booked up!!
Dick G has it nailed re trying to call park lodges. On 2/2/12, as I lay on the walkway on Geyser Hill at Yellowstone with what turned out to be a broken ankle (broken in 3 places!), my husband needed to call to alert the Rangers that we needed help. The only number we had in the cellphone was Xanterra. He got the switchboard, who DID NOT WANT to transfer his call to the Snow Lodge to get the ball rolling. After having to tell the operator more than twice that I was lying injured on the boardwalk, they finally transferred the call. Here I'll take the time to commend the Rangers, EMTs, etc that responded to our call for help. It wasn't easy getting me off those snowy, icy walkways but they managed it. The ride out of the park in a mattrack-ambulance was no picnic either but they all did their best not to cause me further discomfort and to put me at ease. A truly caring and professional group of people. They did the NPS proud that day!
Several years ago, I became interested in how Mount Rainier National Park apportioned it's annual budget amoungst it's various departments. Repeated requests by phone, e-mail and letter were ignored. Six months after I contacted the DC FOI office, the park mailed a copy of the page in the national NPS budget with a single line listing the park's annual budget amount for the previous year.
I was definitely left with the impression that NPS management considered such information none of the taxpayer's business. It seems to me the information I sought should be routinely posted on each park's website, if not on campground bulletin boards.
I don't call a national park lightly. I scour the website several times
for the information before I telephone. Then I ask to talk to someone
who will know the official answer. And if the right person is away, he
or she has actually called me back -- something that rarely happens when
I call a company or store.
I was once asked when the ranger's painted the Blue Ridge Mountains blue, because they were green when that visitor was there. I really don't know if she was serious. But she certainly fooled me.