The program connects the fishing tradition across generations while teaching children skills they can apply in the future, either at a clinic or while earning their badge.

Spotlights, By Courtney Johnson

Cool down in the summer heat or soak your tired muscles at these twelve gorgeous swimming holes in the US National Parks and National Forests.

Spotlights, Courtney Johnson

Explore some of the best national parks and monuments for dinosaur and fossil lovers! These eight amazing sites preserve and interpret the stories of the animals, plants, aquatic life, and insects that once called Earth their home.

Spotlights, Courtney Johnson

Spotlights, Courtney Johnson

Find the best activities, lodging, dining, tours, and hiking for Mesa Verde National Park. With this guide, there are also many fantastic side trips listed, with rugged trails, long stretches of highway, vast canyons, history and more within public lands in the Four Corners region.

Spotlights, Courtney Johnson

Winter is an opportune time for national parks adventures. Fewer visitors mean less traffic jams, quicker entry to the parks, and plenty of parking at trailheads and pullouts. Find 32 great ways to explore national parks in winter with this guide.

Spotlights, Courtney Johnson

The International Dark-Sky Association was created in 1988 to help minimize light pollution and to protect the night skies. There are 103 Dark-Sky sites worldwide, including Great Sand Dunes National Park in Colorado, Staunton River State Park in Virginia, Grand Canyon National Park in Arizona, and Enchanted Rock State Natural Area in Texas. The two entities often work alongside each other to preserve what natural night sky still exists. For example, Bob Meadows, a physical scientist and night skies specialist in the NPS Natural Sounds and Night Skies Division took his expertise and equipment to Goblin Valley State Park to help with the park's Dark-Sky designation—at Goblin Valley, one is under one of the darkest skies in the world.

Tips and Tricks, Courtney Johnson

If your explorer is looking to earn additional junior ranger badges and learn more about dinosaurs, the night sky or even the underground railroad, there are many options to do so online without having to visit a national park.

Tips & Tricks, Courtney Johnson

Plan a perfect three-day road trip to the southern Black Hills region of South Dakota, seeing national and state parks, and the world famous Buffalo Gap National Grassland.

Spotlights, Courtney Johnson