Some units of the National Park System offer premier sites for enjoying the night sky, due to their location far from cities and the accompanying light pollution. One park which doesn't have the advantage of dark skies has something else—the only planetarium in the National Park System.

If you like to leave the pavement for the sand dunes at Cape Cod National Seashore, mark April 10 on your calendar. That's when the seashore will begin selling this year's off-road-vehicle permits.

Now that most of the country has sprung forward into daylight saving time, can summer be far behind? For some parks, summer is still a coming attraction, and just getting the snow off the road can be quite a job. In one park in years gone by, opening the road to Paradise was a highly anticipated annual event that created a different kind of challenge for another group of workers.

When was the last time you tail-gated before a symphony concert? You'll be able to do just that this June at Great Smoky Mountains National Park when the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra helps the park celebrate its 75th birthday.