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NPS photo of Soda Butte Creek and Amphitheater Mountain Ridge in Yellowstone by Jacob W. Frank

In 1964, passage of The Wilderness Act promised Americans that there would be lands designated for preservation and protection in their natural condition. It was a promise from Congress that the American people of present and future generations would be able to enjoy the benefits of an enduring resource of wilderness.”
 
When President Johnson signed the act into law, he said that “If future generations are to remember us with gratitude rather than contempt, we must leave them a glimpse of the world as it was in the beginning, not just after we got through with it.”
 
Where do things stand with that promise? Has it lived up to its lofty goal? To seek an answer to that question, and to get a better understanding of management of wilderness areas, and potentially wilderness, in the country, we’ve invited George Nickas and Dana Johnson to join us. 

George is executive director of Wilderness Watch, a national organization dedicated to defending the nation’s National Wilderness Preservation System and keeping it wild, and Dana is the organization’s policy director.

0:02 National Parks Traveler introduction
0:12 Episode Intro with Kurt Repanshek
0:43 Sieur de Monts - Nature’s Symphony - The Sounds of Acadia
1:19 Great Smoky Mountains Association
1:40 Friends of Acadia
2:07 Yosemite Conservancy
2:32 Wilderness Watch
11:30 Almost Home - Randy Petersen - The Sounds of the Great Smoky Mountains
11:47 NPT Promo
11:59 Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation
12:21 Interior Federal Credit Union
12:44 The Everglades Foundation
12:59 Wilderness Watch Continues
26:02 Escalante - Tim Heintz - The Sounds of Peaks, Plateaus and Canyons
26:14 Grand Teton National Park Foundation
26:42 Washington’s National Park Fund
27:17 Potrero Group
26:47 Wilderness Watch Continues
48:52 Vista Verde - Tim Heintz - The Sounds of Peaks, Plateaus and Canyons
49:14 Episode Closing
50:37 Orange Tree Productions
51:09 Splitbeard Productions
51:19 National Parks Traveler footer

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National Parks Traveler Podcast Episode 312 | The Ghost Forest

National parks are home to many iconic trees. Bristlecones pines, Whitebark pines, Sequoias, even mangroves. And, of course, redwoods.

These trees hold many stories. The size alone of redwoods and sequoias are enough to hold your attention. But there are backstories, as well. In the case of redwoods along the Northern California coast, the backstory can be heart-breaking. There are chapters of logging fever, of course, as well as of political machinations, and stories of loss.

February 9th, 2025 Read More

National Parks Traveler Podcast Episode 311 | Keeping Cape Lookout Above Water

Rising sea levels, stronger storms, eroding shorelines, and sinking terrain are taking a toll on the fragile ecosystems and historic resources at Cape Lookout National Seashore on the Outer Banks of North Carolina.  A new study by the U.S. Geological Survey takes a close look at these threats and predicts how they will impact the national seashore over the coming years.
 

February 2nd, 2025 Read More

National Parks Traveler Podcast Episode 310 | Parks Under Pressure

Here we are, a week into the second administration of President Donald Trump. It’s certainly a time of change, some of which is expected, and some perhaps not. Do we really need to rename North America’s tallest mountain, Denali in Denali National Park and Preserve?

There is much going on in the federal government, and not all is good. Hiring freezes are underway. There’s much talk about reducing the federal budget, which requires cutting agency funding.

January 26th, 2025 Read More

National Parks Traveler Podcast Episode 309 | Yellowstone Wolves at 30

There are sounds that wake you up out of a deep sleep, only to be dismissed as you fall back to sleep. And then there are sounds that rivet you, make you sit bolt upright.

That was the type of sound that woke us while we were deep in the backcountry of Yellowstone National Park. Sunrise hadn’t yet come, yet we were wide awake, listening to one of the most mesmerizing sounds you can encounter in the wilds: The melodious rising and falling howl of a wolf.

January 12th, 2025 Read More

National Parks Traveler Podcast Episode 308 | Threatened and Endangered Parks

We’re five days into 2025, and already there’s a lot of news concerning national parks and the National Park Service. Traveler Editor-in-Chief Kurt Repanshek is joined today by Contributing Editor Kim O’Connell to discuss the Traveler’s 4th Annual Threatened and Endangered Park Series and other recent park-related news. 

January 5th, 2025 Read More

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