With a little human intervention, fishers just might decide the area of Yosemite National Park north of the Merced River is to their liking and establish a permanent population.

The Rough Fire is closing in on Grant Grove in Kings Canyon National Park, the Reynolds Creek Fire closed a portion of Glacier National Park's famous Going-to-the-Sun Road, and clouds of wood smoke from the Tenaya Fire have been a looming backdrop to Yosemite National Park's famous valley. And yet, recent fire history overall in the West has not matched historical trends in terms of fire frequency or severity, according to a new analysis.

It was a beautiful late summer evening, and my family and I had spent the day hiking in Badlands National Park. As the setting sun cast a golden glow on the park’s signature peaks and plateaus, my family and I pulled into a nearby guest ranch, where we had booked a cabin for the night.

One million visitors. That seems like a lot for an entire year, and definitely a lot in one month for Yellowstone National Park, which came within 19,000-odd visitors of reaching 1 million during July.