National Parks Traveler

Yale University environmental historian, Dr. Robin Winks, once termed America’s National Parks as “The greatest university in the world with hundreds of branch campuses." While Oxford and Cambridge might take issue in a tweedy British manner with Professor Winks’ hyperbole, his point is well taken: The units of the National Park System are indeed educational.

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By PJ Ryan - March 6th, 2013 2:20am

Frank Jay Haynes, A Photography Pioneer In Yellowstone National Park

Yellowstone National Park was a wild and remote place in the late 1800s, and in winter it beckoned only the heartiest, most adventurous souls. Renowned photographer Frank Jay Haynes was certainly one of those adventuresome explorers.

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By NPT Staff - March 5th, 2013 2:55am

Photography In The National Parks: Use Your Telephoto Lens For Those Park Landscapes

Using a telephoto lens for a national park landscape sounds kind of odd, right? Most people think of a telephoto or zoom-telephoto lens as good for wildlife and sports images, not landscapes, per se. But it's time to rethink that.

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By Rebecca Latson - March 5th, 2013 2:44am

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Rebuilding After Sandy: How Assateague Island National Seashore Officials Are Dealing With Climate Change

While Hurricane Sandy brought torrential rains and heavy surf to Assateague Island National Seashore, the park greatly avoided staggering damage thanks to its relative lack of infrastructure when compared to Gateway National Recreation Area farther up the Eastern Seaboard.

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By Kurt Repanshek - March 5th, 2013 2:16am

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Great Smoky Mountains National Park's Backcountry Fee Draws Lawsuit

What authority does the National Park Service have to charge access fees in Great Smoky Mountains National Park and, presumably, other national parks? That question is the focus of a lawsuit filed in a bid to overturn the Smokies' move to charge backcountry users.

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By NPT Staff - March 5th, 2013 2:16am

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Sequestration Cuts Push Back Yellowstone National Park's Spring Opening

Yellowstone National Park's spring opening will be pushed back one to two weeks as the park searches for ways to meet budget cuts mandated by the sequestration ordered by President Obama and Congress.

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By NPT Staff - March 4th, 2013 4:47pm

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First-Ever Prescribed Burn To Be Conducted On The Blue Ridge Parkway

In a reversal of seventy years of “vigorously suppressed” fires on the Blue Ridge Parkway, Superintendent Phil Francis has announced that 150 acres will be burned near Doughton Park “to return the site to a more natural vegetation type” and “increase the quality of wildlife habitat.”

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By NPT Staff - March 4th, 2013 5:44am

Sharing The Wonders Of National Parks

Two weeks in Mount Rainier National Park left Russ Aquilar dirty, tired, and sore. But it also left him with a life-changing decision, to share the natural world with others.

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By Russ Aguilar - March 4th, 2013 2:42am

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NPS Releases Concession Prospectus For Colonial National Historical Park

The National Park Service recently released a prospectus soliciting bids for the operation of a relatively small retail store in the Yorktown area of Colonial National Historical Park.

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By David and Kay Scott - March 4th, 2013 2:10am

NPS Academy, Alternative Spring Break Bringing Youth To National Parks

Spring break is commencing at colleges around the country, and for more than 200 students that means a trip not to the beach, but to a national park to participate either in the National Park Service Academy or an "Alternative Spring Break" program in parks.