The Muir Discussion
Above Photo: The Tunnel View overlook of Yosemite Valley (by Trey Ratcliff via Flickr Creative Commons) This video, by The Muir Project, highlights the messages and basis of the Muir Campfire Discussion on Diversity, Inclusion and Relevancy, held at the Yellow Campgrounds of Yosemite National…
Civil Rights Courthouses
Three courthouses in the South that helped galvanize the civil rights movement after Brown v Board of Education began the dismantling of the Jim Crow era were designated as national historic landmarks this week. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals courthouses join more than 2,500…
Mountaintop Chill
A key member of the first all-African-American ascent of Denali, Adina Scott also goes against type as a scientist and musician Almost as soon as their grand destination first came into focus, one of the most significant mountaineering expeditions in recent years was greeted, not…
Fee Waivers for NPS?
by Glenn Nelson In my op-ed piece for The New York Times this past weekend, Iβd originally floated the idea of entrance fee waivers as a means of attracting more people of color to national parks. The waiver would be triggered if a specific National…
NPS: No Confederate Flags
National Park Service Release WASHINGTON β Confederate Battle Flag sales items are being removed from national park bookstores and gift shops. βWe strive to tell the complete story of America,β National Park Service Director Jonathan B. J arvis said of the agencyβs reputation for telling…
New Book on AAPI Heritage
Even after a bullet skimmed his head, Private Edward Day Cohota fought valiantly during the Civil War’s Battle of Cold Harbor and carried a wounded comrade to safety. His remarkable story is one of many recounted in the new National Park Service book, βAsians and…
Bad Marks Against Parks
The sight is jarring and seems completely out of context. Itβs akin to, I donβt know, seeing an elephant walking down a city street. That unexpected, at least to me. This is how I saw what I saw, leading me to break this story at…
Girl Scout Rangers Relaunched
Photo by Justin Scott, NPS Girl Scouts can earn patches and certificates by completing projects in national parks as part of a revamped Girl Scout Ranger Program. The program, a joint venture between the National Park Service and the Girl Scouts of the USA, connects…
Low Snow’s Mixed Blessing
The mixed blessing of record low snowpack along the West Coast is that access to national parks is earlier than usual β in some cases, far earlier. National parks, from North Cascades in Washington state to Yosemite in California, are already are virtually at summer…
Half Dome Hiking Opens Sat.
(Above photo by David Iliff. License: CC-BY-SA 3.0) Low snowpack has led to an earlier day hiking season at Half Dome in Yosemite National Park, the park announced. The cables to the summit of Half Dome will be in place this Saturday, May 2 and…
Bear Fears Close ONP Camping
Because black bears have approached hikers and eaten human food there recently, the Enchanted Valley area of Olympic National Park has been close to camping for 30 days, the park announced on April 24. “Bears that eat human food come to consider people as a…
$26M for NPS Projects
Above photo: B. Monginoux /Landscape-Photo.net (Creative Commons license) An ambitious project to rehabilitate and restore the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias in Yosemite National Park is among 106 initiatives, representing an investment of $26 million, announced by the National Park Service to help parks prepare…
