Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore will host a kickoff meeting for Adopt-A-Beach volunteers on Thursday, May 24, from 1 p.m.-3 p.m. at the Philip A. Hart Visitor Center on M-72 in Empire, Michigan.

A low snowpack and favorable weather for plowing has Yosemite National Park officials saying the Tioga Road will open this coming Monday, May 7, for all vehicle traffic.

People who enjoy bird watching know that good opportunities sometimes occur in unexpected places, and a battlefield in Texas commemorating an oft-forgotten war might fit that description. Palo Alto Battlefield has plenty to offer naturalists and history buffs, and now the park can claim "a first in the National Park System" for birders.

If you're planning on exploring the Blue Ridge Parkway this summer or through the fall, here's a heads' up on road projects that you might want to avoid if possible.