Ranger PamPaw's Park Report

Mark Tezel
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Ten minutes of news from America's national parks, and what it looks like from inside the ranger's hat. Hosted by Mark Tezel, a retired National Park Service ranger with nearly forty years on the job.

Episodes

  1. 6d ago

    64 National Parks, 433 Park Service Units: What the Label Really Means

    Sixty-four places carry the title “National Park.” The National Park Service manages 433. This episode explains what the title actually means: only Congress can create a national park, the other 369 units go by about twenty different titles, and the label tells you far less about a place than most people think. Plus, from the ranger’s chair: what a career that started at San Antonio Missions, a World Heritage Site, taught me about titles and places. Recorded ahead of time, so there are no news stories this week. Park Report Extra has the full list of designations.  Parks in this episode (official NPS pages): Yellowstone National Park: https://www.nps.gov/yell/index.htm Yosemite National Park: https://www.nps.gov/yose/index.htm Grand Canyon National Park: https://www.nps.gov/grca/index.htm Acadia National Park: https://www.nps.gov/acad/index.htm Great Smoky Mountains National Park: https://www.nps.gov/grsm/index.htm Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve: https://www.nps.gov/wrst/index.htm Gateway Arch National Park: https://www.nps.gov/jeff/index.htm Indiana Dunes National Park: https://www.nps.gov/indu/index.htm White Sands National Park: https://www.nps.gov/whsa/index.htm New River Gorge National Park and Preserve: https://www.nps.gov/neri/index.htm Chiricahua National Park: https://www.nps.gov/chir/index.htm Lake Mead National Recreation Area: https://www.nps.gov/lake/index.htm Golden Gate National Recreation Area: https://www.nps.gov/goga/index.htm Blue Ridge Parkway: https://www.nps.gov/blri/index.htm Independence National Historical Park: https://www.nps.gov/inde/index.htm Statue of Liberty National Monument: https://www.nps.gov/stli/index.htm San Antonio Missions National Historical Park: https://www.nps.gov/saan/index.htm Become a Ranger PamPaw Member and support the journey! Your membership helps keep the cameras rolling and the boots on the ground. Choose the level that’s right for you: 🟤 Trail Friend — Jump in and join the community https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/trail-friend-membership/ 🟢 Park Steward — Go deeper and give back https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/park-steward-membership/ ⭐ Ranger Circle — Our highest level of trail support https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/ranger-circle-membership/ Join the Ranger PamPaw Insider List - https://ranger-pampaw.kit.com/bf11579cf3 Ranger PamPaw’s Park Report is part of the Tezels on the Road family of travel and national parks content. 🌐 https://www.tezelsontheroad.com

    64 National Parks, 433 Park Service Units: What the Label Really Means

  2. Oct 28

    Nearly 1,500 Park Projects Called “Low Priority,” Chiricahua Is Park #64, and Scotty's Castle Tours Return

    Nearly 1,500 national park projects sit on a Park Service “low priority” list, according to a Center for Western Priorities map reported by Source NM. Chiricahua is now America's 64th national park, signed into law October 20. And Scotty's Castle in Death Valley returns to the tour schedule, exterior only. Plus Yellowstone's record thermal-area trash haul and restoration work at Minidoka National Historic Site. From the ranger's chair: what I saw inside Scotty's Castle in 2018, and what it says about fixing remote park sites. What to watch: the National Christmas Tree ticket lottery opens October 28.   More information about these parks: Chiricahua National Park (formerly Chiricahua National Monument): https://www.nps.gov/chir/index.htm Big Bend National Park: https://www.nps.gov/bibe/index.htm Death Valley National Park: https://www.nps.gov/deva/index.htm Yellowstone National Park: https://www.nps.gov/yell/index.htm Minidoka National Historic Site: https://www.nps.gov/miin/index.htm Petroglyph National Monument: https://www.nps.gov/petr/index.htm Lake Mead National Recreation Area: https://www.nps.gov/lake/index.htm Valles Caldera National Preserve: https://www.nps.gov/vall/index.htm Aztec Ruins National Monument: https://www.nps.gov/azru/index.htm New River Gorge National Park and Preserve: https://www.nps.gov/neri/index.htm Become a Ranger PamPaw Member and support the journey! Your membership helps keep the cameras rolling and the boots on the ground. Choose the level that’s right for you: 🟤 Trail Friend — Jump in and join the community https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/trail-friend-membership/ 🟢 Park Steward — Go deeper and give back https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/park-steward-membership/ ⭐ Ranger Circle — Our highest level of trail support https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/ranger-circle-membership/ Join the Ranger PamPaw Insider List - https://ranger-pampaw.kit.com/bf11579cf3 Ranger PamPaw’s Park Report is part of the Tezels on the Road family of travel and national parks content. 🌐 https://www.tezelsontheroad.com

    Nearly 1,500 Park Projects Called “Low Priority,” Chiricahua Is Park #64, and Scotty's Castle Tours Return

  3. Oct 21

    East Potomac Court Fight, Organ Pipe Water Stations, and ATVs in Gates of the Arctic

    A federal judge halts tree cutting at East Potomac Golf Links in Washington, D.C., and the president announces plans to close and rebuild the course. The Park Service denies Humane Borders' request to maintain water stations at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument. And the Park Service proposes letting Anaktuvuk Pass residents use off-road vehicles for subsistence in Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve. Plus quick updates on a horse living with a Yellowstone bison herd and the reopening of Zion's main highway. And from the ranger's chair: what ANILCA, the 1980 Alaska lands law, says about subsistence access, and how it frames the Gates of the Arctic rule. Become a Ranger PamPaw Member and support the journey! Your membership helps keep the cameras rolling and the boots on the ground. Choose the level that’s right for you: 🟤 Trail Friend — Jump in and join the community https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/trail-friend-membership/ 🟢 Park Steward — Go deeper and give back https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/park-steward-membership/ ⭐ Ranger Circle — Our highest level of trail support https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/ranger-circle-membership/ Join the Ranger PamPaw Insider List - https://ranger-pampaw.kit.com/bf11579cf3 Ranger PamPaw’s Park Report is part of the Tezels on the Road family of travel and national parks content. 🌐 https://www.tezelsontheroad.com

    East Potomac Court Fight, Organ Pipe Water Stations, and ATVs in Gates of the Arctic

  4. Oct 14

    The North Rim, Bent's Old Fort, and the Arch.

    The Park Service is taking public comment on the Grand Canyon's North Rim and Bent's Old Fort, the Advisory Council on Historic Preservation has sent its comments on the triumphal arch, and the Chiricahua National Park Act still awaits a signature. Plus closures, Fat Bear Week, and a Ranger's Chair on Section 106. Corrections: parknews@rangerpampaw.com Subscribe to Park Report Extra for links and details. https://ranger-pampaw.kit.com/bf11579cf3 Become a Ranger PamPaw Member and support the journey! Your membership helps keep the cameras rolling and the boots on the ground. Choose the level that’s right for you: 🟤 Trail Friend — Jump in and join the community https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/trail-friend-membership/ 🟢 Park Steward — Go deeper and give back https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/park-steward-membership/ ⭐ Ranger Circle — Our highest level of trail support https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/ranger-circle-membership/ Join the Ranger PamPaw Insider List - https://ranger-pampaw.kit.com/bf11579cf3 Ranger PamPaw’s Park Report is part of the Tezels on the Road family of travel and national parks content. 🌐 https://www.tezelsontheroad.com

    The North Rim, Bent's Old Fort, and the Arch.

  5. Oct 7

    Big Bend Wall Blocked, Chiricahua Awaits, and $26 Million in Park Work Canceled

    A federal judge blocks border wall construction across the Big Bend region, including the national park. Chiricahua National Monument is one signature away from becoming America's 64th national park. And the Interior Department quietly canceled about 130 park partner projects worth nearly $26 million. Plus quick updates on MLB and Grand Teton and the collapse of Hawaiʻi's Hōlei Sea Arch. And from the ranger's chair: what a national park redesignation really changes, and what it doesn't. Become a Ranger PamPaw Member and support the journey! Your membership helps keep the cameras rolling and the boots on the ground. Choose the level that’s right for you: 🟤 Trail Friend — Jump in and join the community https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/trail-friend-membership/ 🟢 Park Steward — Go deeper and give back https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/park-steward-membership/ ⭐ Ranger Circle — Our highest level of trail support https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/ranger-circle-membership/ Join the Ranger PamPaw Insider List - https://ranger-pampaw.kit.com/bf11579cf3 Ranger PamPaw’s Park Report is part of the Tezels on the Road family of travel and national parks content. 🌐 https://www.tezelsontheroad.com

    Big Bend Wall Blocked, Chiricahua Awaits, and $26 Million in Park Work Canceled

  6. Sep 30

    Border Walls, Backroom Deals, and a Park Service Reorg: Three Stories You Need to Know

    A federal pause on border wall construction inside Big Bend National Park expires this week, and it's not the only park unit facing new wall construction. A quiet land deal inside Yosemite is drawing bipartisan opposition in Congress — and MLB wants to build a ballpark inside Grand Teton. Leaked Interior Department documents describe a plan to reorganize how all 430 national park units are run. Plus, from the ranger's chair: why reorganizations handed down from Washington rarely deliver what they promise — and two park birthdays you probably didn't know about. Become a Ranger PamPaw Member and support the journey! Your membership helps keep the cameras rolling and the boots on the ground. Choose the level that’s right for you: 🟤 Trail Friend — Jump in and join the community https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/trail-friend-membership/ 🟢 Park Steward — Go deeper and give back https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/park-steward-membership/ ⭐ Ranger Circle — Our highest level of trail support https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/ranger-circle-membership/ Join the Ranger PamPaw Insider List - https://ranger-pampaw.kit.com/bf11579cf3 Ranger PamPaw’s Park Report is part of the Tezels on the Road family of travel and national parks content. 🌐 https://www.tezelsontheroad.com

  7. Sep 23

    Yellowstone Loses Cam Sholly, Congress Punts the Park Budget, and Denali Is (Almost) Whole Again

    The first episode of Ranger PamPaw's Park Report. Yellowstone Superintendent Cam Sholly is leaving the National Park Service after nearly eight years running the flagship park. Congress has funded the government through December 11, pushing a nasty park budget fight into the lame-duck session. A second flash flood set back Grand Canyon's water recovery, and the park now says South Rim water returns around Thanksgiving. And the Pretty Rocks bridge in Denali is finally complete, five years after a landslide cut the park road in half. Plus: from the ranger's chair, what Sholly's departure says about brain drain at the Park Service. And Fat Bear Week is here. Corrections and questions: parknews@rangerpampaw.com  Read the Newsletter Become a Ranger PamPaw Member and support the journey! Your membership helps keep the cameras rolling and the boots on the ground. Choose the level that’s right for you: 🟤 Trail Friend — Jump in and join the community https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/trail-friend-membership/ 🟢 Park Steward — Go deeper and give back https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/park-steward-membership/ ⭐ Ranger Circle — Our highest level of trail support https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/ranger-circle-membership/ Join the Ranger PamPaw Insider List - https://ranger-pampaw.kit.com/bf11579cf3 Ranger PamPaw’s Park Report is part of the Tezels on the Road family of travel and national parks content. 🌐 https://www.tezelsontheroad.com

    Yellowstone Loses Cam Sholly, Congress Punts the Park Budget, and Denali Is (Almost) Whole Again

  8. Trailer

    Trailer: A New Show From Inside the Parks

    Every week, something happens in a national park that makes the news. Most coverage tells you what happened. This show tells you why. Ranger PamPaw's Park Report is a ten-minute news show from Mark Tezel, a retired National Park Service ranger with nearly forty years on the job. Three stories that matter, then the Ranger's Chair: how it looks from the inside. First episode Wednesday, September 23, at noon Central. Subscribe now so it's waiting for you. Questions, corrections, and stories from your own park visits: parknews@rangerpampaw.com Become a Ranger PamPaw Member and support the journey! Your membership helps keep the cameras rolling and the boots on the ground. Choose the level that’s right for you: 🟤 Trail Friend — Jump in and join the community https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/trail-friend-membership/ 🟢 Park Steward — Go deeper and give back https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/park-steward-membership/ ⭐ Ranger Circle — Our highest level of trail support https://tezelsontheroad.com/product/ranger-circle-membership/ Join the Ranger PamPaw Insider List - https://ranger-pampaw.kit.com/bf11579cf3 Ranger PamPaw’s Park Report is part of the Tezels on the Road family of travel and national parks content. 🌐 https://www.tezelsontheroad.com

  • 1 Trailer
    7 Episodes

Trailer

About

Ten minutes of news from America's national parks, and what it looks like from inside the ranger's hat. Hosted by Mark Tezel, a retired National Park Service ranger with nearly forty years on the job.

Information

  • Creator
    Mark Tezel
  • Years Active
    2026
  • Episodes
    8
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Ranger PamPaw's Park Report
  • Show Website
    Ranger PamPaw's Park Report