This week in national park and public lands news: A major US Forest Service overhaul, including relocating its headquarters from Washington, DC to Salt Lake City by 2027; a bill to redesignate Chiricahua National Monument as a national park passed the House and heads to the Senate; National Park Week in 2026 will move to August; a lawsuit challenges firearm bans inside NPS buildings; Grand Canyon’s South Rim enters Stage 3 water restrictions after a Trans-Canyon Waterline break, and more.

00:00 Intro
00:38 Forest Service Overhaul
02:32 New Arizona Park Push
03:39 Mammoth Cave Expansion
04:05 National Park Week Moves
05:14 Firearms Rules Lawsuit
06:29 Grand Canyon Water Crisis
08:23 Idaho Wildlife Charges
09:22 Millions of Bees Spill
10:35 Wrap Up and Goodbye

Before he was president… before he was a Rough Rider… Theodore Roosevelt was a sickly kid struggling to breathe.

Then he came to the Badlands.

In this episode of Parkography, we explore how the rugged landscapes of Theodore Roosevelt National Park transformed Roosevelt’s life—and ultimately helped shape the future of conservation in America.

From cattle ranching along the Little Missouri River to devastating personal loss, this is the story of how one wild place forged one of the most influential presidents in U.S. history.

This week in national park news: The National Park Service reports 323 million recreation visits in 2025 (down 2.7% from 2024), Mount Rushmore will host fireworks for the U.S. 250th anniversary amid ongoing regional wildfire concerns. A new CBP map no longer shows a primary border wall through Big Bend, instead labeling the area as detection technology, while Big Bend’s Chisos Basin will close starting May 1 for up to two years for lodge replacement and water infrastructure work. Lawmakers introduce the Save Our Sequoias Act to fund reforestation, monitoring, and forest management after major tree losses, and Indiana will add all-terrain track chairs to every state park at no cost.

00:00 Big Changes Ahead
00:34 2025 Park Visitation Report
02:19 Mount Rushmore Fireworks Return
04:08 Big Bend Border Wall Update
05:41 Chisos Basin Two-Year Closure
07:03 Save Our Sequoias Act
08:47 Indiana Parks Accessibility Upgrade
09:46 Wrap Up And Thanks

Mount Rushmore is one of the most famous monuments in the United States. Nearly everyone can recognize the towering faces of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, Theodore Roosevelt, and Abraham Lincoln carved into the granite of the Black Hills of South Dakota.

But the real story behind Mount Rushmore is far more complicated—and far more fascinating—than most people realize.

In this episode of Parkography, we explore the surprising history behind America’s most recognizable monument. From the unlikely idea of South Dakota historian Doane Robinson, to the larger-than-life and controversial sculptor Gutzon Borglum, to the hundreds of workers who risked their lives carving the mountain with dynamite and hand tools during the Great Depression.

This week in national park news:

Mount Rainier National Park has officially dropped its timed entry reservation system for 2026 — joining Yosemite, Arches, and Glacier in abandoning the pandemic-era crowd management experiment.

Meanwhile, one of Yellowstone’s most unusual geothermal features — Echinus Geyser — has suddenly begun erupting again after years of dormancy.

We also cover:

• A fatal incident near the Kīlauea caldera in Hawaiʻi Volcanoes National Park
• A controversial proposal to build new border barriers through Big Bend National Park
• One of the best wildflower blooms in Death Valley since 2016
• A strange act of vandalism at Big Sur’s famous Calla Lily Valley
• Possible campground closures in Washington state parks
• And the opening of a brand-new Texas state park for the first time in 24 years

00:00 Intro
00:46 Mount Rainier Drops Timed Entry
02:01 Hawaii Volcano Fatal Incident
02:57 Yellowstone Geyser Returns
04:47 Big Bend Border Wall Proposal
06:58 Death Valley Wildflower Bloom
08:14 Big Sur Flower Vandalism
09:46 Washington Campground Cuts
10:58 Texas Opens New State Park
12:05 Wrap Up

In 1979, armed men took control of one of America’s most famous national parks — 750 feet underground.

More than 100 visitors were trapped inside the Big Room at Carlsbad Caverns while gunshots echoed through the darkness. The hostage takers demanded money, a flight to Brazil, and a reporter to tell their story. What happened next became one of the strangest and least-known incidents in National Park Service history.

Join the PARKography Facebook group to discuss this episode and more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/parkography

The National Park Service announces Arches and Yosemite will not use timed-entry reservations in 2026, Rocky Mountain will continue timed entry from late May through mid-October. Glacier will not require vehicle reservations anywhere, but will pilot a ticketed shuttle to Logan Pass starting July 1. Yosemite’s Firefall weekend saw full parking, gridlocked traffic, overcrowded shuttles, long lines in near-freezing temperatures, President Trump nominates Delaware North executive Scott Socha to lead the National Park Service, a federal judge orders the National Park Service to restore removed slavery-related exhibits at Philadelphia’s President’s House site, and more. 

00:00 Headlines
00:36 Timed Entry Update: Arches & Yosemite Drop Reservations
01:19 Glacier’s 2026 Plan
03:39 Arches Dropping Timed Entry Is a Surprise
04:51 Yosemite Firefall Weekend: Snowstorm Evacuations
06:35 White House Pick for NPS Director
08:52 Court Orders Slavery Exhibit Restored
10:46 Glacier Mountain Goats Down 45%
12:19 Apostle Islands Ice Caves Reopen
13:34 Wrap-Up

THIS WEEK’S STORIES:
• Pride flag removed at Stonewall National Monument following new federal guidance
• New Interior Department communication rules reshape how parks share information
• A possible new national park along the Los Angeles coast enters public comment
• Special resource study launched on historic lynching sites in the Memphis area
• Historic restoration underway at Grand Canyon’s Lookout Studio
• Olympic marmot may be headed toward Endangered Species Act protection
• Yosemite’s Horsetail Fall “Firefall” returns for 2026
• Oregon State Parks visitation dips after years of record crowds

If you care about national parks, public lands, and the stories shaping how we experience these places — subscribe for weekly coverage and deeper context behind the headlines.

Comment on the LA Coastline National Park Study: https://parkplanning.nps.gov/documentsOpenForReview.cfm?projectID=133718&parkID=415

Comment on the Memphis Lynching Site Study: https://parkplanning.nps.gov/documentsOpenForReview.cfm?projectID=124261&parkID=415

Join the PARKography Facebook group to discuss this episode and more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/parkography

At the turn of the 20th century, the American Chestnut tree was the most important plant in the eastern United States, accounting for over 25% of the forest canopy. But in a period of just 50 years, a mysterious blight, an imported fungus, swept the country and killed over four billion trees.

Join Jason Epperson for Parkography as we explore the rise and fall of the majestic American Chestnut and the incredible, ongoing effort to bring the species back. A major part of this mission is taking place on one of our nation’s most hallowed grounds: the Flight 93 National Memorial in Shanksville, Pennsylvania.

Learn about the tree's vital role in the American landscape and economy, the devastating chestnut blight, and the pioneering "backcross" technique scientists and volunteers are using to plant blight-resistant seedlings in the memory of American heroes.

Find the  Slinky Stove that's right for your next adventure at: https://www.slinkystove.com/?ref=PARKography

Join the PARKography Facebook group to discuss this episode and more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/parkography

This week on Parkography, we look at the Trump administration’s directive that’s leading to the removal of exhibits and signs about slavery, Native American displacement, labor history, and climate change at national parks across the country. We also examine new polling showing strong bipartisan opposition in Western states to the nominee to lead the Bureau of Land Management, and a lawsuit challenging new federal rules that limit public input on logging, drilling, and wildlife management projects in national forests.

We’ll also cover new policies making it easier to lease public lands for oil and gas development — even as recent federal lease sales in Colorado draw zero bids — and a major reorganization of federal wildfire programs with the launch of a new U.S. Wildland Fire Service.

On the ground, we’re tracking a record year for search and rescue at Yosemite, recent vandalism near Bridalveil Fall, illegal off-road driving that damaged rare desert plants at Death Valley’s Eureka Dunes, and adaptive reopening plans for the Grand Canyon’s North Rim after last year’s wildfire.

And we’ll end with some good news: a surprise dinosaur fossil discovery at Dinosaur National Monument and major restoration projects underway at memorials and fountains across Washington, D.C. ahead of America’s 250th anniversary.

Find the  Slinky Stove that's right for your next adventure at: https://www.slinkystove.com/?ref=PARKography

Join the PARKography Facebook group to discuss this episode and more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/parkography

The video on explaining passes: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hBfqPOoEu4w&t=357s

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00:00 Intro
01:10 Exhibits Removed From National Parks
06:31 Controversial Nominee for Bureau of Land Management
08:43 Lawsuit Against New Federal Rules on Public Lands
10:24 Expanding Oil and Gas Development in National Forests
12:20 Unified US Wildland Fire Service
13:26 Updates on National Park Service Sites
16:55 Dinosaur Fossils and Restoration Projects
18:09 Conclusion and Farewell

When Toni Henthorn fell to her death during an anniversary hike in Rocky Mountain National Park, it was first reported as a tragic accident in rugged terrain. But almost immediately, park rangers noticed that the scene didn’t match the story. The location was far from the trail, the drop was steeper than described, and photographs taken just minutes before the fall raised troubling questions.

As investigators began to dig deeper, they uncovered another death years earlier — one that had also been ruled an accident, and that now looked disturbingly similar. What followed was a long and complex investigation that would ultimately lead to a murder conviction and expose how a carefully planned crime unfolded in one of America’s most visited national parks.

In this episode of Parkography, we examine the evidence, the investigation, and the critical role that park rangers and forensic analysis played in uncovering the truth behind a case that shocked both the National Park Service and the public.

Find the  Slinky Stove that's right for your next adventure at: https://www.slinkystove.com/?ref=PARKography

Join the PARKography Facebook group to discuss this episode and more: https://www.facebook.com/groups/parkography