National Parks Traveler Podcast

Near the very tip of  Everglades National Park , the interior wetlands of Cape Sable have long been viewed as one of the most ecologically productive environments left in Florida. It could become even more so thanks to an upcoming restoration project.  Dr. Jerry Lorenz, head of Audubon's Everglades Science Center, explains the project.

Nearly 200 countries have developed various forms of biodiversity strategies, but the United States is not one of them. What exactly would a "national biodiversity strategy" look like? What would it entail? To explore those, and other, questions about biodiversity we're joined by Robert Dewey, vice president of government relations at Defenders of Wildlife, and Lindsay Rosa, who directs Defenders'...

From coast to coast, national parks, national forests, and state parks are being crowded, if not overrun at times, by visitors.  One part of the country that has seen record-breaking visitation has been the Outer Banks of North Carolina, where Cape Hatteras National Seashore, Fort Raleigh National Historic Site, and the Wright Brothers Memorial combined welcomed nearly 4 million visitors last year...

Across the roughly 85-million-acre National Park System there are, in theory at least, some 70 million acres envisioned as official wilderness. Forty-four million acres have received Congressional blessing as such, while another 26 million acres are in something akin to administrative limbo. Some of those 26 million acres -- including roughly two-thirds of Big Bend National Park -- have been recom...

How many are too many? That's the question to mull in the wake of news from the National Park Service that  nearly 300 million  visited the National Park System last year. What is the perfect number for annual visitation to the park system's 423 units?  To help sort out the pluses and minuses of 300 million visitors a year to the park system, and to offer you some suggestions for escaping the crow...

Should Yellowstone National Park have more bison, should it have less?  Just recently the park embarked on an environmental impact statement to examine that question. Dr. James Derr, a professor of veterinary genetics at Texas A&M University who has spent more than a quarter century directing worldwide research projects in wildlife and livestock conservation genetics, discusses bison in Yellowston...

RVing –- traveling by recreational vehicle –- has exploded along with the coronavirus pandemic. Sales have gone through the roof, inventory has been depleted, and would-be customers often have to wait months before they can hit the road with their new rig. Many, if not most, of those RV enthusiasts are heading into the National Park System. And why not? Gorgeous scenery, inspiring landscapes, rela...

With the great rush to the outdoors that we've seen since the Covid pandemic erupted, there have been many calls for more space in the National Park System. While there are places in the West that seem to be logical additions to the parks there, that's not the case in the East. So, if we want more park lands east of the Mississippi, how could we gain them?

Great Smoky Mountains National Park  is one of the great hiking destinations in the mid-Atlantic region, if not the entire East Coast. Across its rumpled 522,427 acres there are more than 800 miles of trails. They range from relatively short footpaths to scenic payoffs like Rainbow Falls and Abrahams Falls to the more than 70 miles of the  Appalachian National Scenic Trail  that crosses the top of...

All is not well at Point Reyes National Seashore, as a years-long battle continues over ranching at Point Reyes, how it's impacting the seashore's environment, and how the National Park Service is trying to manage it. To sort through some of these issues, we're joined by Laura Cunningham, California director at Western Watersheds Project.

Last week the  National Parks Traveler  took you to  Big Bend National Park in far west Texas with a discussion with Chief of Interpretation Tom Vandenberg. This week, Traveler's Lynn Riddick provides a first-hand, more personal glimpse into this vast remote park.  Afterwards, Traveler  Editor Kurt Repanshek shares a short conversation he had with Charles Sams, the new director of the National Par...

The National Parks Traveler's Lynn Riddick begins a two-part series about her recent trip to Big Bend -- a vast wilderness in the Chihuahuan Desert along the Rio Grande. She meets up with the park's chief of interpretation, who offers an overview of the park's varied geology and diverse ecology, its human history and what the future may hold for visitors seeking adventure and solitude in the park'...

This has been one of the most newsworthy years in recent memory for the National Park Service and the parks. There's finally a Senate-confirmed director at the helm, billions of dollars are flowing into the parks for a variety of projects, wildfires chewed through Sequoia, Kings Canyon and Lassen Volcanic national parks, lakes Powell and Mead are shadows of their former selves. A look back at news...

As the global human population continues to increase, as sprawl continues to wash over natural areas, the amount of space needed for flora and fauna to thrive and, even, in some cases, survive, is steadily being squeezed by the human footprint. Kristine Tompkins knows a little about protecting landscapes for nature. She and her late husband, Doug Tompkins, donated more than 2 million acres in Chil...

When you visit Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park, after you've gazed into the Kīlauea crater itself if it's erupting, you should make a point to hike the Kīlauea Iki Trail. Starting from an overlook near Nāhuku (aka the Thurston Lava Tube), the trail goes down through the rainforest and out across a crater floor created back in 1959 by one of the most spectacular eruptions of the 20th century at the...

There is no shortage of hiking trails in the National Park System. From coastal walks and boardwalk trails to trails that run the ridges of the Teton Crest Trail in  Grand Teton National Park  and the wildly popular hike to the top of Old Rag in  Shenandoah National Park , the options can be overwhelming even if you had endless time to explore the parks. It might come as a surprise to those who vi...

Camels, lions, and mammoths once roamed the landscape around Las Vegas, Nevada. Such was the case during the latter part of the Pleistocene era, which spanned a period of time between 11,000 years and 2.5 million years ago. The area -- known as the Upper Las Vegas Wash –- is rich with the fossils of these and many more creatures as well as ancient plants and pollens. This trove of fossils is prese...

Today we're talking adventures, friendships, and the environment with Rick Ridgeway, who has traveled the world seeking adventure and, along the way, debated and discussed environmental consciousness with his friends, colleagues and peers. Rick, a climber, kayaker, explorer, filmmaker, and thoughtful writer, has a new book out, Life Lived Wild , that chronicles many of the adventures he's embarked...

It's been said that the night sky represents the other half of the National Park System. It's in the national parks where you can experience some of the darkest skies you'll find anywhere. Our guest this week knows all about that. Artist, author, astronomer and Night Sky Ambassador Doctor Tyler Nordgren talks with the Traveler's Lynn Riddick about the cosmic opportunity that the parks offer to tea...

Feral hogs are just one of several species of invasive mammals that are posing immense challenges for national park managers. Unlike invasive insects or reptiles, invasive mammals are often larger and more "charismatic" animals, difficult for parks to eradicate from a logistical, financial, and emotional perspective. 

Enter the National Park System and you won't come away disappointed when you realize all that awaits you. At Hawaii Volcanoes National Park, it's impossible not to be awed by the volcanism that created the Hawaiian islands, and which is on full display at the crater atop the Kīlauea volcano. Jessica Ferracane, the park's public affairs specialist, gave me a primer on Kīlauea during an early Novemb...

The national parks have never been more popular...or more threatened. Now through the end of the year, we are asking for your support for a fundraising campaign to ensure the National Parks Traveler's ongoing coverage of national parks and protected areas.  

For Grand Teton National Park, this year has, to put it bluntly, been crazy busy. In September the park counted 570,584 visitors, the second-highest tally for that month in park history. Notably, it pushed the park's year-to-date visitation to 3,493,937, a record for an entire year, and with October, November, and December to go. Grand Teton Superintendent Chip Jenkins discusses the impacts of tha...

The Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee questioned Mr. Sams this past week during his confirmation hearing. He's an interesting nominee. He's from outside the National Park Service, and if confirmed he would be the first Native American director of the Park Service. Discussing his nomination are Phil Francis of the Coalition to Protect America's National Parks , and Kristen Brengel of th...

Editor-in-Chief Kurt Repanshek and Contributing Editor Kim O'Connell discuss news from around the National Park System, from black bear incidents along the Blue Ridge Parkway to a Yellowstone visitor being sentenced to jail for getting too close to a grizzly bear sow and her cubs.