National Parks Traveler

The Smoky Mountains are home to more than 1,600 species of flowering plants. During each month of the year, some forb, tree or vine is blooming in Great Smoky Mountains National Park. During the spring, wildflowers explode during the brief window just prior to trees leafing out and shading the forest floor (from about mid-April through mid-May).

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By Smoky Mtn Hiker - April 2nd, 2009 4:33pm

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Where Does Your Reservation At Yosemite National Park Stand?

Rockfalls at Yosemite National Park have created a lodging problem in the Yosemite Valley, but it might not be as bad as you were initially led to think.

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By Kurt Repanshek - April 3rd, 2009 9:42pm

Descendants of Mesa Verde Anasazi Help Produce a Musical Masterpiece

The Pueblo Indians in New Mexico and northern Arizona are descendants of the Ancestral Puebloans who abandoned the cliff dwellings now preserved in Mesa Verde National Park. Does the modern pueblo culture straddle the ages? See for yourself. Just cue this composite audio/video, turn up the volume, and get ready for a surprise.

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By Bob Janiskee - August 28th, 2009 5:04pm

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"A Wildlife Crisis of Unprecedented Proportions"

Managers at Great Smoky Mountains National Park have closed all of the park's caves to public entry until further notice. The move is in response to growing concern about white-nose syndrome, a new malady that the Fish and Wildlife Service calls "a wildlife crisis of unprecedented proportions."

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By Jim Burnett - May 5th, 2009 5:45pm

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Remains of Professor Who Went Missing in Canyonlands National Park Found in Needles District

It was just about a year ago that a college professor headed into the remote backcountry of Canyonlands National Park to find his final resting place. His remains recently were discovered by another hiker.

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By Kurt Repanshek - April 3rd, 2009 8:29am

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Is Winter in Yellowstone National Park Losing Its Allure?

For decades winter visitation to Yellowstone National Park has been a lifesaver for the December-March economies of gateway towns such as West Yellowstone, Gardiner, and Cooke City in Montana, and Jackson and even Cody in Wyoming.

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By Kurt Repanshek - April 2nd, 2009 3:10pm

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Demolition Update: It’s One Down and One to Go at Gettysburg

At Gettysburg, the old visitor center and the Cyclorama Building were constructed atop a key part of the historic battlefield. The NPS has long planned to remove both buildings and return the site to its 1863 appearance. The old visitor center is now being knocked down and toted away, but preservationists have blocked demolition of the Cyclorama Building.

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By Bob Janiskee - April 3rd, 2009 6:01am

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Top 10 National Parks: Do You See Your Favorites in This Short Video?

Everybody seems to have their own top 10 list of America's national parks. Here's a short video collection of one set of 10 selected by the National Park Service.

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By Kurt Repanshek - April 2nd, 2009 8:01pm

14 comments

UPDATE: Mt. Redoubt Volcano Adds Unwelcome Fireworks to Alaska Statehood Anniversary

Alaska marks 50 years of statehood this year, and Mt. Redoubt, located in Lake Clark National Park and Preserve, has crashed the party with a series of impressive eruptions.