Horses can be found in many corners of the National Park System. You spot them running wild at Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota, splashing in the surf at Cape Lookout National Seashore in North Carolina and at Assateague Island National Seashore in Maryland and Virginia, and of course as pack animals and tireless steeds that carry both rangers and visitors through the parks.
But wild horses are somewhat of a conundrum in the National Park System. They’re a conundrum because they technically are not wild, but rather feral, meaning that they descended from domesticated horses. As such, they technically are not native wildlife in the parks, and that has become an issue in some parts of the park system.
At Theodore Roosevelt National Park, the National Park Service has raised the question of whether the horses there, as livestock, not native wildlife, should be removed from the park. A recent comment period on that proposal drew more than 7,000 comments, just 45 of which supported removal of the horses.
Across the country, at Cumberland Island National Seashore along the coast of Georgia, there also are feral horses, and their plight has surfaced in the form of a lawsuit that claims that animals not only are damaging the seashore's environment and impacting two federally protected species, but are not being humanely managed by the National Park Service and should be removed from the seashore.
We’ll explore that issue today with Hal Wright, the attorney who brought the lawsuit, Patty Livingston, president of both the Georgia Equine Rescue League and the Georgia Horse Council and one of the plaintiffs, and Jessica Howell-Edwards, executive director of Wild Cumberland, an advocacy group for the seashore.
By Jess Repanshek - May 28th, 2023
:02 National Parks Traveler introduction
:12 Episode Intro with Kurt Repanshek
1:44 Shee Beg Shee Mor - Nature’s Symphony - The Sounds of Acadia
2:16 Grand Teton National Park Foundation
2:45 Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation
3:08 Potrero Group
3:37 The Horses of Cumberland Island
15:30 Whispering Winds - Grant Geissman - The Sounds of the Caribbean
15:46 Traveler Promo
15:58 Washington’s National Park Fund
16:32 Great Smoky Mountains Association
16:52 The Everglades Foundation
17:09 The Horses of Cumberland Island continues
34:24 Caribbean Song - Tim Heintz - The Sounds of the Everglades
34:36 Interior Federal Credit Union
34:56 Friends of Acadia
35:21 Yosemite Conservancy
35:47 The Horses of Cumberland Island continues
44:55 Amaranth - Bill Mize - The Sounds of the Great Smoky Mountains
45:27 Episode Closing
45:43 Orange Tree Productions
46:16 Splitbeard Productions
46:26 National Parks Traveler footer
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National Parks Traveler Podcast Episode 313 | National Parks in Crisis
The Trump administration’s determination to reduce the size of government regardless of the cost is having a hard impact on the National Park Service.
Last month the agency was forced to rescind job offers to seasonal workers, saw a hold placed on millions of dollars distributed through the Biden administration's Inflation Reduction Act to address climate change, been told to prepare a reduction-in-force list of employees, and ordered to "hire no more than one employee for every four" let go.
February 16th, 2025
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National Parks Traveler Podcast Episode 312 | The Ghost Forest
National parks are home to many iconic trees. Bristlecones pines, Whitebark pines, Sequoias, even mangroves. And, of course, redwoods.
These trees hold many stories. The size alone of redwoods and sequoias are enough to hold your attention. But there are backstories, as well. In the case of redwoods along the Northern California coast, the backstory can be heart-breaking. There are chapters of logging fever, of course, as well as of political machinations, and stories of loss.
February 9th, 2025
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National Parks Traveler Podcast Episode 311 | Keeping Cape Lookout Above Water
Rising sea levels, stronger storms, eroding shorelines, and sinking terrain are taking a toll on the fragile ecosystems and historic resources at Cape Lookout National Seashore on the Outer Banks of North Carolina. A new study by the U.S. Geological Survey takes a close look at these threats and predicts how they will impact the national seashore over the coming years.
February 2nd, 2025
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National Parks Traveler Podcast Episode 310 | Parks Under Pressure
Here we are, a week into the second administration of President Donald Trump. It’s certainly a time of change, some of which is expected, and some perhaps not. Do we really need to rename North America’s tallest mountain, Denali in Denali National Park and Preserve?
There is much going on in the federal government, and not all is good. Hiring freezes are underway. There’s much talk about reducing the federal budget, which requires cutting agency funding.
January 26th, 2025
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National Parks Traveler Podcast Episode 309 | Yellowstone Wolves at 30
There are sounds that wake you up out of a deep sleep, only to be dismissed as you fall back to sleep. And then there are sounds that rivet you, make you sit bolt upright.
That was the type of sound that woke us while we were deep in the backcountry of Yellowstone National Park. Sunrise hadn’t yet come, yet we were wide awake, listening to one of the most mesmerizing sounds you can encounter in the wilds: The melodious rising and falling howl of a wolf.
January 12th, 2025
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The easiest way to explore RV-friendly National Park campgrounds.
Here’s the definitive guide to National Park System campgrounds where RVers can park their rigs.
Our app is packed with RVing- specific details on more than 250 campgrounds in more than 70 national parks.
You’ll also find stories about RVing in the parks, tips helpful if you’ve just recently become an RVer, and useful planning suggestions.
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