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Hikes Abound in Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Both Short and Long

If national parks have their specialties, Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a hiker’s park. The scenery is diverse: mountain views, old-growth trees, waterfalls, streams, and more shades of green than a paint chart. Trails are well-marked, wide, and easy to follow. Comfortable backcountry campsites and spacious front-country campgrounds make the park an excellent first-time, family camping destination.

Entrance Fees Generate Hundreds of Millions of Dollars A Year for National Park Service

Millions of times a year someone drives up to the entrance station at a national park, hands the attendant some money, and heads off into the park. Did you ever stop to think how much money the National Park Service takes in every year from these exchanges? Not just millions of dollars, but hundreds of millions of dollars.

Interior Department Wants Transparency, FOIA Process Impedes That Goal

Interior Department officials launched an intriguing web portal the other day, one touted as promoting transparency in government operations. Well, one place Interior officials could create a whole lot of transparency is by adding more staff to handle Freedom of Information Act requests, which currently move at a glacial pace.

Probe Raises Questions Over National Park Service Investigation at Hubbell Trading Post

Portions of an Interior Department review of an investigation of alleged insider theft from the Hubbell Trading Post National Historic Site cite shoddy work and potentially criminal misconduct by a special agent within the National Park Service’s Intermountain Region.

"Pronghorn Passage" Program To Be Presented Thursday at Grand Teton National Park

Last week we told you about the efforts being undertaken to protect a critical migratory corridor in southwestern Wyoming for pronghorn antelope. If you're in the Jackson area later this week, you can sit in on a program that explores the 300-plus-mile migration of antelope in this region.

Power Line Debate at Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area Highlights National Issues

A classic battle between utility companies and environmental groups at Delaware Water Gap National Recreational Area is the latest example of similar issues all across the country. This debate is over a proposed major "upgrade" of existing power lines that cross the park, and public meetings will be held this week. You can also comment from afar if you're interested.