National Parks
Archive
Maine’s North Woods would make the perfect addition to the parks system—with mountains, streams, and stunning views. So what’s taking the government so long?
A thorough exploration on the role and history of photography in our parks, including works from the legends like Ansel Adams and Imogen Cunningham.
The national park's namesake tree may be designated endangered
Marcos Vaz takes us along to Death Valley National Park, notoriously the hottest, driest, and lowest national park
The rarely visited national park is home to tropical beaches, pristine coral reefs, some untapped surf, and not much else. Matt Skenazy went exploring and found a few good waves and a lot of mysterious South Seas mojo.
In which Wells Tower braves the rain, smog, and peak-weekend hordes of Great Smoky Mountains National Park to give his three-month-old son a first taste of nature’s sweetness
A new initiative gives complimentary national park access to every fourth-grader in America. Can a class field trip turn kids into lifetime fans of the outdoors? Mike Kessler hops on the yellow bus—and endures high-decibel Bieber sing-alongs—to find out.
John Muir rhapsodizing about Yosemite is one thing, but Ian Frazier has had it with people calling their favorite outdoor spots “cathedrals,” “shrines,” and “sacred spaces.” The false piety detracts from the real task at hand: seeing these places as they actually are.
New ways to get lost, beat the crowds, and find the perfect summer adventure
It’s time to move beyond the divide between conservation and recreation
There's a bounty of other amazing sights in the park system—beyond the national parks
A ten-summit high-altitude climb in Grand Teton National Park
But first, get comfortable climbing in situations where you might fall
The most rewarding section of the Pacific Crest Trail
A 92-mile ride above the Colorado and Green Rivers in Canyonlands National Park
The acclaimed nature writer's portraits of 12 parks go beyond perfect postcard tributes, and the resulting book couldn't have come at a better time
This video highlights a travel adventure from Banff National Park to Jasper National Park via the Icefields Parkway
A new proposal to further entwine the National Park Service and corporate advertisers takes us further down a path we never should have embarked on in the first place
Badlands National Park is home to impressive herds of bison and dazzling rock towers
When a group of canyoneering beginners were swept away in a flash flood last September, it was the worst disaster in Zion's 97-year history. And it illustrates a growing question: How far should national parks go to keep their visitors safe?
Charleston-based photographer Drew Doggett’s recent project, Shadow’s Alight; Portraits of the American West, is the result of 14,000 miles traveled in a 23-foot airstream, visiting 21 national parks. Doggett has spent much his career photographing foreign places and people whose communities are in imminent danger due to development and a lack of conservation efforts. But he wanted to turn his lens toward his own country. In celebration of 100 years of our National Park Service, Doggett set out to capture some of America’s most classic scenes to see how they’ve changed, how they’ve stayed the same, and ultimately why they’re worth protecting. Here, Doggett shares a few favorites from his recent project.
We thought you might like to know about the little guys—the ones that generated the least visitor spending in 2015. Go visit them. You can rest assured they won’t be crowded.
Shooting at Pictured Rocks National Lakeshore in Michigan was a highlight of the project, Lowe says, because he had no idea anything like it existed in the national parks system.
National Parks ϳԹ is an action-packed feature from acclaimed filmmaker Greg MacGillivray and celebrates the 100-year anniversary of the national parks. Following a trio of adventurers, the film takes us into America's most legendary outdoor playgrounds—and some that are off the beaten path. This behind the scenes look focuses on…
In 100 Years, A National Park Love Letter, a combination of quotes from Theodore Roosevelt guides a stunning visual journey through Yosemite, Yellowstone, Grand Canyon, Grand Tetons, and Dinosaur National Monument. The short film produced for O.A.R.S. by Thelonious Step is a…
A recently released report details how officials plan to address hostile working conditions on the river
Spaceports and wildlife refuges have traditionally gone hand in hand. But with so many new commercial launch sites in the works, it's time to ask whether nature can handle the 21st century space race.
After making billions of dollars in revenue from our national parks, Delaware North Companies is aiming to extort the federal government for even more. Enough is enough.
Can a private company trademark public property? That's the question the feds are scrambling to answer after a longtime concessionaire in Yosemite claimed rights to the names of some of the park's most iconic locations.
We teamed up with Instagram to determine the most-photographed national parks of 2015. Here we present our favorite images from the 25 parks that appear most frequently in your photo feed.
Now you can hang your favorite in your living room, no matter how oddly specific
Hot Springs, in Arkansas, opened a local craft beer bar earlier this year
Millionaire Forrest Fenn launched a thousand trips when he filled a chest with gold, rubies, and diamonds, and hid it somewhere north of Santa Fe. If one man is going to find it, by god, it’s an ex-cop from Seattle named Darrell Seyler.
The best food is rarely found within park boundaries. Skip the iffy snack shacks and fuel up where the locals do.
Escape the Crowds Get a jump on the tour busses. Explore our favorite hidden corners, empty spaces, and wild places in ten iconic National Parks. Read more. Get a jump on the tour busses. Explore our favorite hidden corners, empty spaces, and wild places in ten iconic National…
When Becca Alfafara isn’t Instagramming the best parts of GNP, she working as one of the park’s rangers. From rock climbing to wildlife watching, here are her ten tips for what to get up to in the Park Up North.
Increasing fees isn't always a straightforward process, but the benefits make it a worthwhile effort
Here's what you need to know about the largest marketing campaign in National Parks history
We've cut the fat (and circumnavigated the crowds) so you can enjoy any of these thrilling parks in just one day
Get a jump on the crowds. Explore our favorite hidden corners, empty spaces, and wild places in ten iconic National Parks
We spoke with six park rangers to find out what products they won’t leave home without.
The perfect gift for the love child of Ranger Rick and Bob the Builder is a set of National Park–themed Legos
A fresh look at Wallace Stegner and Edward Abbey, plus this month's best novel-soundtrack combo
In a new effort to protect national parks and wilderness areas from commercial photography, the feds have started going after amateur filmmakers with big social media followings.
On January 14 as the sun was falling in Yosemite National Park, Tommy Caldwell and Kevin Jorgeson completed what is arguably the most difficult ascent in the history of rock climbing. The duo remained on the wall for 19 days, climbing 3,000 vertical feet along widely spaced, razor-thin granite holds. Their prize: the first free ascent of El Capitan's Dawn Wall. With cell service throughout their climb and a team of photographers including Corey Rich and a crew from Big Up Productions tagging along, the pair generated a media buzz rarely seen in the climbing world. With athletes this determined, images this good, and a backdrop of one of America's favorite locations, the ingredients add up: History on the Dawn Wall.
Unleash your inner Norse god while driving one of these scenic winter routes.
It's been a national park for 50 years. One more step will ensure that it's safe forever.
The grizzlies of Yellowstone are about to be removed from the endangered species list. The surprising thing: that's probably for the best.
There are many threats to the 50-year-old Wilderness Act. But the most dangerous, Kenneth Brower says, comes from those who are chipping away at the very idea of wilderness itself.
Explorer Daniel Fox has paddled some of the world's wildest places in search of images that can reconnect us with nature—but not humanize it. His startling Wild Image Project brings wildlife up close and personal, asking viewers to reconsider their relationship with the environment. "Nature is raw, rough, cruel, pretty, beautiful, inspiring, but above all, a humble experience," Fox says. And that's a great thing.
I'd love to haul my kids up the railings to Half Dome, but don't want to risk accidents—or turning them off of hiking forever. How can we have fun while staying safe in the national park?
Beat the crowds on the not-so-beaten path this summer in one of America's favorite national parks.
Five wild mountain ranges. Hundreds of miles of trails. Zero crowds. That’s what awaits visitors at the country’s newest Naitonal Monument in New Mexico. Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks consists of four separate patches of the Chihuahuan Desert surrounding Las Cruces in southern New Mexico. Encompassing a half-million acres…
Summer nights are worth staying up for at these 7 dark-sky parks
With a little help from Make-A-Wish, Yosemite’s first honorary park ranger earns his keep and proves his strength
The route from Jackson, Wyoming, to Glacier National Park, Montana packs in five national parks and plenty of watering holes.
Everyone has heard of the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone and Yosemite—and for good reason. These national parks are American treasures. But their red ravines, spewing geysers, and endless valleys attract countless visitors, especially come summer. If you want a dose of natural beauty sans crazy crowds, plan a trip to one…
National parks are America's greatest recreational asset. Now an overdue movement will make them even better.
A growing number of trail runners are finding a new way to test themselves—without race fees, bibs, or finish line chutes—in search of virgin trail and new course records.
Yosemite National Park offers arguably the most scenic hiking in the country. The only challenge? Picking which trail to hike.
Space might not yet be the final frontier, but it’s an intriguing one. The International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) recommends places for Earthlings to stargaze—especially places absent the yellow haze of light pollution. The association’s Dark Sky Places program sets a high bar for national and international communities,…
Visitors flock to Grand Canyon National Park for awe-inspiring views. But if a quick peek over the edge isn’t enough, here are a few places to camp on the South and North Rims: On the popular South Rim, where most visitors venture, Ruby Hill sits 30 miles from…
Some in congress want to change a bill that allows presidents to designate national monuments. Should we care?
The California Coastal National Monument extends from south of San Diego to the Oregon state line and is composed of 20,000 islands, rocks, and reefs that extend 20 nautical miles from the shore. These features make up the scenic views that travelers enjoy along the coast, but few…
Tennessee, North Carolina, and Georgia have the biggest mountains among the 14 states on the Appalachian Trail. The southern portion of the Appalachian Trail. Although the promise of southern temps might draw spring break hikers to Georgia, sleet and snow are common here in March. Georgia is better hiked in…
I want to hike up a live— or at least dormant—volcano. Where can I go without getting scorched?
I’m headed to Hawaii, but lying on the beach is not my thing. What hikes would you recommend?
Three whitewater guides, one wooden dory, and the Colorado River, swollen by record snowmelt and raging with a fury that boatmen hadn't seen since the days of John Wesley Powell. From Kevin Fedarko's epic new book, The Emerald Mile, the incredible story of the fastest, wildest trip ever attempted through the Grand Canyon.
Travel to these destinations for tons of open space—and it's all yours
When an unidentified hunter took out an alpha wolf that has long been a favorite of park tourists and an important part of ongoing research, he unwittingly drew many once-casual observers into a contentious battle between wildlife management, scientists, and hunting advocates