National Parks Traveler Podcast

This week Doug Smith, who heads Yellowstone National Park's Wolf Project, discusses how successful the park's wolf recovery program has been. We also visit with the executive director of the National Parks of Lake Superior Foundation to discuss the five national park units the foundation works with, and end with a look at fall and winter migrations across the National Park System.

Erika Zambello and Dr. Alex Deghan, the CEO and co-founder of Conservation X Labs, an organization working to end human-induced extinction, discuss the first national parks in Afghanistan and the challenges to preserve them in a war zone. We also outline a Senate resolution to protect a much larger slice of nature in the United States than is currently being done, and highlight a winter's visit to Virgin Islands National Park.

Two professors, one from Harvard, the other from Colorado State University, studied the National Park Service's fiscal condition, and came up with some suggestions for improving it. Professor Linda Bilmes discusses those opportunities with Traveler. We also look at possible impacts to Cumberland Island National Seashore from a proposed spaceport, and end this week's podcast with thoughts of visiting Death Valley National Park this winter.

Filmmakers Mark Deeble and Victoria Stone discuss their documentary, The Elephant Queen, which follows the matriarch of an elephant herd as she leads them from the "kingdom," a lush landscape during the rainy season, to "the refuge," where a reliable water hole slakes their thirst, came together. National Parks Traveler is honored by the Western National Parks Association, and we close with a look at a winter visit to Bryce Canyon National Park.

How did the infusion of Texas puma genes into the small population of Florida panthers in Everglades National Park and Big Cypress National Preserve benefit the panthers? Alexander Ochoa, a postdoctoral researcher at The Ohio State University, explains in this week's show. We also look at Big Bend National Park as a winter destination, and question a proposal to let for-profit businesses take over more national park campgrounds.

Erika Zambello talks with Houston Cypress of the "Love the Everglades Movement" about priorities for the tribes that have connections to the Everglades and using art to connect people to the River of Grass and Big Cypress. Professor John Freemuth, who holds the Cecil D. Andrus Endowed Chair for Environment and Public Lands at Boise State University, discusses some of the seemingly unprecedented actions and decisions being taken by the Interior Department and National Park Service.

Laurie Ward, executive director of Washington's National Park Fund, discusses how her organization manages to support not just one, but three national parks. Ken Brower, son of the late David Brower, offers his take on whether ranching should be allowed at Point Reyes National Seashore, and we point out where in the National Park System you can find wildlife this fall.

Hurricane Dorian literally sliced up Cape Lookout National Seashore, creating more than 50 breaches in the park's barrier islands. At Western Carolina University, Professor Rob Young says the hurricane's damage was astonishing. How that damage will impact recreation on the seashore remains to be seen. Traveler also discusses this summer's uproar over glacial predictions at Glacier National Park, and invites a winter visit to Voyageurs National Park.

How is climate change affecting fall colors? Stephanie Spera, an assistant professor of geography at the University of Richmond and a 2019 Second Century Stewardship fellow at the Schoodic Institute at Acadia, is using citizen science to help answer that question. Erika Zambello wonders how Hurricane Dorian affected the Abaco parrot (aka the Bahama parrot) and its habitat, and we get a quick update on legislation to cut deeply into the roughly $12 billion maintenance backlog across the National Park System.

"Hiker Trash," a new book that examines hiker life along the Appalachian Trail through the sketches of a graphic artist, is the topic of our interview with author Sarah Kaizar. We also look at the fisheries of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and comment on the long-running vacancy of a permanent director of the National Park Service.

How will climate change impact plants and animals at Acadia National Park? This week we talk with Dr. Jennifer Smetzer, who has been mapping areas of the park that could serve as refugia for many native species. We also take some time to look at some great park destinations for fall.

Lauren and Steven Keys wanted to see national parks, so they took seven months off from the daily routine and headed out on a 34,000-mile journey that took them through the National Park System. We ask them how they did this, what they saw, and how they afforded it. We also take a look at visiting Joshua Tree National Park, and raise a question of why the National Park Service continues to pursue capital projects when it struggles under a roughly $12 billion maintenance backlog.

As with many units of the National Park System, there are many needs along the Blue Ridge Parkway, a 469-mile-long ribbon of bucolic landscape linking Shenandoah and Great Smoky Mountains national parks. And without the Blue Ridge Parkway Foundation, many of those needs would go wanting and fall into neglect. To understand those needs, we reached out to Carolyn Ward, CEO of the foundation. Erika Zambello also spends a little time this week discussing Acadia National Park's falcons, and we conclude this episode with a look at Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park in Colorado.

Dr. Erin Devlin, a professor of American history from the University of Mary Washington in Fredericksburg, Virginia, discusses her research into sites in national parks in Virginia that were associated with segregation during the first half of the 20th century. Host Kurt Repanshek takes a look at Everglades National Park and why it's a great park destination during the winter months.

eBikes are among the topics making the rounds in the National Park System, as the debate over where these motorized bikes should be allowed to travel. Those cycles, and topics ranging from the lack of a permanent director of the National Park Service are among the topics Traveler discusses this week with Kristen Brengel, vice president of government affairs for the National Parks Conservation Association, and Phil Francis, chair of the Coalition to Protect America's National Parks. We also take a look at mealtime in the parks, with a focus on Dutch oven cooking

How are California condors doing in Zion National Park, and what about snail kites at Everglades National Park? We take a look at those two bird species in this week's show. And we visit the Schoodic Peninsula of Acadia National Park to catch up on some research into rockweed, a type of seaweed that coats the rocky coastline there.

In this week's episode, we talk with Gemina Garland-Lewis, a photographer, EcoHealth researcher, and National Geographic Explorer, about her work in the parks, and how that has changed the way she experiences parks themselves. Next, we visit Schoodic Peninsula in Acadia National Park, a quieter part of the National Park System. Finally, we end with Walnut Canyon and Montezuma Castle national monuments, which are easy day trips from Flagstaff, Arizona, that open windows into past cultures.

The Capitol Reef Reader is not your typical national park guidebook. No trail, dining, or lodging information. Rather, The Capitol Reef Reader offers an incredible wealth of information in the essays Stephen Trimble has pulled together for this collection. Essays by the likes of Clarence Dutton who traveled the Southwest with Major John Wesley Powell, Ed Abbey, and that literary conservation giant, Wallace Stegner. We talk with Trimble this week about how he pulled together the wonderful essays in this anthology on Capitol Reef National Park. Erika Zambello makes a short stop at the Old Post Office Building in Washington, D.C., and we end the show with a look at two wonderful monuments in Arizona, Wupatki and Sunset Crater Volcano.

Tom Smith, a professor of wildlife sciences at Brigham Young University and a member of the National Rifle Association, discusses how effective guns in backcountry locations are in defending against bear attacks. What he says might surprise you. This episode also looks at the Volcanic Legacy Highway that ties Lassen Volcanic National Park and Crater Lake National Park together.

Burmese pythons long have presented a significant problem for native wildlife in Everglades National Park. Erika Zambello talks to a contractor hired to study and remove these invasive snakes. We also take a look at Acadia, Shenandoah, and Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and the Blue Ridge Parkway, and review Ramble On: A History of Hiking.

Using national park settings as a backdrop for these programs can serve double duty – the resources are the perfect educational tool, and the settings can really connect youth to nature. These settings seem to resonate with students', teachers', and adults' innate thirst for nature. Saul Weisberg, who helped found the North Cascades Institute in 1986, has seen students from every walk of life positively affected by their experiences in North Cascades National Park and other public lands that the Institute uses as outdoor classrooms. Saul joins us today to talk about the benefits of these outdoor programs. Erika Zambello also checks in with Friends of Katahdin Woods and Waters and their work in the national monument.

Kim Titchener, the founder of bearsafety.com, discusses how humans can stay safe in bear habitat, while Erika Zambello visits Washington, D.C., and tracks down some of Thomas Moran's famed paintings of national parks. Host Kurt Repanshek suggests that the National Park Service be pulled out of the Interior Department and set up as a freestanding agency.

Independent filmmaker Tom Huang discusses his new project, Find Me, a movie that uses national parks as a backdrop for a story about personal reflection and rejuvenation in nature. It also touches on the issue of cultural diversity in park visitors. With the official start to summer on June 21, we also offer some tips for staying safe in parks, and look at the gateway town of Estes Park, Colorado.

Are you familiar with Sooty terns? It's an interesting seabird species with mysterious travels. In this week's National Parks Traveler podcast episode, Erika Zambello speaks with Dr. Ryan Huang about a decades-long research study on Sooty Terns in the Dry Tortugas. After they nest in the spring, where do they go? What do they eat? What will they face in the future? We also spend a little time with Becky Lomax, author of Moon USA National Parks, The Complete Guide to All 59 Parks, and take a look at Horseshoe Bend National Military Park in Alabama.

Jacob W. Frank is one of the photographers who frames Yellowstone National Park's wildlife, geysers, lakes and forests for you to enjoy. How did he get his job with the National Park Service, and how many parks has he captured with his cameras? He discusses his job with host Kurt Repanshek. You'll also find an overview of visiting South Dakota's national parks, monuments, and memorials in this episode.

Phil Francis, chair of the Coalition to Protect America's National Parks, and Kristen Brengel, vice president of government affairs for the National Parks Conservation Association, join host Kurt Repanshek for this special roundtable discussion about current events in the National Park System.

What is the state of wildlife in the National Park System? Defenders of Wildlife President Jamie Rappaport Clark discusses the health of wildlife in the national parks. Steve Markle of O.A.R.S. provides a forecast for the upcoming white-water season in Utah and California on the Green, Colorado, Merced, and Tuolumne rivers, and Erika Zambello tours Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site and Tuskegee Airmen National Historic Site.

Who is "thenationalparksgirl.com"? In this week's Traveler podcast, Erika Zambello tracks down Sonja Saxe to discuss her national park explorations. Erika and her husband visit Gulf Islands National Seashore to catch dinner. We conclude with a question of whether Dinosaur National Monument should be renamed "Dinosaur National Park"?

Grand Teton National Park Foundation CEO Leslie Mattson discusses how her organization is able to help raise the visitor experience at Grand Teton National Park. Kurt Repanshek reviews two books focused on the Civil War, and Erika Zambello explores Russell Cave National Monument in Alabama.

Andrew Herrington, a search-and-rescue expert at Great Smoky Mountains National Park, outlines how to stay safe on your hikes into the backcountry, while artist Molly Hashimoto explains how she comes away from her park visits with beautiful bird sketches, drawings, and paintings. Finally, we take a short hike into the Peaked Hill Bars Historic District at Cape Cod National Seashore.

Dr. Rolf Peterson, a long-time wolf biologist at Michigan Tech University, discusses Isle Royale National Park's wolf recovery program in this week's episode, while host Kurt Repanshek reviews a book on butterflies you might encounter in national parks and another on marine life photography, and ends the program with a look at the many national parks with caves you can explore.

Dan Wenk, who spent four decades working for the National Park Service, shares his views on the current state of the agency and the National Park System. Host Kurt Repanshek discusses efforts to plan a restoration of the Tidal Basin at the National Mall and Memorial Parks with Katherine Malone-France of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, and Erika Zambello wraps up the show with a visit to Little River Canyon National Preserve in Alabama.

Utah State University wildlife researcher Dr. Dan MacNulty discusses wolves, bears, elk and other prey and predators in Yellowstone National Park in this week's episode, while Erika Zambello talks birding in Katadhin Woods and Waters National Monument with Doug Hitchcox of Maine Audubon. Host Kurt Repanshek wraps up the episode with a look at where you can find some incredible spring and summer wildflower blooms in the National Park System.

Kevin Poe, the original "Dark Ranger" of the National Park Service, talks dark night skies in the National Park System in this week's episode. Traveler contributing writer Kim O'Connell discusses what she's learned while researching a story on the state of Venezuela's national parks during the current social and political turmoil in that country, and host Kurt Repanshek concludes with a look at some of the "devilish" places in the park system.

John Freemuth, the executive director of the Cecil D. Andrus Center for Public Policy at Boise State University discusses the current political landscape and how it's impacting national parks and public lands.

This week, Traveler Contributing Editor Erika Zambello discusses the lionfish invasion in national park marine waters, while Contributing Photographer Rebecca Latson talks about a winter visit to Olympic National Park. Host Kurt Repanshek wraps up the show with a look ahead at harvesttime in the National Park System and where you can find tasty apples and juicy peaches.

There are thousands of miles of hiking trails in the National Park System. Traveler host Kurt Repanshek discusses some of the best with Michael Lanza, who keeps track of his adventures via his blog, The Big Outside. He's also the author of Before They're Gone, a Family's Year-long Quest to Explore America's Most Endangered National Parks. Also in this week's show, Kurt discusses the status of endangered Florida panthers with Elizabeth Fleming from Defenders of Wildlife. The show concludes with an interesting segment from the backcountry of Shenandoah National Park.

In this week's edition of National Parks Traveler, host Kurt Repanshek discusses lodging in the National Park System with David and Kay Scott, authors of The Complete Guide to the National Park Lodges, updates congressional efforts to whittle away the park system's nearly $12 billion maintenance backlog, and reviews a once-in-a-lifetime visit to Glacier Bay National Park and Preserve.

In this inaugural National Parks Traveler podcast, host Kurt Repanshek talks with Friends of Acadia Communications Director Earl Brechlin about when best to visit the park, where to go, and what issues the park staff is facing. Traveler contributor Rita Beamish provides a preview of her story on the recovery Santa Monica Mountains NRA is going through following last fall's Woolsey fire.