National Parks Traveler Episode 63: National Park Nostalgia, Friends Of Acadia Update

By NPT Staff - April 26th, 2020

This week we pick up with the musings of Doug Leen. As a young park ranger in the 1970s, Leen stumbled upon a poster promoting a meet-the-ranger event at the Grand Teton National Park. It turned out to be one of 14 long-forgotten silk-screened posters made under the Works Progress Administration to promote tourism to the national parks.

In the 50 years since that discovery, Leen has been searching high and low for the rest of the missing posters. His efforts have yielded noteworthy success, stirring up widespread interest in the posters and evolving into a thriving printing business of his own.

As Lynn Riddick continues her talk with Doug, he discusses his business, Ranger Doug’s Enterprises, and how the popularity of the posters has generated millions of dollars in revenue for the national parks.

We also check in with Earl Brechlin, the communications director for Friends of Acadia, to get the latest on how the coronavirus pandemic is affecting that friends group and how it is responding.

Catch the first half of Lynn Riddick's conversation with Doug Leen in National Parks Traveler Episode 62.

:02 National Parks Traveler introduction
:12 Episode introduction with Kurt Repanshek
1:33 Spring Fever - Bill Mize - The Sounds of the Everglades
1:59 Friends of Acadia promotion
2:29 North Cascades Institute promotion
2:48 Yankee Freedom promotion
3:30 Lynn Riddick's conversation with Ranger Doug, Doug Leen, continues with a focus on his reproduction WPA park posters.
24:07 Black Woods - Nature’s Symphony - The Sounds of Acadia
24:30 National Parks Traveler coronavirus promotion
24:43 Washington’s National Park Fund promotion
25:20 Grand Teton National Park Foundation promotion
25:51 RVShare.com promotion
26:25 Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation promotion
27:00 Friends of Acadia Communications Director Earl Brechlin discusses how coronavirus is impacting the friends organization.
36:14 Otter Point - Nature’s Symphony - The Sounds of Acadia
36:46 Episode closing
37:04 Orange Tree Productions promotion
37:40 National Parks Traveler footer

Acadia National Park

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