A basic principle of national parks is that they're just that—national, rather than local sites—so a family from Houston has the same opportunity to enjoy the Great Smoky Mountains as one from Gatlinburg. Officially, there's no preferential treatment in national parks for local residents, but it's only human nature for some people who live near a park and use it on a regular basis to develop a sense of "ownership" of the area.

One of the interesting aspects of a park ranger's job is the knowledge that every day brings the possibility of a new—and frequently unusual—experience. That was definitely the case for me one day at Willow Beach, Arizona, a popular fishing spot in Lake Mead National Recreation Area.

October 13, 1936, marked the creation of Boulder Dam National Recreation Area and a brand-new category of management units for the National Park Service. The recreation area no longer exists by its original name, but its legacy continues in one of the most heavily-visited parks in the country. During their first 30 years the park and the dam underwent more name changes than the rock entertainer formerly known as….

Lake Mead National Recreation Area, which celebrated its 61st birthday August 11, attracts almost 8 million visitors a year. Nearly all return home safely with fond memories of fun on or in the park’s two huge lakes. Accidents do happen, though, and nearly always because people violate commonsense safety rules.