In 1967 or 68 five of us 14yo to 16yo teenagers were allowed to use the family station wagon for the summer to drive from Seattle to the family's summer place in Alabama. We were 3 brothers and 2 family friends, one visiting from Norway. Along the way we stopped at Carlsbad Caverns and spent the night there camping. We saw the bats coming out in the evening. The next day we took the group tour into the cavern. A little ways into the tour one of the rangers stopped us five and asked if we wanted to follow a different rout than the normal because he could tell that we could explore a more challenging route. So we got a memorable private tour with our own ranger to guide us.

@RVMiles

9 ай бұрын

That sounds awesome! We had a similar experience recently at the San Francisco Maritime National Historical Park. Secret tours are so cool.

@AhJodie

9 ай бұрын

What cool parents you have!

@kjkayjay

9 ай бұрын

living in Seattle and going to Alabama in the summer? Weather-wise, I would want to reverse that! lol

@dananorth895

9 ай бұрын

​@@kjkayjayI can see what you mean but those western mountain passes and high plains in the winter can be life or death.😮

@LilyGazou

9 ай бұрын

Amazing to be so trusted!

That's really cool that a rescue was crowdsourced via webcam sighting and an astute viewer. Nicely done.

@VermontScaleCustoms

9 ай бұрын

And cheers to Nat'l Park Ranger, Don! 🥂🖖😎

I was a seasonal park ranger for 30 years because I just plain loved the job. A salute to Ranger Don!

@zackdemundo

9 ай бұрын

Thank you for your service, Marcia.

@jeffreykalb9752

9 ай бұрын

Which season?

If it doesn't break off sooner. When rain , snow and freezing temperatures come it will mostly likely split then.

I was at wind cave National park over 20 years ago. I was a solo traveler there in the off season and was approached by the ranger and welcomed to the park as I was setting up. He was friendly and kind and ask “have you looked up at the sky yet?” (It was twilight at the time). I was shocked at the beautiful sky awash with stars! If this ranger was indeed Don Frankfurt (the one retiring) please know you had made a lasting impression on me as such my husband and I are returning to the west next month because I want to show him the stars as well!

Carefully check to see what roads are closed near Death Valley. Many are closed outside of Death Valley. I live near Death Valley, the rainstorm we got was interested. It was an all-night downpour that didn't let up. Glad my house is on high ground.

When I was a child my life's goal was to be a park ranger and get to wear that cool hat! I haven't reached that goal yet... but this guy motivates me to not give up on it 😊

3 hours of warning to finding him is incredible! I would have guessed days.

@njcanuck

9 ай бұрын

He communicated via a webcam. They know where the webcam is located. Not hard to find him. He was very lucky!!!

@theghostlyorb

9 ай бұрын

I understand that they know where the webcam is located, but think about it, it's probably not monitored 24/7. Very lucky indeed.@@njcanuck

@kden1271

9 ай бұрын

​@njcanuck sir ma'am please stop rubbing your common sense is everyones face...

I studied Forestry and Wildlife Conservation in college. Naturally the Ntl. Forests and Parks were where I wanted to work. When I was around 17, I snuck out of my house, caught a cab to the airport and flew to Alaska lol. Yeah, my parents weren't to happy when I called to inform them of my whereabouts. I am female, was alone in Alaska, and literally backpacked it from Denali to Fairbanks via the woods, staying off the roads. I always thought the police would be looking for me as a "run away". Nope, they weren't lol. Little did I know of any dangers I could have faced. I survived and made it back to Oklahoma after about 3 months. I firmly believe it was that adventure that caused my love of the Ntl. Parks and Forests. My point here I guess, is not about me even tho it reads that way. It's about that man and the webcam rescue story. We didn't have webcams back in the 80s when I took my little adventure. So, IDK what in the hell I would have done if I needed help. I didn't think or plan that far ahead. Gotta love the ignorance of Youth! Today, I'd have a sat. phone, gps, personal locator device etc...lol. Take no chances with you sacred life. You only have one. Stumbled upon this channel. I really like it. Thank You!

@MarisaBisping

9 ай бұрын

Omg... YOU should make a video or something.... I want to know so much more about YoUr story 😯

Such a sweet shout out to Don! ❤😭 This why I always give seemingly random channels a chance. I'm not into parks or hiking, but this was interesting, informative, and heartwarming. 😂

@RVMiles

9 ай бұрын

Thanks for giving us a watch!

@Tr1sh4Lynn

9 ай бұрын

I know what you mean. This isn’t the kind of video I’d normally watch either, and the thumbnail and title were intriguing enough for me to stop on it. Great work, and the entire video is well-written, -paced, and -narrated.

I really enjoyed the story of the retiring park ranger. It's truly heartwarming to encounter such a glimmer of positivity amidst the overwhelming deluge of negative news we're frequently inundated with. Kudos for unearthing this delightful morsel of goodness.

Great update as usual. Best part of profiling the ranger at wind cave, all I could think of was "WOW!". I have nothing but utmost respect to the National Park employees, the do a great job protecting our natural cathedrals...amid the crowds and problems people sometimes bring. Great way to recognize thems!

I want to see Death Valley after everything blooms from the rain!💖 🤗

I’m not interested in RVs, but I appreciate the news about these parks. My beloved Mom and I used to spend a week around New Year’s every year in Death Valley. She, my best friend and fellow traveler, died last year, so I don’t go anymore. But this year, the storm damage has put it out of the question anyway. It was partly, at least, my Mom teaching me to love the outdoors as a child that led to me becoming a geologist. I wanted to start my career as a USNP Park Ranger, but economic reality led me to a job in engineering to meet the costs of living in the Bay Area. Newly married, my husband wanted a home base there. I often meet couples who work the parks seasonally and live in trailers or RVs, they love the lifestyle.

I was at Yosemite years ago, at the base of lower Yosemite falls and a large rock fall happened above us. It was very loud and a dust cloud engulfed us and small rocks bounced by us.

@NoNORADon911

9 ай бұрын

You almost met the Flintstones

It's so hard to get a job in the park service. I've been applying since I graduated with a BS in Biology like 7 years ago.

I was lucky to have visited Death Valley 4 days be4 the hurricane mess. I hope it recovers quickly, it was incredible to see!

As a regular at Yosemite I am glad to know about Royal Arches. Hopefully with access closed for now the rock fall that is on its way won't hurt anyone.

Thank you for sharing, I’m 55 and live in the UK, i would love to go to America and visit Yosemite, it will never happen unfortunately xxxx

@dennisquinn8558

9 ай бұрын

I've lived in SoCal all my life, and have been to a few of the parks in the western US. If you ever do make it out here, I can certainly recommend 2 nearby parks that are (rightly so) often visited: Yosemite Valley and The Grand Canyon. As my reaction, and that of everyone I have talked to who has visited them (from all over the world) is the same: They take your breath away.

It amazes me how water shapes our landscapes.

Death Valley is such a beautiful park. Would have loved to have been there to see this event.

Boy California looked as bad as Nevada did at the Burning Man thing. That’s sad about Yosemite with the crack and rocks ready to fall. Thank you Jason for this information.

@will7its

9 ай бұрын

Sad??? why?

@72marshflower15

9 ай бұрын

@@will7its exactly..

Interesting variety of whats going on in the nat'l parks. I knew of the damage in Death Valley, but not to that extent. Thanks for the info. All the best.

Death Valley NP is “Larger than Rhode Island AND Delaware” 😳

I think we had had Don for a tour a couple of years ago. He was the best tour guide of any sort we've ever had. All other cave guides get told to go watch the man in action! I'll have to stop doing that 😢

Same thing happened at Volcanos National Park in 2018. Highways around and roads in the park were destroyed. They had to wait for the end of the eruption to begin repairs and some could not be repaired. People need to be patient. Nature has natural disasters and people need to remember that

Sounds like a huge rock face will be coming down within a few months. If it went from a couple inches to 20 within a couple of weeks, it could fall before winter.

Happened across your site and enjoyed your park service report, well done - appreciated. My son and I will be road tripping next month and Yosemite is on the list. We both have a park service background - I'm a retired Park Service Ranger and my son is an ex seasonal ranger. Cheers!

@RVMiles

9 ай бұрын

thanks so much!

I worked in over 50 National Parks around the Country as a private Contractor. Park Service personnel are no different than all walks of society....some great folks and a few not so great...the great majority were wonderful to work with. I did notice a bit of "entitlement" in some locations...where maintenance workers had a somewhat "Fantasy" job: Show up at 8:00...discuss todays tasks for 30 - 40 minutes...set up some scaffold...break for a 20-30 minute mid morning break....work for an hour completing the scaffold assembly...then a one hour + lunch break. After lunch finally get an hour or so of actual work progress...another 25 minute "mid afternoon" break...then time to disassemble the scaffolding and go home... Actual "work" done in an 8 hour period, maybe 2 hours.😊 In the "Contractors" world the work in question would take 2 days...as a Park Service project they spent over a week. Definitely not a scenario in all Parks, but appeared to be a pretty awesome "Gravy Train" job...😂

@duckduckgoismuchbetter

9 ай бұрын

I think I went into the wrong field of work. 😂

That rain was 3/4" at Burning Man.

Love your stuff, and I'm an RV'r (super small Forest River R-Pod 152) and rock climber, but "expanded by 12 feet and has widened significantly" leads one to think that there is a massive hole on this rock now. May be better to say that it has "lengthened by 12 feet", which is the report by most climbers. It's a small, but substantial difference.

@RVMiles

9 ай бұрын

True, that would have been a more accurate word. Thanks for sharing.

@glennmontjoy221

9 ай бұрын

@@RVMiles You guys are great. Keep up the good work! Looking forward to hearing about your next adventures!

Thank you. So glad I found your channel.

We camped at Wind Cave last year. Great park. Amazing caves and wildlife everywhere.

Thanks. Good update.

Happy Retirement Don!!!

Al fin un video sin violencia sin politica sin drogas sin cosas que nos toban la calma. Gratcias

Happy Retirement, Don!! And I enjoyed this video!! Thanks!

Pretty fascinating about that lost hiker and the bear camera. Landscape undergoing natural changes in Death Valley and Yosemite. Good Vibrations!

Thanks for the info Jason

So cool about Ranger Don! Congratulations 🎉

Enjoyed this very much

Just found this video. Love your delivery and content. Keep it up

The ad worked I bought subscriptions 😂

Thank you so much!

Love the story of the hiker saved

Kings Canyon National Park has been closed even before the summer months but only now has the Park Service updated their website telling the public it is closed. I work in the little camp/town of Hume and we've had a lot of tourists come by who were unaware the park was closed. We told them its closed due to numerous parts of the roads being washed away by last winters snow melt. Rumor has it the park won't reopen for at least a year.

@robertawhite6761

9 ай бұрын

? I went with my daughter and grandson in June, and it was open. We drove through Kings Canyon and into Sequoia National Park. It was wonderful. There was even a Christian Youth Camp open that we stopped at.

@judyclark8653

9 ай бұрын

Thank you - good to know

THANKS 👍

@RVMiles

9 ай бұрын

Welcome 👍

We just got a lot rain here in Northeastern Arizona.

They should put a live stream to watch the rock slide cause I’ll be really cool

My complements; Good video, audio, and content. Keep up the good work. Tom

Thank You Don for the years of protecting our wonderful Yosemite

@thomaswayneward

9 ай бұрын

I am sure he is a good guy, but how did he protect Yosemite? It is a fact that privately owned land is managed much better than government land.

How interesting thanks

Good information

Happy Retirement Don ❤

When the roads are closed the Park service gets to rest more than normal. Three guesses on how long it will take to repair the roads. I guess three years, at least. Some may be closed forever; that is what they do.

Happy retirement Don, neat story and thank you for the news.

@RVMiles

9 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching!

Nice channel💜 This really got devastated! Crazy crack! Alaska is so beautiful but that’s some rugged outback! Cheers to 55 years 🎉💜 Love this video, subbed

@RVMiles

9 ай бұрын

Thanks for the sub!

Thanks for the video! And, remember, just because you‘re an American, doesn’t mean you‘re immune to mother nature, dry, wet, or dry then suddenly really really wet. Safety first.

I used to work in Yosemite. At the Yosemite Lodge somewhere around 93 to 96. I was there for 2 1/2 years.

Fantastic content, thanks very much. Subscribed! 🎉

@RVMiles

9 ай бұрын

Welcome aboard!

🔥🔥🔥Your report and updates were so well done. I found them to very informative and insightful. I would have never known this, whether I was planning to travel or not. The 🔥🔥🔥is a compliment, thanks and now subscribe😊

@RVMiles

9 ай бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it!

Cool Channel, Thx!

great vid

@RVMiles

9 ай бұрын

Thanks!

Wow so crazy and so sad

Cool site

Oh golly, that pesky weather thing we have on this planet sure does put a damper on our plans don't it.

Google Maps is showing 190 closed until October 31.

Well I guess we won’t be going thru Death Valley, in our way south, from Oregon. We were going to go 395, and cut over to Nevada at Death Valley. Oh well back to the drawing board.

@bob_frazier

9 ай бұрын

Guessing you either you cut east at Big Pine or you go on down to I-40. Where you headed?

@janmoline

9 ай бұрын

Continue on the 395 past the 190 intersection and when the 395 branches left take it all the way to the intersection with the 58 (4 corners). Left there toward Barstow and then take the 15 to Las Vegas. Long way around but it works.

Explain where are all the missing people?

Subscribed!

@RVMiles

9 ай бұрын

Welcome!

Five feet deep is crazy!

its not a disaster as of October 25th - the new lake looked great from Dantes View, so we drove down to Badwater and walked out on the salt crystals to the lake's edge.

I need to find a seasonal winter park job

Have driven Natchez Trace and there is little cell service so calling the NPS is difficult

carnival works trying to drive on a park road.. uggh, what a bunch of clowns!

@janmoline

9 ай бұрын

😂

@ 7:17 Hey, that's not Mr. Frankfort! That's Red Green in disguise! (And far from home, too.)

Happy Retirement Ron😂🎉

Not the first time Death Valley has been closed from flash floods

Too bad the Parkwolf app isn't available for Android.

I think Death Valley had a similar rain earlier this year or last fall because I remember seeing a story about a Jeep trying to get through the roads. And that mountain in Yosemite,, if I'm not mistaken there is a big geological story about that mountain how it's actually part of Another Mountain that was pulled away from continental drift or something? The type of the Rock identifies it and that mountain has been shedding Rock for many many years!

It would be nice to see the crack on a photo that shows where it is other than a pic of a rock with a crack in it without any relative perspective.

holy crap! look at those mud cracks at @1:08. Where's the location of that toilet...gotta go photograph the mud cracks. LOL

Somebody told me it was closed, i live in Arizona. I've never been there, it gets up to 113° here.

Let’s get serious about the storm damage at Death Valley - is the bar still open at Panamint Springs?

@sharksport01

9 ай бұрын

Yes! And now there is a dance floor!

Thats interesting! Im wondering if the increased spending includes increased prices??

No 2:48 😢

Concerning commercial vehicles on the Natchez Trace Parkway....in California every pickup truck must be registered as a commercial vehicle and pay weight fees even though it's owned by an individual. If they're going to stop ALL commercially licensed vehicles the USPS is going to be really busy.

@frankmacleod2565

9 ай бұрын

Um, that is incorrect. I drive a pickup truck in California, for about 30 years now

@jamielynnlano

9 ай бұрын

They said vehicles with commercial markings. So someone advertising their business on their car would be prohibited, but my skoolie which doesn’t have markings, would be fine.

I’m afraid you’re going to be announcing the closure of all 2:19 National parks soon…🤨 I was hoping to get to Joshua Tree and/or Big Bend this winter.

Mt. Charleston closed.

LOL I LIVE NEXT TO YOSEMITE. I WANT NOTIFICATIONS. LOL

Check out today’s press release announcing the October 15 reopen date. Entrance will be limited to Lone Pine.

1:52 "A guide from Yosemite Mountain School reported seeing [the crack] on August 6th but by August 20th it was visible." Not sure I understand this sentence.

If I am not mistaken, something very similar happened in Death Valley last year didn't it?

Those spending numbers assume the people wouldn't spend the money elsewhere. That is fuzzy accounting.

😮happy he was saved but interesting....spying in national parks?

Always bad news coming out of here. They should name it something that sounds like it's a dangerous place.

Does Park wolf cover Australia?

That crack won't last the winter. Looks ready to go at any minute.

I was in a flash flood event in November, 1990 on highway 190! had to turn around just before making the final descent into Furnace Creek because the road washed out. went back to Amargosa Valley and camped in the BLM designated area... Out in the middle of nowhere. and I do mean NOWHERE. Not that it mattered to the BLM, They just like to impose "Rules"... In the middle of nowhere... That wasn't the last flood event I was witness to in Death Valley. I also witnessed 5 Superblooms in the spring there in the 80s and 90s when I lived in the area for work(Las Vegas)

@kjkayjay

9 ай бұрын

People who get bent out of shape over the very minimal rules of the BLM are the reason they have to have rules in the first place.

I want a movie with that rangers story.