National Parks Traveler

There is a first time for everything -- every innovation, every event, every development, every activity, every you-name-it. The storied history of the National Park System is loaded with firsts. Take this week's quiz and see if you can be the first to answer all the questions correctly. Answers are at the end. No peeking!

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By Bob Janiskee - October 28th, 2011 11:05am

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Deal to Close Sugar Plant and Preserve 187,000 Acres Should Benefit Everglades National Park

In what's being called an unprecedented chapter in land conservation history, the state of Florida has agreed to buy 187,000 acres north of Everglades National Park and preserve the land to help ensure water flows into the park from Lake Okeechobee.

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By Kurt Repanshek - June 25th, 2008 5:37am

1 comment

Oglala Sioux Just Might Reclaim Southern Half of Badlands National Park

The Oglala Sioux Tribe might regain exclusive control of 133,000 acres of tribal land that was incorporated into Badlands National Park and is being jointly managed with the National Park Service. If the tribe gets its land back it will establish a major precedent.

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By Bob Janiskee - July 30th, 2008 9:02pm

11 comments

NPCA Report Offers Poor Grades For Protection of National Parks

If the National Park Service were graded on how it's managing the National Park System, its latest report card would reflect a mediocre student, one with poor attention to detail.

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By Kurt Repanshek - June 23rd, 2008 5:58pm

Mount Rainier National Park Officials Mulling Future of Carbon River Road

Heavy rains frequently wash out sections of the Carbon River Road in the northwestern corner of Mount Rainier National Park. In fact, the road has been closed since torrential rains destroyed sections in 2006. Now park officials are wondering whether they should even try to reopen the road to vehicles.

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By Kurt Repanshek - June 23rd, 2008 3:20pm

4 comments

Park History: Biscayne National Park

Biscayne National Park celebrates its 40th birthday on June 28. Situated just a few miles south of Miami, and encompassing most of Biscayne Bay, it is one of the largest marine parks in the National Park System It is also an ecological treasure and a marvelous playground.

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By Bob Janiskee - June 23rd, 2008 9:35am

3 comments

Creature Feature: The Pacific Treefrog

If you've ever heard a frog doing its “ribbet” thing anywhere along the Pacific Coast, it's probably been a Pacific Treefrog. And if you’ve ever seen one of these little critters up close, you know why many consider it one of the most fascinating of all the amphibians.

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By Chance Finegan - October 22nd, 2011 11:19am

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At Golden Gate National Recreation Area, the Presidio Trust Ponders Where to Put a New Art Museum

The Presidio Trust must decide where to put a new art museum to be built at the Presidio unit of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. The donor-specified site is problematic, and some critics argue that the museum complex’s massive scale and modern appearance are incompatible with the Presidio’s historic milieu.

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By Bob Janiskee - June 22nd, 2008 3:05pm

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Director Bomar Suggests Special "Parks Edition" Mountain Bike

National Park Service Director Mary Bomar not only sees a "special bond" between her agency and the International Mountain Bicycling Association, but can even picture a special "parks edition" mountain bike.

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By Kurt Repanshek - June 21st, 2008 6:21pm

5 comments

Yellowstone National Park Relocates the 45th Parallel

Geographers might blanch at the thought, but Yellowstone National Park officials have pushed the 45th Parallel a bit north in an effort to make park visitors safer.