"In the beginning, it was the root, the tree, the bark that taught my ancestors,” says Todd Labrador as he splits a long spruce root into sinewy twine used to stitch birchbark onto a canoe frame. Each summer, Labrador builds a birchbark canoe at a shelter in Kejimkujik National Park and National Historic Site in Nova Scotia. This particular canoe was nearing completion in August 2019 when I signed up for a one-day workshop with Labrador, keen to say I had a hand in building this traditional and oh so Canadian craft. “We don’t have the elders to teach a lot of these things anymore, but the material will teach you how, if you listen to it.”

Contributing photographer Rebecca Latson continues last month’s theme of fun facts you can learn about photos you capture of things you see in a national park. Rebecca also provides tips on how to make those interesting shots even more interesting to your viewers.

Interested in giving back to Bandelier National Monument in New Mexico? Lend a hand on September 25th and 26th as park staff lead some backcountry cleanup projects.

Two attacks in less than a year at Great Smoky Mountains National Park, one fatal, recast the image of the park's black bears from animals timid of humans to opportunistic predators even park visitors need to be cautious of when traveling the backcountry.