The National Park Service recently issued a prospectus for the operation of one of its most unusual lodging facilities, Kettle Falls Hotel in Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota. The prospectus also involves such associated services as retail, boat rental and portage, marina services, guest transportation, and food and beverage service. The hotel is accessible only by boat or float plane and is the only Park Service lodging facility within the park. Transportation for guests can be scheduled when room reservations are made.

Vandalism at Acadia National Park, low water levels in Lake Powell that are placing Glen Canyon National Recreation Area in a bind, and new speciality license plates for fans of the Blue Ridge Parkway are among the stories circulating around the National Park System this week.

The inaugural Tremont Writers Conference is the coordinated effort of two educational park partners, Great Smoky Mountains Institute at Tremont and Great Smoky Mountains Association. Set on the lush, secluded Tremont campus, the event will immerse a small group of selected writers in an intensive retreat of brainstorming and fine-tuning their work while learning about nature and writing in small groups from Wednesday, October 25, through Sunday, October 29.

Wolves at Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve are, not too surprisingly, opportunistic when it comes to their meals. They might include salmon, sea otters, or remains of a whale carcass that washed ashore.