National Parks Traveler

A conference next month will discuss how the climbing community can leave an even smaller footprint on the world's peaks.

In a move to minimize second-hand smoke problems and to help keep beaches cleaner, smoking bans are coming to guarded beaches at Cape Cod National Seashore.

While it's long been accepted that Yellowstone National Park is the world's first national park, there's significant weight to the statement that the wondrous Yosemite landscape helped launch the national parks movement with the signing of the Yosemite Grant by President Lincoln on June 30, 1864. That Grant set aside Yosemite Valley and the Mariposa Grove of Giant Sequoias for protection, establishing the very idea of today's national parks.

With the goal of improving visitor safety, Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area officials have implemented some new regulations for the Kittatinny Point Area, some of which might not be welcomed by all on a hot summer day.