Katia Hetter posted an article in the Summer In The Park series on the CNN.com website.
From the article:
(CNN) — Yosemite National Park has almost everything a nature lover could desire: Glorious waterfalls, spectacular meadows and valleys, groves of ancient sequoias and the wildlife that call the park home.
Vacation. The time to let go, relax, and enjoy the scenery. Go where you want, eat what you want … no, wait, can’t to that anymore.
The National Park Service has announce a new ‘healthy food policy’ as part of the “Healthy Parks, Healthy People” initiative. New food standards and ‘sustainable’ food guidelines will now change what you can eat at our national parks.
What is the “Healthy Parks, Healthy People” initiative? Another nonsensical government program … brought to you by the same people who think taking trash cans out of national parks will ‘encourage people to take their trash with them.’
According to the NPS website, “Healthy Parks Healthy People” is a holistic approach to promoting the health and well-being of people and the sustainability of the planet. Healthy Parks, Healthy People US is a National Park Service initiative working to reintegrate human, environmental and ecological health into the mission of public parks and public lands.
Marek Warszawski wrote in the Fresno Bee about two great hikes in Yosemite: Four-Mile and Panorama Trail.
From the article:
“…If I’m going to visit Yosemite Valley in late spring or summer (and have to deal with all the traffic and hordes of tourists), it’s going to be for a hike you can’t do anywhere else. One with more knock-your-socks-off views per footstep than any in the park, if not the world.
This hike is so good, it can’t be contained by one trail. Combine the Four Mile Trail from the Valley to Glacier Point and the Panorama Trail from Glacier Point back to the Valley, and you get 13.8 miles of pure hiking bliss.
Of course, you don’t have to hike both trails. Either is worthwhile by itself. But by combining them, you get the full experience without having to retrace your steps or arrange a shuttle…”
You can read the whole article HERE.
In celebration of National Get Outdoors Day, the U.S. Forest Service is offering a fee-free day Saturday, June 8.
Fee-free days are offered four times a year to encourage people to reconnect to the forest for some healthy, active outdoor fun. If you didn’t get out to the first free day this year (Martin Luther King Jr. Day), then this is your chance!
From the U.S. Forest Service website:
The pilot effort of National Get Outdoors Day was launched June 14, 2008, through a partnership between the Forest Service and the American Recreation Coalition. The partnership built on the success of More Kids in the Woods and other efforts to connect Americans – especially children – with nature and active lifestyles. Go Day, as it sometimes called, now includes federal, state and local agencies, key organizations and recreation businesses to create activities across the country.
Forest Service lands, which include 155 national forests and 20 national grasslands, offer something for everyone, from the casual hiker to the thrill-seeking recreationist. There also are opportunities and programs for children, from Discover the Forest that helps kids learn what to do outside to becoming a Junior Forest Ranger that comes with special access to the online “JFR Clubhouse.”
If you can’t make it to the parks this weekend, then try to schedule some time during the next couple of free days: September 28th (National Public Lands Day) or November 9th through the 11th for Veterans Day Weekend.
You can read more about National Get Outdoors Day HERE.
The Public Relations Society of America has posted a great introduction to Scott Gediman – a terrific guy, who also happens to be the assistant superintendent for public & legislative affairs at Yosemite National Park.
From the article:
Scott Gediman is the assistant superintendent for public & legislative affairs atYosemite National Park. He manages all of the park’s media relations, legislative affairs, special events and dignitary visits. He has been in this position since 1996 and is a 23-year veteran of the National Park Service (NPS).
