Please show your gratitude to @beckyjlomax.bsky.social for her efforts towards on #ParkChat and for her dedication to the Parks and for our family. We’re blessed to have her here! @naturetechfam.bsky.social

Q11 While mountains are my public lands faves, canyons like the Devils Hall in Guadalupe Mountains NP fascinate me. How do canyons rate for you personally against other options on public lands? Do you consider them cool, weird, crazy, strange, captivating or engrossing and why? #parkchat

Q10 The Painted Wall in Black Canyon of the Gunnison rises 2,250 ft—the tallest cliff in Colorado. Its dramatic design mixes lighter pegmatite crystalized volcanic intrusions into darker rock. What canyon has walls that intrigue you? What walls would you like to see for yourself? #parkchat

Q9 Slot canyons are narrow water-carved channels that require squeezing through, climbing through, or using technical gear. Canyonlands has a unique slot--The Joint--where the rock instead fractured. Do slot canyons lure or scare you...or both...like a carnival ride? #parkchat

Q8 Some canyons captivate us with fun surprises around every turn. The whimsical, eroded hoodoos of Bryce Canyon sure do that! Share your experience in Bryce or in other canyons that held surprises for you. What enchanted you most? #parkchat NPS photo

Q7 Canyons can contain remnants of human history, such as the cliff dwellings and petroglyphs of the Ancestral Puebloans in Mesa Verde. Tell us about a canyon you have visited that held evidence of human history. What impressed you? What did you learn? #parkchat Mesa Verde NP

Q6 Grand Teton’s Death Canyon sounds ominous, Theodore Roosevelt’s Painted Canyon tosses a nod to art, and Death Valley’s Golden Canyon (below) evokes hidden riches. Are there canyon names that fascinate you or have unique monikers? Any canyons you want to rename? #parkchat

Q5 Several canyons boast the “Grand” label: Grand Canyon (AZ); Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone with Lower Falls (WY); and lush Grand Canyon of the Pacific (Waimea Canyon, Kauai, HI). Do they all deserve the label? Which ones are on your radar to explore? Or which ones have you enjoyed? #parkchat

Q4 Glaciers also carve canyons into U-shaped valleys: Acadia’s Jordan Pond, Yosemite Valley, Kings Canyon, Mount Rainier’s Stevens Canyon, and North Cascades’ Stehekin Valley. Where have you seen or would like to see glacially carved canyons? Which type of canyon carving do you prefer? #parkchat

Q3 Most canyons tend to be carved by rivers. The narrowing of the walls into a “V” shape combined with a descent in river elevation can create a thrilling whitewater raft ride. If you’ve rafted through a canyon, what was it like? If not, what canyon is on your bucket list for rafting? #parkchat

Q1 To explore canyons, you can hike, raft, kayak, do technical canyoneering or fly in a helicopter. Or take a guided tour, like the one on the New River Bridge’s structural catwalk to peer down into New River Gorge. What is your preferred canyon travel mode and where? #parkchat

Q2 Canyonlands has whitewater rafting in Cataract Canyon, climbing ladders between canyons in the Needles, backpacking the Maze canyons, admiring petroglyphs in Horseshoe Canyon, or 4WD or biking down Shafer Canyon to circle the White Rim. Which would you opt to do or have done? #parkchat

Hello everyone from #ParkChat and welcome to @beckyjlomax.bsky.social our guest tonight.

Welcome to #ParkChat, with tonight's special host, @beckyjlomax.bsky.social! Tonight we're discussing Cool, Crazy, and Captivating Canyons. I hope you all brought photos! Check in and let us know where you're chatting from tonight. @59nationalparks.bsky.social

Q3: #ParkChat We love exploring our Public Lands, but safety is always a priority (water, good gear, & reliable communication). Does relying on GPS & satellite communication make us safer, or have we outsourced so much of our intuition that we’d feel lost if they stopped working?

Q2: #ParkChat Has the ability to check the weather and trail conditions in real time prevented us from learning (or made us lose) the ability to read the sky and the ground? Or have we just traded one skill for another?

Q1 #ParkChat Before visiting a National Park, we usually look up places to see, things to do, and trails to hike. But it made us wonder: When does a helpful trail review turn into a spoiler? Do you like knowing exactly what you’ll encounter on a hike, or do you prefer a little adventure?

Welcome to #ParkChat with special guest hosts @witheachmile.com! Tonight we will be discussing "The Comfort of Certainty at Hiking." Come get comfortable with us! Who's joining tonight, and where are you chatting from? @59nationalparks.bsky.social

Q8 #ParkChat Let's dream, since deep Winter is a good time for it! If you could get to any National Park - worldwide - safely, and time and money are no barrier, where would you take off to right away? @59nationalparks.bsky.social

Q9 #ParkChat National Parks are a great place to begin your new year's resolution of enjoying the health benefits of parks. Have you ever done such a hike on January 1st, especially at a NP? Describe it please.

Q7 #ParkChat There are plenty of warm places to visit our Parks in the Winter. Have you made that trip? If not surely there’s a warm Park trip that you like to see. Which one and why?

Q6 #ParkChat If you do go North for a colder Winter NP trip, do you prefer to drive, take a train, or fly to your destination? Do you plan differently for cold-weather travel than you do for summer travel? @59nationalparks.bsky.social

Q4 #ParkChat I'm a visual learner... so do you have any photos from past Winter trips to a Park or any #publiclands that would persuade me to take a trip there this time of year? @59nationalparks.bsky.social

Q5 #ParkChat If you’re going to a place like Yellowstone NP in the Winter it’s going to be cold. Really cold perhaps. What’s your approach to staying warm and safe in such an environment?

Q3 ParkChat Have you actually taken a Winter Park vacation? Name one or two if so and give us a brief description of how they went.

Q2 #ParkChat Sometimes a Winter getaway to a Park isn't feasible. Do you instead use your time in the Winter to plan for the year's Park travels? If so, how do you plan ahead: make reservations, create spreadsheets for the trip(s), calculate costs, etc.? @59nationalparks.bsky.social

Q1 #ParkChat When you look at a winter National Park vacation, are you looking for someplace nice and warm or would you prefer somewhere colder? Give us your reasoning please.

Welcome to a special “National Parks, Winter Travel” episode of #ParkChat featuring me and @naturetechfam.bsky.social Who is ready to get some fresh ideas or share yours about the Parks in the winter season?

Q10 #ParkChat Thank you for the opportunity to be with you tonight and share our common interest. I benefit from a lot of the resources shared and hope you do too. Anything untouched you want to share?

Q11 #ParkChat Have you heard of “smart tech”which lets rangers know when repairs are needed. Currently rangers must fill out time-consuming paperwork to track deferred maintenance. These strategies could shave $ off the deferred maintenance ledger. What other new technologies could help the Parks?

Q9 #ParkChat It’s important to keep our spirits high and stay focused on a positive outcome. What helps you do that?

Q8 #ParkChat Much of our history is being removed from National Parks, particularly the history of Americans of color. Have you observed any changes and how might you respond?

Q7. #ParkChat Clear and obvious YES re advocacy. How do you think/are you trying to expand the advocacy constituency among people who don’t have the passion/information yet?

Q6 #ParkChat I share the frustration and remain relentless in advocacy Congress recently backed off divesting our federal lands to states such as Utah, and did not cut the $billion the President called for. Do you think advocates had an impact?

Q5 #ParkChat What sources do you get your park news from?

Q4 #ParkChat What are you feeling about the future of our treasures? Optimism? Pessimism? Caution?

Q3 #Parkchat Which parks are you most looking forward to visiting this year?

Q2 #ParkChat I’m so happy to be here with you in this portentous New Year! I bet we’re all hoping for a change for the better. What’s your favorite park experience from last year?

Q1 #ParkChat I like innovative funding to tackle deferred maintenance over mandatory fees at the parks. Would you support charging for unique experiences for at the parks example?

Welcome to a special “All Hands on Deck” edition of #ParkChat featuring one of our very best friends @audreypete.bsky.social. Please let us know where you are at tonight as you sign in.

Q7 Announcements: The #parkchat book club is discussing "Defending Our Wildlife Herratage" by Terry Grosz.  Our meetings are a relaxed, no pressure zoom call the 3rd Tuesday of the month. We would love for you to join us! Contact @ocparkbuilder.bsky.social for details. #parkchat

Q11: If there were one awe-inspiring sight/experience in a park that you think could lead to social growth, and make the world a better place, what would it be? #parkchat

Q10: Sociologists say that when we experience awe in nature we are forced to confront its vastness, increasing humility, and facilitating social growth. Have you found this to be true in your experience? #parkchat

Q8: Speaking of astronomy by day or night, as an astronomer one of the things I love about parks is how otherworldly they can be. What’s a park that makes you feel like you are on another planet and appreciate our planet anew? #parkchat

Q9: Awe is described as a reverential feeling of respect mixed with fear or wonder. What’s an awe-inspiring experience you’ve had in a park? #parkchat

Q4: It’s estimated that 80% of the US population can no longer see the Milky Way from where they live. Can you? If not, how far do you have to travel to see it and is it at a park? #parkchat

Q5: In 2007 DarkSky International declared Natural Bridges Nat Mon to be the world’s 1st International Dark Sky Park. This year they named their 250th. Have you been to an International Dark Sky place? Where? What was it like? #parkchat

Q3: In 2009 I coined the phrase “Half the park is after dark” to raise awareness of night skies for park visitors and park officials. Have you been to a night sky talk in a park recently? Where and what was the topic? # parkchat

Q2: In 2007 I began working with rangers on night sky interpretation. A superintendent once asked me what starry skies had to do with parks. Are starry skies a part of your park experience? If so how? #parkchat

Q1: As an astronomer, my life changed in 2005 the night I saw a ranger talk in Yosemite Valley about rangers protecting the view of starry skies in the nation’s parks. How has a park changed you or the path you were on in life? #parkchat