Latest news with #RockyMountainNationalPark
CBS News
04-07-2025
- CBS News
Overdue hiker's body found in Colorado's Rocky Mountain National Park
The body of an overdue hiker was found and recovered in Rocky Mountain National Park this week. Recovery efforts took place Thursday for the 66-year-old female from Fort Collins, who National Park officials believe suffered an apparent fall near Chasm Lake. According to RMNP, park rangers were notified of an overdue hiker on Tuesday night. The hiker had planned a day hike to Chasm Lake and had not returned as planned. Chasm Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park CBS The woman's body was discovered early in the morning on Wednesday on the south side of Chasm Lake on a scree slope. RMNP Search and Rescue team members were assisted by the Mesa Verde Interagency Helitak crew for recovery efforts. The woman's body was flown Thursday afternoon via a long line operation to the Upper Beaver Meadows helipad where she was transferred to the Boulder County Coroner's Office. The hiker's name will be released by the Boulder County Coroner's Office after the next of kin has been notified.
Forbes
30-06-2025
- Politics
- Forbes
Trump ‘Snitch Signs' Calling For ‘Negative' National Park Comments Spark Counter-Protest
Just as digital protesters took credit for raining on Trump's military parade, national park supporters appear to have flooded the Department of Interior's feedback portal, possibly frustrating an order by Trump to remove any 'negative' history from national parks and monuments. A "snitch sign" encouraging visitors to report "negative" information is displayed on the restroom ... More door at the Alpine Visitor Center in Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. (Photo by RJ Sangosti/MediaNews Group) Denver Post via Getty Images Following an executive order from President Trump, the National Park Service began this month posting signs in federal parks and monuments that encourage visitors to report information 'negative about either past or living Americans.' These signs—which include a QR code that links to a feedback form on the NPS website—have been dubbed 'snitch signs' by park service employees and conservation organizations. Multiple national park advocacy groups, including some comprised of current and former NPS employees, have called for the public to hijack the government's initiative by posting comments in support of national parks and their employees. Forbes reviewed screenshots of 274 comments submitted through the feedback site between June 5 to 19 and found the vast majority to be positive about the parks service, tour guides and more. In a statement to Forbes, the Department of the Interior, which oversees the National Park Service, said: 'This effort reinforces our commitment to telling the full and accurate story of our nation's past' and noted it has corrected errors at National Park Service sites after receiving 'citizen-submitted concerns about historical accuracy.' For example, the Interior Department said it made corrections after a visitor at Capitol Reef National Park reported that 'a souvenir postcard mislabeled a nearby landmark and appeared to copy text from Wikipedia without attribution' and when alerted to a video on the Washington Monument's website that 'inaccurately stated George Washington ended his inaugural oath with a phrase that historians widely agree lacks definitive sourcing.' The signs read, '[Site Name] belongs to the American people, and the National Park Service wants your feedback. Please let us know if you have identified (1) any areas that need repair; (2) any services that need improvement; or (3) any signs or other information that are negative about either past or living Americans or that fail to emphasize the beauty, grandeur and abundance of landscapes and other natural features.' What Are National Park Visitors Saying In Their Comments? Responses Forbes reviewed were overwhelmingly positive about the national parks and staff. Of the minority reporting negative information, roughly three dozen comments pertained to 'services that need improvement' and raised concerns about shuttle services, reservation systems, parking availability or accessibility for diverse visitors, while others highlighted the need for repairs and a perceived lack of funding and budget cuts. Twenty-six entries expressed concern that the Trump administration was attempting to "whitewash," 'sanitize' or 'erase' history, with a visitor at Yosemite National Park writing, 'We need to know the history of all Americans, not just about white men.' A visitor to Mississippi's Natchez National Historical Park wrote, 'Slavery was a dark time in our nation's history and we have to come to terms with that' and not 'romanticize the Antebellum South.' At Kentucky's Camp Nelson National Monument, a Civil War training center for United States Colored Troops, one visitor wrote, 'So glad that people can learn about the tremendous work that African Americans did to earn their freedom by joining the defense of the union.' A visitor to the Birmingham Civil Rights National Monument in Alabama said the park does 'an incredible job of portraying the complicated and dark history of the civil rights movement in a way that is needed for the education of us all.' Several visitors to Alaska's Denali National Park took issue with President Trump's renaming of Mount Denali to Mount McKinley, noting that President McKinley never visited Alaska and had no connection to the peak. 'The mountain is called Denali,' wrote one, 'and no other name than the name that the indigenous peoples came up with before whites murdered and pillaged their way through.' Another added, 'You cannot erase indigenous stories. My heart hurts knowing that the families and adventurers visiting this special park will be forced to bear witness to revisionist history as part of a pathetic attempt at signaling power.' These comments were submitted by visitors to the Cape Cod National Seashore in Massachusetts; Canyon ... More de Chelly National Monument in Arizona; Cabrillo National Monument in California; and Bryce Canyon National Park in Utah. Screenshot/NPS In recent weeks, national park advocacy organizations like the National Park Conservation Association rallied supporters on social media to use the 'snitch signs' for positive protest. A Facebook post from June 12 asking supporters to use the QR code to 'thank our park rangers for telling the full American story' and 'applaud their commitment to protecting and preserving our public lands' was shared more than 500 times. A group of 'off-duty, illegally fired or former/retired National Park Service employees' who call themselves 'the Resistance Rangers' have also encouraged supporters to 'submit your Good Trouble feedback,' an expression associated with the late civil rights leader and Congressman John Lewis. Some of the strongest advocacy appears to be coming from National Park Service employees themselves on forums such as Reddit. In the National Park subreddit, which has 2.1 million members, a ranger posted several weeks ago: 'It would be super cool if we could spam this form with positive, kind messages for the rangers. It means the world to us to know we're being supported and that our work is valued.' The post received nearly 350 upvotes and 55 comments. In the National Park Service subreddit, an online community of 22,000 park rangers, a Redditor warned 10 days ago that 'snitch signs' invite the public to 'rat out' information deemed negative by the administration. It received 736 upvotes and 99 comments. These comments were submitted by visitors to the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.; the ... More Vanderbilt Mansion in New York State; and Valley Forge National Historical Park in Pennsylvania. Screenshot/NPS Why Is The Interior Department Asking For 'negative' Feedback? The initiative sprang from President Trump's March executive order, 'Restoring Truth and Sanity to American History,' which claimed a 'revisionist movement' had attempted to 'rewrite our Nation's history, replacing objective facts with a distorted narrative driven by ideology rather than truth.' Trump's order blamed former President Biden for advancing 'this corrosive ideology' in a way that 'deepens societal divides and fosters a sense of national shame, disregarding the progress America has made and the ideals that continue to inspire millions around the globe.' The decree called upon U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum to determine whether, during the Biden administration, signage at federal sites had been 'removed or changed to perpetuate a false reconstruction of American history' and to ensure that public signage does not contain 'descriptions, depictions, or other content that inappropriately disparage Americans past or living (including persons living in colonial times)' and instead focuses 'on the greatness of the achievements and progress of the American people or, with respect to natural features, the beauty, abundance, and grandeur of the American landscape.' A May 20 secretary's order from Burgum gave Jessica Bowron, acting director of the National Park Service, 120 days to 'remove any content' inconsistent with restoring federal sites 'to solemn and uplifting public monuments that remind Americans of our extraordinary heritage, consistent progress toward becoming a more perfect Union, and unmatched record of advancing liberty, prosperity, and human flourishing.' What To Watch For? Small acts of defiance are happening in real life, too. At Colorado's Granada Relocation Center, one of ten Japanese incarceration camps built in the U.S. after the bombing of Pearl Harbor, a park visitor taped over the 'snitch sign' with an alternate account of history, NBC-affiliate KOAA News 5 reported. The facetious narrative began, 'It was the Spring of 1942 and President Roosevelt decided to treat people of Japanese descent [to] a fabulous free vacation at one of ten fantastic luxury resorts built just for the occasion.' At Yosemite National Park, a sign in a restroom stall asking 'PLEASE…DO NOT PUT TRASH in toilets' was countered by a parody version saying, 'PLEASE…DO NOT PUT TRASH in the White House.' These comments were submitted by visitors to the Catoctin Mountain Park in Maryland; Canyonlands ... More National Park in Utah; Camp Nelson National Monument in Kentucky; and Capitol Hill Parks in Washington, D.C. Screenshot/NPS Tangent Conservationists were handed a win last week, when the Senate's nonpartisan parliamentarian blocked a provision that would have mandated the sale of up to 3.3 million acres of federal public lands across the West from being included in the Republican budget bill. That means Senator Mike Lee of Utah and other proponents of the sale must either rewrite the provision so it fits Senate rules or drop it from the budget bill. Lee is reportedly writing a pared-down version of the bill that omits U.S. Forest Service lands but requires the Bureau of Land Management to sell between 612,500 and 1.2 million acres in 11 Western states. TikTokers Are Claiming Credit For Trump's Parade Attendance (Forbes)
CBS News
20-06-2025
- CBS News
Human remains found in Colorado's Rocky Mountain National Park
Human remains were found in Rocky Mountain National Park in Northern Colorado on Wednesday. According to the park, the remains were located in an area near the Alpine Visitor Center. COLORADO, UNITED STATES - 2016/07/17: Entrance sign for Rocky Mountain National Park. John Greim/LightRocket via Getty Images The center is located along Trail Ridge Road. Park Law Enforcement Rangers said they responded and are leading the investigation. Alpine Visitor Center in Rocky Mountain National Park. CBS The Larimer County Coroner's Office will confirm a positive identification of the individual and release additional information when the next-of-kin is identified and has been notified. Rocky Mountain National Park is located about 66 miles northwest of Denver near the town of Estes Park. Views while ascending and descending the Rocky Mountain National Park's Alpine Visitor Center, in Grand Lake, Colorado. NurPhoto/Getty Images
CBS News
30-05-2025
- Climate
- CBS News
Trail Ridge Road in Colorado's Rocky Mountain National Park opens for the season
Rocky Mountain National Park's Trail Ridge Road opened for the season on Friday. US 34 connects Grand Lake and Estes Park. RMNP announced the opening on social media. Trail Ridge Road Rocky Mountain National Park The popular route for tourists closed last October. Too much snow prevented road crews from plowing all the snow and ice by Memorial Day weekend. This was the second year that the road had not opened for Memorial Day. Crews work to clear the road earlier in May Rocky Mountain National Park At its height, Trail Ridge Road reaches about 12,180 feet, making it the highest continuous paved road in North America. It connects the towns of Estes Park and Grand Lake. Anyone wanting to know current weather conditions and road status can call 970-586-1222, and visitors are urged to be ready to adjust travel plans in light of those potential changes.
CBS News
23-05-2025
- Climate
- CBS News
Trail Ridge Road in Colorado's Rocky Mountain National Park remains closed over Memorial Day weekend
Trail Ridge Road to remain closed, other popular passes open in Colorado for Memorial Day weekend Trail Ridge Road to remain closed, other popular passes open in Colorado for Memorial Day weekend Trail Ridge Road to remain closed, other popular passes open in Colorado for Memorial Day weekend Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park will remain closed over Memorial Day weekend. According to park officials, over the last week, snowplow operators have faced some setbacks from previous progress. RMNP said wind has been the main challenge since last week, causing low visibility, snow drifting back over cleared areas and a thick ice layer beneath drifted snow. Trail Ridge Road on May 21, 2025 in Rocky Mountain National Park. Rocky Mountain National Park Snow and overnight freezing temperatures are forecast above 10,000 feet in RMNP over the holiday weekend. At its height, Trail Ridge Road reaches about 12,180 feet, making it the highest continuous paved road in North America. It connects the towns of Estes Park and Grand Lake. Anyone wanting to know current weather conditions and road status can call 970-586-1222 and visitors are urged to be ready to adjust travel plans in light of those potential changes.
