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Natchez Trace Parkway – Colorful Choice for a Southern Fall Trip

Oct 22nd - 18:52pm | Anonymous

I am sure it was the people but after spending several years working at large western parks, I finished my short lived NPS career at this GEM. The folks that lived on and around this park truly knew the meaning of hospitality and the park staff were true stewards to their responsibility. The "Trace" is a great park.

IMBA: Not Every Park Suitable For Mountain Biking, No Interests, Currently, For Trails in Wilderness Areas

Oct 22nd - 15:31pm | Kurt Repanshek

Dapster, I might be wrong, but I believe those signs are only erected during nesting of migratory birds and have nothing to do with wilderness. I've seen similar signs at Cape Cod National Seashore to protect nesting plovers.

Oct 22nd - 15:26pm | dapster

Sorry for straying, but it's still in context, sorta... So, when you talk about 2.58 percent of the lower 48 being designated as wilderness, is that so threatening? Not at all, when you look at just the percentages against the entire landmass. If that 2.58% includes 90% of your favorite area, then it makes a difference.

Oct 22nd - 14:58pm | Kurt Repanshek

Well, we're really starting to stray off-topic, but in a substantive way that begs a separate post of its own. Wilderness and wilderness study areas (WSAs) are interesting units. Some see them as protecting the last vestiges of true "wild lands" in this country, others see them as tools to thwart recreation, as Dapster fears is the case at Cape Hatteras.

Oct 22nd - 14:38pm | dapster

Beamis, Thanks for coming to my aid. Your quote below said it far more eloquently than my initial attempt:

Oct 22nd - 14:35pm | Kurt Repanshek

Thanks for the links. Definitely some interesting reading. As to some of your other questions/points: >>...why does NPT challenge only certain "recreation activities"? Why not challenge driving and lodges since those high-impact activities are provided elsewhere?<<

Oct 22nd - 13:41pm | Kurt Repanshek

Perhaps you could point out where those studies can be found, Zebulon.

Oct 22nd - 13:36pm | Zebulon

Bikes don't cause more damage than hikers. It's been scientifically proven. On the other hand, horses do. Well designed trails last for a long time, especially, if they're closed to all use for a reasonable period of time after a rain.

Oct 22nd - 13:21pm | tahoma

Both bikes and horses definitely can be more damaging per user to trail tread and adjacent vegetation than hikers. Bike damage is usually incision on steeper grades. Strings of pack animals can also do this in weak soils, but their specialty is churning the flatter riparian sections to mud holes.

Oct 22nd - 12:56pm | Anonymous

Key words: fire truck. I can understand your point of view if it was a truck randomly driving around...but it's a fire truck. I'll take whatever damage fire trucks cause instead of a giant fire.

Oct 22nd - 12:47pm | Kurt Repanshek

Richard, the box you refer to came from a page on IMBA's web site regarding frequently asked questions and wilderness areas.

Oct 22nd - 12:26pm | Richard

Who wrote that grayed box that says bikes are low impact and are compatible with wild places and the intent of the Wilderness Act? Does the Park Service really believe that mtn bikes are appropriate in wilderness as long as it isn't too rugged or steep? Since when?

Oct 22nd - 12:22pm | Richard

At Point Reyes Nat Seashore you can bike to a point on the Bear Valley trail, as at that point, 1/4 mile from the ocean, it becomes wilderness. I have seen a fire truck go beyond that point, on that trail that my bike cannot, and they cut trees alongside the trail so the fire truck could continue. There is no way things like that should happen.

Oct 22nd - 11:07am | Zebulon

"And, as another pointed out, mountain bike enthusiasts are not being banned from backcountry trails in the parks. At the current time they just can't ride their bikes on them"

Oct 22nd - 10:39am | dapster

Kurt, Broad brush cleaned and put away. My comments were aimed at some of the other posters, and certainly not at the author. Sorry if I was unclear on that. No offense intended. My point is parallel to this one brought up by Zebulon:

Oct 22nd - 08:59am | Kurt Repanshek

Whoa, that's an awfully big brush you're swinging, Dapster.

Oct 22nd - 08:36am | dapster

Exactly where is it written that hiking is the only acceptable form of access to our public lands? Also, where is that data that shows that hiking has absolutely no negative impact on the environment, and offends no one?

Oct 21st - 21:53pm | Zebulon

Such a nonsensical argument. About we ban all hiking and make biking mandatory? How would you feel about it? Bottom line, the government should not be deciding what activity is best for us as long as said activity does not impact negatively the parks. And just because you enjoy the trails on foot does not mean that I have to.

Oct 21st - 11:31am | Anonymous

A point that seems to be missed by the mountain biking community is that no one is banned from hiking trails, only their bikes are. They can still enjoy the trails on foot, just like the rest of us.

Oct 21st - 09:53am | D Smith

During the outdoor boom of the 1970’s many areas suffered severe damage due to the increased number of hikers. Hikers built illegal trails and camp sites, widened trails, littered, and ruined the outdoor experience for those who had come before; in short we did everything we accuse Mountain Bikers of doing now. Fortunately, Hikers learned the error of their ways.

Oct 20th - 22:02pm | Zebulon

NPCA is overreaching in its conclusion. There is a strong desire by mountain bikers to bike in national parks, so the need is there. The public process/environmental review is code word for: "let's throw a bunch of nonsensical redtape into opening any trails to mountain biking so that we don't have to come out and say out loud that we hate bikes".

Oct 20th - 09:10am | Bryan Faehner

Although we haven't yet seen the proposed rule change from the Park Service, the National Parks Conservation Association (NPCA) believes that the current mountain biking regulations appear to be working well and that there is no demonstrated need to change them.

Oct 20th - 08:24am | Anonymous

I have worked at park where the vast majority of our trails were multi-use. Generally, we didn't have problems with biker/hiker conflicts. Most of our problems came out of horse/hiker conflicts that arose from horses being on hiking-only trails and spurs.

Oct 20th - 07:45am | Mark E

To respond to the first poster, please note that mountain bikes have only recently been reintroduced to most Boulder trails -- thanks to the good work done by the Boulder MountainBike Alliance (BMA) -- and are still banned from many of Boulder's most popular trails.

Oct 20th - 00:43am | Anonymous

Yeah you are so right! Hiking is such a better activity that we should discriminate against all other users, horses included. Give me a break! The image you create in your post above is so incorrect and based solely in Sierra Club religious dogma its sickening.

The Dune Climb at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore Invites You to Climb, Run, Jump, Slide, Roll, Whoop, and Holler

Oct 22nd - 09:32am | Bob Janiskee

I agree that Sleeping Bear is a wonderful place for hiking, Anon, especially on a hot summer day when cool breezes are blowing in off Lake Michigan. Gotta say a couple of things about that, though. Walking in loose sand can be a penance, especially in steeper areas. And the wind at the top of the dune scarp ("cliff") is sometimes strong enough to whip sand into your eyes.

Oct 21st - 11:33am | Anonymous

Don't forget to continue on after the top of the hill. Continue for two miles through low hills of loose sand out to Lake Michigan. By the time you get back, you have had a great workout. Done properly, it is a lot of fun.

Pruning the Parks: Mar-a-Lago National Historic Site (1972-1980) Was a Gift the National Park Service Couldn’t Afford to Keep

Oct 22nd - 08:57am | Bob Janiskee

Well, Anne, you've asked some good questions, but I'm afraid I can't answer any of them to your satisfaction without doing a lot more research. I'm willing to delve more deeply into the Mar-a-Lago story (right after I get back from Alaska, that is), but perhaps there's somebody out there in Travelerland who already has the inside scoop. Can anybody out there answer Anne's questions?

Oct 21st - 17:55pm | Bugsyshallfall

What's funny is that this may have not been a bad thing as it is still a NHL with easements granted to the National Trust for Historic Preservations. It is one the only sites of its knid still left and is in great shape.

Oct 21st - 14:56pm | amwdew

Bob, Wow, what a story. Who had the idea of giving this to NPS in the first place, and were there objections to this at the time? Were there tours, etc., during the 8 years that NPS had it? It would be fun to see the brochures and interpretive materials, if any still exist. Thanks for digging up this fascinating episode! Cheers, Anne

Blue Ridge Parkway’s 75th Anniversary Celebration Begins

Oct 22nd - 08:07am | dapster

Fascinating article! One can just imagine the obstacles that construction of 469 miles of highway along moutain ridges through several states would meet. Thanks for bringing that facet of this marvelous highway to light!

Oct 20th - 14:49pm | amwdew

Thanks, Bob! As you no doubt know, sometimes people just prefer the romantic old stories, though. Keep up your good work, too! Cheers, Anne Anne Mitchell Whisnant, Ph.D. Historian & Author of Super-Scenic Motorway: A Blue Ridge Parkway History Chapel Hill, NC

Oct 20th - 12:14pm | Bob Janiskee

Great article, Anne! Deep history beats shallow history every time. It's a pleasure to get the word from someone who really knows what she's talking about.

Photo Shoot: Today's Cameras Make It Easier to Capture the National Parks

Oct 21st - 13:31pm | JimB

I define luck as preparation meeting opportunity. That's a great definition, and one that anyone who attempts much outdoor photography can appreciate!

Oct 21st - 10:46am | morgan34

I can't believe this is real... yeah, I guess you are right, with new digital cameras we can all be great photographers, there isn't much to know in making pictures, it all depends on your will to spot unique wonderful places like this one above.

Landscape Painting Donated to Grand Teton National Park

Oct 20th - 23:04pm | John Holmen

Kurt, Thanks for writing this article. I stumbled across it looking for Harrison Crandall and was astonished to see a picture very similar to one we have in our living room with seasonal differences and a broken tree stump. Please pass this on to Quita if you have contact information for her.

Interior Officials Planning To Make It Easier for Mountain Bikers to Gain Backcountry Access in Parks

Oct 20th - 22:11pm | Zebulon

It's hard to argue the selfishness of mountain bikers, when you figure out that we're the ones being kicked out of thousand of square miles of land for no rational reason. The whole "different experience" concept is a smoke screen.

Oct 20th - 17:17pm | Kurt Repanshek

Re the NRA mention, IMBA posted the article, The Fight for Trails -- What IMBA Can Learn from the NRA, on its website without disclaimer and without disowning it, after deliberately seeking permission to do so. What are folks supposed to think when they land on that page, that IMBA opposes the NRA's deft form of lobbying, or that it's intrigued by it?

Oct 20th - 14:17pm | rick s

Yes Kurt your piece is indeed disingenuous. Comparing IMBA to the NRA is designed to be inflammatory. When checking the link one finds that IMBA was merely pointing out how to become an effective lobbying organization. By definition a lobbying organization tries to get rules passed, or voided, in order to benefit their constituency.

Oct 20th - 01:49am | Dave

Kurt, Thanks for the response. I stand corrected on the compensation issue. I'm new to this site, and assumed from its apprearance you were a paid staffer. I note from the profile linked to your photo that you do have more than a little professional journalism experience, so my assumption based on website appearance and the quality of your writing doesn't seem like a great leap.

Survey Predicts Change in National Park Gun Regulations Will Lead to Wildlife Shootings, Management Problems

Oct 20th - 22:08pm | JimB

Frank -

Oct 20th - 11:46am | JimB

One key point in this issue needs to be emphasized – the effect of the proposed rule on agency efforts to deal with poaching.

Oct 19th - 21:50pm | JimB

...anyone who has a concealed carry permit has ... had the proper training to carry a concealed handgun. I'd feel a lot better about this issue if that were true. Unfortunately, it is not correct.

Oct 19th - 20:57pm | Rick Smith

This will be my last comment on this thread because I think we have explored all the angles. There are people who feel that they cannot be safe without carrying. Fine. All I say is that the parks are safer without a lot of guns than with lots of them. That's what the majority of protection rangers say and I think we should pay some attention to their point of view. Rick Smith

How to Hijack a National Park

Oct 20th - 21:16pm | JimB

Thanks for the comments!

Oct 20th - 17:22pm | PM

I was at JNEM this past August. I really enjoyed the time I spent there. I thought the Museum at the base of the Arch was very good. Unfortunately I did not have much time to spend at the Old Courthouse since I needed to drive back to Chicago. This park is very different then the other 50+ parks I have visited this year. I liked the history about Lewis & Clark.

How Will the Next Administration Deal With the Environment?

Oct 20th - 17:59pm | Anonymous

I put no confidence in the McCain & Palin ticket to upgrade and enhance our National Parks to the stellar quality that the National Parks Conservation Association advocate.

Oct 20th - 14:53pm | Bugsyshallfall

It should be Investing in park helped the economy before.

Should Anything Be Done With Angel's Landing?

Oct 20th - 13:25pm | Ghost1

This was my second time hiking to Angels Landing with my 9yoa son. I did it when wife was pregnant and waiting down at the parking lot. I ran it when I was 30yoa. I wanted my son to enjoy the experience. He loved it and wanted to do it again. We found it to be more scary by the web-postings than in reality. You need to take your time and concentrate.

Mission

Oct 20th - 02:54am | JetPunk

Great site. I bought a national parks pass last year and visited several, so stumbling upon your site brings back memories. I still haven't visited Yellowstone yet.

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So whether you have an iPhone or an Android, download this app and start exploring the campgrounds in the National Park System where you can park your rig.