National Parks Archives - Northwest Public Broadcasting

Tales of the forests through which we tromp

By Lauren Gallup August 30, 2023

Olympic National Park, summertime, sun cascading through trees. // CREDIT: Lauren Gallup NWPB

Moss drapes over trees in Olympic National Park like the table dressings of fairies and the blankets of sprites. This place inspires writers — from amateurs to poets to public radio reporters — and welcomes visitors each year into its majesty. Our national parks tend to do that; be places of awe-inspiring beauty, great adventures through bushwhacking and overnights Read More

Captive Returns Home: The Story Of Wetxuuwíitin – ‘Traverse Talks’ Episode 42 – With Chairman Samuel Penney

By Mindy Malone January 20, 2023

Sam Penney sits in a chair, hands in his lap, looking at Sueann Ramella, who sits out of view on the left side of the photograph.

Photo of Sam Penney recording Traverse Talks at the Nez Perce National Historic Park on March 10, 2022. Imagine a stranger took your family’s heirlooms and then offered you an […]Read More

StoryCorps Northwest – Maureen Lewiston & Elle Harris: Mule Mayhem

By Connor Henricksen September 21, 2022

Elle Harris leading mules Maureen Lewiston with her dogs Listen (Runtime 3:39) Read Mules are great for carrying supplies long distances over rough terrain, but they are also stubborn […]Read More

Veterans And Gold Star Families Granted Lifetime Passes To National Parks

By NPR News November 9, 2020

Zion National Park near Springdale, Utah, is one of more than 2,000 federal recreation sites that will be free to visitors on Veterans Day. CREDIT: Rick Bowmer/AP

Former service members and families of those killed on active duty will have "free access to the iconic and treasured lands they fought to protect."Read More

National Parks Hope Visitors Comply With Virus Measures

By NWPB News May 26, 2020

Visitors watch as Old Faithful erupts on the day the park partially reopened after a two-month shutdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, at Yellowstone National Park, Wyo. Officials at Yellowstone and other national parks plan to let tourists mostly police themselves and not intervene much to enforce social distancing.

Now, as Yellowstone and other national parks end a two-month shutdown due to the coronavirus, park officials ask visitors to take simple precautions: wash hands, keep a safe distance apart, wear protective face coverings in public.Read More

Yellowstone National Park Set To Reopen — With Caveats

By NPR News May 17, 2020

Yellowstone National Park entrance sign. CREDIT: Kirk Siegler/NPR

There is growing economic pressure to reopen national parks and ease travel restrictions even as many states are still seeing a rise in coronavirus cases. Read More

Sept. 28 Public Lands Day Means Free Admission To State And National Recreation Sites

By Meerah Powell September 27, 2019

Mount Rainier National Park could soon have cellphone access at Paradise and on nearby hikes. CREDIT: EILIS O'NEILL

The 26th annual National Public Lands Day is this Saturday, Sept. 28. That means free visits to recreational sites around the nation. Read More

When Everybody Wants A Piece Of ‘God’s Country’

By NPR News July 8, 2019

Located between Capitol Reef and Bryce Canyon and Zion national parks, the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument has become a big tourist draw since its designation in 1996. CREDIT: KIRK SIEGLER/NPR

About 300 miles south of Salt Lake City, the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument is at the heart of some of the most remote terrain in the lower 48. Famous for its red rock canyons, arches and fossil beds, the rugged land is punctuated by sites like Death Ridge, Carcass Canyon and Hell's Backbone Road.Read More

Chinese Tourism To U.S. Is Down After Years Of Booming Growth

By NPR News June 1, 2019

Grand Canyon officials don't keep track of visitors by country of residence, but Mandarin-language brochures are the most in demand there. The Arizona Office of Tourism estimates that in 2018, the number of Chinese visitors to the state dipped 3.7%, after nearly quadrupling from 2010 to 2017. Sean Gallup/Getty Images

Fewer Chinese tourists have been visiting Hawaii, Arizona and other population destinations in recent years. The strong dollar has made travel more expensive, just as political tensions have grown.Read More

‘Unfounded’ Bullying Accusations Sidelined Head Of Grand Canyon For 5 Months

By NPR News March 5, 2019

Grand Canyon National Park Superintendent Christine Lehnertz, seen in 2017 with then-Interior Secretary Ryan Zinke, was recently cleared of allegations of workplace harassment. Felicia Fonseca/AP

Park Superintendent Christine Lehnertz has been cleared of allegations of creating a hostile work environment in a report by the Inspector General of the Interior Department. Read More

As Grizzlies Come Back Across The West, Frustration Builds Over Continued Protections

By NPR News February 4, 2019

Trina Jo Bradley at the gate to one of her ranch's pastures. Like most ranchers here, she's been largely accommodating of the grizzlies as their population has rebounded and they've spread off of the neighboring mountains into the more populated plains. CREDIT: CLAIRE HARBAGE/NPR

Since being listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act, grizzly bear populations in northwest Montana and the Greater Yellowstone Area have more than tripled in size. That tolerance, scientists and wildlife officials say, is key to the grizzly bears' future as the effects of climate change harden, the West gets more crowded, and bears spreads into areas they Read More

State Parks Workers To Clean Overflowing Garbage, Restrooms On Federal Land During Shutdown

By Tom Banse January 10, 2019

Trash was piling up at the Santiam Sno-Park in the Willamette National Forest near Sisters, Oregon, on Jan. 2, 2019. CREDIT: CHRIS LEHMAN / KLCC

Some Oregon State Parks workers are now tending to federal recreation lands as the partial U.S. government shutdown continues with no end in sight. People are still visiting trailheads, day-use parking lots and boat ramps on federal lands, but U.S. Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management rangers aren't on duty. Read More

Following Crater Lake, Mount Rainier National Park Shutters Entrances Due To Government Shutdown

By Tom Banse January 6, 2019

Deep snow surrounds the closed Jackson Visitor Center at Paradise in Mount Rainier National Park in this webcam view Sunday, Jan. 6, 2019. CREDIT: NATIONAL PARK SERVICE

When the government shutdown began on December 22, National Park Service higher-ups aspired to maintain access to Western parks—to the extent it was possible with a skeleton staff. But that quickly became untenable at Crater Lake National Park due to lack of snow plowing and sewer maintenance.Read More

Local Impacts From Partial Government Shutdown Shouldn’t Be Too Bad — For Now

By Tom Banse December 22, 2018

File photo. Mount Rainier National Park was closed for 16 days in October 2013 during a government shutdown. TOM BANSE / NORTHWEST NEWS NETWORK

National parks would be affected. The contingency plan for the National Park Service says to stop plowing roads. Given the current wintry weather, that would close Crater Lake and Mount Rainier National Parks in short order. Fort Clatsop would be likely to close too.Read More

Study: Climate Change Hits National Parks Hard. North Cascades Is No Exception

By Courtney Flatt September 25, 2018

A view of the North Cascades view from Eldorado Peak. CREDIT: RICHARD DROKER/CREATIVE COMMONS/FLICKR

Climate change is heating up national parks much faster than the rest of the U.S. That’s according to a first-of-its-kind study that looked all 417 national parks, including those in the Northwest.Read More

50 Years On, North Cascades National Park Envisions The Next 50

By Tom Banse September 9, 2018

View from Sahale Peak near Cascade Pass in North Cascades National Park. CREDIT: NPS

Despite its popularity, few know that it took skillful political compromise in the 1960s to establish North Cascades National Park and the adjacent Ross Lake and Lake Chelan National Recreation Areas.Read More

National Park Service To ‘Modestly’ Raise Entrance Fees In Plan To Cut Repair Backlog

By NPR News April 13, 2018

The National Park Service will increase entrance fees at 117 national parks by at least $5. The increases are far smaller than had previously been proposed by the Trump administration.Read More

Visitors And Spending In National Forests In Washington And Oregon Flat Over 20 Years

By Emily Schwing April 2, 2018

A report out last month says visitors spent nearly $740 million in communities near U.S. Forest Service lands in Washington and Oregon. The number of visitors and dollars coming into the region hasn’t changed much in nearly two decades.Read More

Interior Secretary Zinke Ties National Parks Fixes To Oil And Gas Profits On Public Lands

By Eilís O'Neill February 12, 2018

Mount Rainier’s Alta Vista trail is filled with potholes. CREDIT: EILIS O’NEIL/KUOW/EARTHFIX

The U.S. Interior Department plans to expand energy development on public lands and offshore to pay for the National Parks’ maintenance backlog. Read More

How Will A Government Shutdown Affect Public Lands?

By Tom Banse January 19, 2018

Uncertainty reigns about what federal public lands will be open if the congressional budget standoff leads to a partial government shutdown. Closed national parks and forest campgrounds were among the most visible effects the last time the federal government partially shut down in October 2013.Read More