WEBVTT 1 00:00:01.040 --> 00:00:05.320 It's Nightside with Dan Ray. I'm tell you Easy Boston's 2 00:00:05.400 --> 00:00:06.000 new video. 3 00:00:06.960 --> 00:00:11.199 Halfway through the show, Good Evening is Nightside. Dan is 4 00:00:11.400 --> 00:00:18.399 off until August twelfth. Gary Tangway will be here tomorrow 5 00:00:19.160 --> 00:00:23.199 during the front Friday night version of Nightside. I'll be 6 00:00:23.280 --> 00:00:29.079 here Monday, not Tuesday. I'll find out by Monday who's 7 00:00:29.120 --> 00:00:33.679 doing the Tuesday version of Nightside, and I'll be here Wednesday, 8 00:00:33.759 --> 00:00:37.880 Thursday and Friday of next week. So that's the schedule. 9 00:00:39.159 --> 00:00:41.600 And for the next two hours, we are going to 10 00:00:41.640 --> 00:00:45.560 talk about national parks, of which there are four hundred 11 00:00:45.600 --> 00:00:48.520 and thirty of them. I know a lot of you 12 00:00:48.960 --> 00:00:52.920 listening right now will be going to a national park 13 00:00:53.000 --> 00:00:56.960 for your summer vacation. And I've got a gentleman who 14 00:00:57.119 --> 00:01:03.079 was a ranger, still has his uniform at included, and 15 00:01:03.960 --> 00:01:08.280 is here to give you pointers that you might need 16 00:01:08.319 --> 00:01:12.560 to know if you're going to the Grand Titans or 17 00:01:13.680 --> 00:01:21.200 Zion or Yellowstone. Its name is Ranger Richard Turando, but 18 00:01:21.400 --> 00:01:24.920 his nickname is Dixie, and that's what we all call him, Dixie. 19 00:01:24.920 --> 00:01:26.599 Good Evening, Welcome to Night's Side. 20 00:01:27.439 --> 00:01:28.560 Good evening, Morgan. 21 00:01:29.799 --> 00:01:31.040 How about those socks? 22 00:01:31.640 --> 00:01:37.640 How about them? No? No baseball talk tonight's soft topic topic. 23 00:01:38.439 --> 00:01:41.079 Well, let's talk about national parks. 24 00:01:40.879 --> 00:01:43.040 All right, we will We will do that as soon 25 00:01:43.079 --> 00:01:46.439 as I say hello to Nancy at the information keyboard, 26 00:01:47.680 --> 00:01:50.599 Gray Kitty in a comfy spot, and to mister Morgan 27 00:01:50.640 --> 00:01:55.480 White at the broadcast console, jor. 28 00:01:55.519 --> 00:02:00.120 Thank you, and let me say this to you. There 29 00:02:00.280 --> 00:02:08.080 was a bump I'm being facetious out from Yellowstone about 30 00:02:08.120 --> 00:02:11.120 eight to ten days ago. I'm sure you heard about it. 31 00:02:11.159 --> 00:02:13.520 Tell people listening what happened at Yellowstone? 32 00:02:14.080 --> 00:02:21.479 Well, actually there were three bumps. Three bumps one two 33 00:02:21.599 --> 00:02:26.319 were okay, but one was not. And the one that 34 00:02:26.439 --> 00:02:28.960 was not was when the person who used to work 35 00:02:29.000 --> 00:02:31.879 there decided he would take a gun and try and 36 00:02:31.919 --> 00:02:36.639 shoot people. Oh no, that and the protection rangers took 37 00:02:36.680 --> 00:02:41.719 care of that quickly. Unfortunately they had to. There was 38 00:02:41.759 --> 00:02:45.520 no other way to deal with it. The two other bumps, 39 00:02:45.680 --> 00:02:52.039 which were quite natural, so to speak, were two geysers exploding. 40 00:02:53.520 --> 00:02:57.319 Now supposedly and the stuff that I've read this happens 41 00:02:57.400 --> 00:03:01.520 quite often, except that it happens ten miles from any people, 42 00:03:02.240 --> 00:03:04.960 and so no one ever knows about it. But these 43 00:03:05.000 --> 00:03:09.319 two were right up close and personal. And there were 44 00:03:09.360 --> 00:03:13.560 two there were about three or four days apart. They 45 00:03:13.599 --> 00:03:18.719 were actually about twenty seven miles apart, two different places, 46 00:03:18.759 --> 00:03:23.520 two different geysers, and suddenly these two geysers decided they 47 00:03:23.560 --> 00:03:29.599 would go off, and they did, and one was captured 48 00:03:29.639 --> 00:03:34.680 on film on somebody's phone with rocks coming down on people. 49 00:03:34.719 --> 00:03:37.759 It didn't get nobody got hurt, but it was exciting, 50 00:03:37.879 --> 00:03:38.960 certainly was exciting. 51 00:03:41.039 --> 00:03:47.800 I recall one of those National Geographic specials on Yellowstone, 52 00:03:48.000 --> 00:03:54.800 and they predicted that within one hundred years there's going 53 00:03:54.879 --> 00:03:59.560 to be a big explosion from Yellowstone. No, I don't know. 54 00:03:59.639 --> 00:04:03.599 I don't know about one hundred, maybe five hundred. 55 00:04:03.439 --> 00:04:05.919 All right, what do you know about five hundred years. 56 00:04:06.159 --> 00:04:10.039 Well, it's the thing is that Yellowstone is a volcano. 57 00:04:11.479 --> 00:04:13.520 I don't know about the people who are walking around 58 00:04:13.520 --> 00:04:16.839 out there every day, you even take that into consideration. 59 00:04:17.680 --> 00:04:21.199 But the whole thing is a volcano, and it could 60 00:04:21.279 --> 00:04:23.279 go up whenever it feels like it. That's the thing 61 00:04:23.319 --> 00:04:30.439 about Mother Nature. She's not taking any any direction or 62 00:04:30.519 --> 00:04:31.560 scripts from anybody. 63 00:04:31.600 --> 00:04:34.839 She does what she wants. You can't say I'll take 64 00:04:34.879 --> 00:04:36.600 it in twenty nine. 65 00:04:37.120 --> 00:04:39.160 Yeah, good luck to you. 66 00:04:39.519 --> 00:04:39.839 Okay. 67 00:04:41.560 --> 00:04:44.519 So it's a volcano. There are parts of it that 68 00:04:44.600 --> 00:04:50.319 are going off all the time. Probably these two explosions 69 00:04:50.480 --> 00:04:55.399 lessen the pressure underneath some of the park, but the 70 00:04:55.720 --> 00:05:00.879 possibility is always there that's something big could happen. 71 00:05:02.639 --> 00:05:06.040 Okay, I just know what I saw on TV. 72 00:05:06.680 --> 00:05:09.560 Yeah, I know. All there are ten thousand guys, is there. 73 00:05:11.040 --> 00:05:12.560 You can't keep track of all of. 74 00:05:12.519 --> 00:05:15.480 Them, and every now and then one or two, or 75 00:05:15.519 --> 00:05:18.040 three or four or five of them will go pop. 76 00:05:18.720 --> 00:05:23.079 That's right. And if they're five miles away from anyone's 77 00:05:23.160 --> 00:05:26.040 path or any trail, they could be going off without 78 00:05:26.079 --> 00:05:27.240 anyone actually knowing it. 79 00:05:27.959 --> 00:05:33.639 Okay, and anything else of note that you want to 80 00:05:33.680 --> 00:05:35.199 share with the audience. 81 00:05:35.040 --> 00:05:37.879 Yes, I do, because oftentimes when I come on for 82 00:05:37.920 --> 00:05:42.160 our national parks, we never really get to talk about 83 00:05:42.160 --> 00:05:46.160 the foundation of national parks. We go quickly into calls 84 00:05:46.360 --> 00:05:50.360 some and then we're often going So I've asked you 85 00:05:50.439 --> 00:05:53.759 to not take any calls before the first break because 86 00:05:54.120 --> 00:05:56.759 I just wanted to talk about the parks and put 87 00:05:56.800 --> 00:06:00.439 everybody now. You can pick your cliche here. Either get 88 00:06:00.480 --> 00:06:04.160 all your ducks in a row or you get on 89 00:06:04.199 --> 00:06:07.839 the same page. Take either one. So for all you 90 00:06:07.920 --> 00:06:10.959 people out there who don't really know a lot about 91 00:06:11.040 --> 00:06:15.720 National Parks. There are now four hundred and thirty of them, 92 00:06:16.439 --> 00:06:18.639 and that is up to date. Sometimes we don't know 93 00:06:18.680 --> 00:06:21.720 how many there are because new ones come into the 94 00:06:21.759 --> 00:06:24.680 pack a lot. But we know that the last one 95 00:06:25.040 --> 00:06:27.120 came into the pack about a week and a half 96 00:06:27.120 --> 00:06:30.439 two weeks ago, and that was number four thirty. And 97 00:06:30.480 --> 00:06:36.959 that is Blackwells School, which was built for Mexican American 98 00:06:37.040 --> 00:06:43.279 children out in a place called Marfa, Texas. And believe me, 99 00:06:43.879 --> 00:06:46.959 to get to Marfa, Texas, you want to be going 100 00:06:47.040 --> 00:06:50.800 to Marfa Texas. It's not something you come on by accident. 101 00:06:52.319 --> 00:06:58.319 So Marfa Texas has the latest national historic site, this school, 102 00:06:59.519 --> 00:07:02.439 and it is out there between Big Ben National Park 103 00:07:02.480 --> 00:07:06.120 and Collegsbad Caverns National Park. It's very close as a 104 00:07:06.160 --> 00:07:08.680 matter of fact of Fort Davis, a place where the 105 00:07:08.720 --> 00:07:12.560 Buffalo Soldiers were, and that's in Western Texas. Okay, I've 106 00:07:12.600 --> 00:07:15.720 actually been there, but this place was not a National 107 00:07:15.759 --> 00:07:18.879 park when I was there forty years ago, so I 108 00:07:18.920 --> 00:07:20.120 couldn't I couldn't go to it. 109 00:07:20.879 --> 00:07:26.279 May I give the phone numbers now you can six seven, two, five, 110 00:07:26.399 --> 00:07:28.920 four ten thirty or eight eight eight nine, two nine 111 00:07:28.959 --> 00:07:32.160 ten thirty. And because we are hitting thirty eight states 112 00:07:32.160 --> 00:07:36.079 and parts of Canada. Some of you may want to 113 00:07:36.160 --> 00:07:39.920 ask about A a National park and stone's throw away 114 00:07:39.959 --> 00:07:43.439 from you, or B a National park states away, but 115 00:07:44.399 --> 00:07:47.480 maybe your plans will involve you going there this summer. 116 00:07:48.360 --> 00:07:54.720 Either way, call here. Dixie's here and he knows about 117 00:07:55.120 --> 00:07:58.920 pretty much every national park there is. So if you 118 00:07:58.959 --> 00:08:02.480 ask a question about Zion, he's been there, he can 119 00:08:02.519 --> 00:08:04.680 tell you about it. If you ask him a question 120 00:08:05.319 --> 00:08:09.480 about the Grin Teetons, ditto. Let me take my break, 121 00:08:10.079 --> 00:08:12.680 and by the way, you already have a call Dixie 122 00:08:12.920 --> 00:08:17.199 from the Catskills. Margie, you'll be first after these messages. 123 00:08:17.800 --> 00:08:23.560 Time and temperature here on night Side ten sixteen eighty 124 00:08:23.600 --> 00:08:24.439 five degrees. 125 00:08:26.839 --> 00:08:29.800 Now back to Dan Ray Mine from the Window World, 126 00:08:29.920 --> 00:08:33.039 Nice Sight Studios on WBZ News Radio. 127 00:08:33.320 --> 00:08:37.440 This is night Side without Dan Ray. Dan. We'll be back, 128 00:08:38.360 --> 00:08:41.399 not next week, but the week after. I am Morgan. 129 00:08:42.320 --> 00:08:46.200 I'm here with Dixie and we're talking about any one 130 00:08:46.240 --> 00:08:49.279 of the four hundred and thirty national parks. Let's go 131 00:08:49.360 --> 00:08:53.399 to Margie in the Catskills. Martie, thank you for calling. 132 00:08:53.480 --> 00:08:53.919 What's up? 133 00:08:54.440 --> 00:08:57.799 I am so thrilled. I've had thirty eight years in 134 00:08:57.840 --> 00:09:01.759 the Park Service, And I don't know Dixie's background, but 135 00:09:01.840 --> 00:09:04.519 I love to know the years that he served. 136 00:09:05.120 --> 00:09:11.919 Dixie Teller nineteen eighty three to two thousand and twelve. 137 00:09:13.559 --> 00:09:18.720 Oh my goodness. Still I started in nineteen eighty three 138 00:09:19.320 --> 00:09:21.759 and retired in twenty twenty one. 139 00:09:22.360 --> 00:09:27.919 Wow, and Dixie still gets his fingers wet dealing with 140 00:09:28.279 --> 00:09:29.519 park service stuff. 141 00:09:30.679 --> 00:09:33.799 I'll give him a little trivia question. The side I 142 00:09:33.960 --> 00:09:40.120 worked at was the site of the first Presidential library, Dixie. 143 00:09:41.000 --> 00:09:42.200 How about the Adams House? 144 00:09:43.360 --> 00:09:43.720 Nope? 145 00:09:45.039 --> 00:09:45.679 What was it? 146 00:09:46.080 --> 00:09:53.639 Franklin Roosevelt Library, Hyde Park? Yes? Yes, and the odd 147 00:09:53.679 --> 00:09:57.679 thing was Dixie. I spent my entire career at one site. 148 00:09:58.440 --> 00:09:59.919 Did you move around a lot? 149 00:10:01.240 --> 00:10:05.320 No, I stated, at Boston National Historical Park. Well, actually 150 00:10:05.320 --> 00:10:07.559 that's not true. I spent half my career in the 151 00:10:07.559 --> 00:10:11.879 Public Affairs Office representing all of the parks in the Northeast, 152 00:10:12.519 --> 00:10:15.360 and then the other half at Boston National Historical Park. 153 00:10:16.159 --> 00:10:19.799 That's great, we must have Vanderbilt Roosevelt must have been 154 00:10:19.840 --> 00:10:23.320 in contact with you constantly because that was our sector. 155 00:10:24.000 --> 00:10:26.600 Well, I was there the first day of Eleanor Roosevelt's 156 00:10:26.600 --> 00:10:27.240 house opening. 157 00:10:28.120 --> 00:10:29.759 Yes, I was there. 158 00:10:31.159 --> 00:10:31.399 You know. 159 00:10:31.600 --> 00:10:35.519 I'll tell you something funny. About that Eleanor Roosevelt and 160 00:10:35.720 --> 00:10:39.360 God bless it was the only woman national park. The 161 00:10:39.519 --> 00:10:43.320 rangers had a party at her house the night before 162 00:10:43.399 --> 00:10:46.000 the public was going to open it. We had a 163 00:10:46.039 --> 00:10:50.279 hot dog gross supper, of course, celebrating that the Roosevelts 164 00:10:50.279 --> 00:10:53.200 had the King and Queen of England for hot dog roast. 165 00:10:53.639 --> 00:10:56.480 So we got to be in the house before anyone 166 00:10:56.679 --> 00:11:00.440 was let in the next day and I went into 167 00:11:00.519 --> 00:11:04.120 the bathroom to look around, and I tried to look 168 00:11:04.159 --> 00:11:07.120 in a mirror, and it was so far over my 169 00:11:07.279 --> 00:11:10.879 head I couldn't see a thing. Apparently she was about 170 00:11:10.919 --> 00:11:13.879 five foot ten, Yes, I. 171 00:11:13.840 --> 00:11:17.559 Believe she was that tall, and of course it was 172 00:11:17.600 --> 00:11:19.240 set up for her, so it was her house. 173 00:11:20.320 --> 00:11:24.159 You know, it's interesting, isn't it the only First Lady 174 00:11:24.279 --> 00:11:25.159 National Park. 175 00:11:26.720 --> 00:11:28.759 Well, now there are a couple that are sort of 176 00:11:28.799 --> 00:11:33.240 associated with other First Ladies, but there's First Lady National 177 00:11:33.279 --> 00:11:37.720 Park in Ohio, which covers ten or twelve of them. Okay, 178 00:11:39.600 --> 00:11:41.679 but as far as the house goes way back then, 179 00:11:41.759 --> 00:11:42.759 yet it was the only one. 180 00:11:43.399 --> 00:11:47.720 I'm interested in. What was your daily duties, mostly with 181 00:11:47.799 --> 00:11:50.000 it administrative or tours or. 182 00:11:49.960 --> 00:11:53.840 What Oh, that depends on which part of my career 183 00:11:53.879 --> 00:11:54.720 you're talking. 184 00:11:54.399 --> 00:11:55.679 About any part. 185 00:11:57.519 --> 00:12:02.080 Well, when I was part of the part of the 186 00:12:02.120 --> 00:12:07.360 regional office, in the public Affairs office, it was doing 187 00:12:07.399 --> 00:12:10.200 all kinds of stuff. I mean, I helped write speeches, 188 00:12:11.159 --> 00:12:15.080 I answered the phone like a good secretary. Uh, did 189 00:12:15.080 --> 00:12:17.000 a lot of work that way. Helped out when there 190 00:12:17.000 --> 00:12:20.399 was a special event, take pictures, write some stories, do 191 00:12:20.480 --> 00:12:23.960 all that kinds of stuff, and just do things so 192 00:12:24.000 --> 00:12:28.120 that the public affairs officer did not have to mingle 193 00:12:28.279 --> 00:12:32.200 with the low lifes. She only had to meet. She 194 00:12:32.279 --> 00:12:35.279 had to mingle with the high life. And that was 195 00:12:35.679 --> 00:12:39.720 hard enough for her to do. And then when I 196 00:12:39.919 --> 00:12:42.840 when I when I moved over to a park, Uh, 197 00:12:43.080 --> 00:12:45.679 it was you know, I was just on the front 198 00:12:45.679 --> 00:12:48.799 line doing talking to people all the time. 199 00:12:50.039 --> 00:12:52.919 Isn't it the greatest career there ever was? 200 00:12:53.960 --> 00:12:55.799 Yes, And you shouldn't take it if you what if 201 00:12:55.799 --> 00:12:58.639 you want to make a lot of money, I'll. 202 00:12:58.440 --> 00:13:00.639 Agree with that. I'll just tell you one more thing, 203 00:13:00.679 --> 00:13:05.039 because everyone wants to talk with you. I'm sure. I 204 00:13:05.080 --> 00:13:08.440 was walking back from patrol. We only have two hundred 205 00:13:08.440 --> 00:13:12.480 acres at Vanderbilt, so it's rather small, and I was walking. 206 00:13:12.200 --> 00:13:15.000 Back wait wait, waits small? 207 00:13:15.279 --> 00:13:20.200 Oh, to the rest of the National Park. It's tiny, 208 00:13:20.279 --> 00:13:23.159 yes it is, but we have great views of the 209 00:13:23.200 --> 00:13:27.480 Catskills on the river. But this day I had become engaged, 210 00:13:27.879 --> 00:13:30.399 and I was to my fiance and he said, are 211 00:13:30.399 --> 00:13:33.240 you ever going to retire? And I was walking back 212 00:13:33.240 --> 00:13:36.879 from patrol with a fellow ranger, and I looked at 213 00:13:36.960 --> 00:13:41.559 him and I said, he is sixty years younger than me. 214 00:13:42.279 --> 00:13:47.879 It's about time I retire at age eighty five. Only 215 00:13:47.919 --> 00:13:50.799 in the park service, right, Yes. 216 00:13:50.679 --> 00:13:52.840 You just continue to go off until you get tired 217 00:13:52.879 --> 00:13:53.120 of it. 218 00:13:53.519 --> 00:13:57.039 Thank you so much. I enjoyed it very much. Goodbye, 219 00:13:57.360 --> 00:13:58.879 You're welcome. 220 00:13:59.440 --> 00:14:02.080 Night night. All right, you want to do what Margie did. 221 00:14:02.519 --> 00:14:06.360 We're talking national parks, and I know that's somebody listening 222 00:14:06.440 --> 00:14:11.399 right now, plural, there are some bodies listening right now. 223 00:14:12.320 --> 00:14:17.080 That you have a tour planned, you're going to go 224 00:14:17.240 --> 00:14:24.399 to the Grand Canyon, You're going to go to Zion, 225 00:14:25.519 --> 00:14:31.080 wherever your plans are, call in share that news with 226 00:14:31.240 --> 00:14:32.879 Dixie and I I'm more. 227 00:14:33.120 --> 00:14:35.720 Or if you've already come back from a from a tour, 228 00:14:36.200 --> 00:14:37.679 from a trip, tell us about that. 229 00:14:38.000 --> 00:14:41.200 Yes, definitely, all right, I have. 230 00:14:41.200 --> 00:14:44.720 Some business to do here, all right, go ahead, I 231 00:14:44.799 --> 00:14:48.120 must say hello to Lottie on the Cape, Miss Jean 232 00:14:48.240 --> 00:14:52.440 and Lawrence, and Susie v in Brookline, the favorite aunt 233 00:14:53.000 --> 00:14:55.919 of Zoe Rabel, the Queen of the Pinball. 234 00:14:55.519 --> 00:14:57.639 Machines, who got mentioned earlier. 235 00:14:58.200 --> 00:15:02.399 Oh, I didn't hear that one, but I did hear 236 00:15:02.480 --> 00:15:04.320 some of the two programs. And I guess on the 237 00:15:04.639 --> 00:15:06.879 comic relief for the Night at Dan Ray show. 238 00:15:08.039 --> 00:15:09.440 Not comic relief. 239 00:15:10.919 --> 00:15:14.279 Anyway. A couple other things people who are not that 240 00:15:15.080 --> 00:15:20.279 familiar with national parks should know. Of the four hundred 241 00:15:20.320 --> 00:15:27.399 and thirty parks, sixty three of them are called national parks. 242 00:15:28.320 --> 00:15:33.600 The others are called either National Historic Sites, National Historic parks, 243 00:15:34.320 --> 00:15:39.799 national lake shores, national this, national that, National battlefields. But 244 00:15:39.879 --> 00:15:44.799 they are about twenty five different designations that hold up 245 00:15:44.879 --> 00:15:47.360 all of the rest of the parks. But sixty three 246 00:15:47.440 --> 00:15:55.320 of them are in fact national parks. And if you're wondering, 247 00:15:55.399 --> 00:15:59.919 If you're wondering, there are twenty thousand, maybe twenty one thousand, 248 00:16:00.000 --> 00:16:04.879 who knows, employees of the National Park Service who try 249 00:16:04.919 --> 00:16:07.960 and guide you and teach you and entertain you and 250 00:16:08.039 --> 00:16:10.360 protect you from various things when you're visiting. 251 00:16:12.639 --> 00:16:17.240 Here's my question. Yes, I know, Teddy Roosevelt gets credit 252 00:16:18.440 --> 00:16:26.919 would with creating national parks or segmenting lands to say 253 00:16:26.960 --> 00:16:30.840 this area will now be a national park. But there 254 00:16:30.879 --> 00:16:33.840 must be other people who are instrumental in the beginning 255 00:16:35.000 --> 00:16:39.120 of an area being designated a national park. Who are 256 00:16:39.159 --> 00:16:40.159 the unsung names? 257 00:16:40.720 --> 00:16:46.639 Well, Teddy Roosevelt, Johnny cum Lately. He was very good 258 00:16:46.679 --> 00:16:50.639 as a Johnny cum Lately. And we certainly appreciate everything 259 00:16:50.720 --> 00:16:53.879 Johnny com Lately did, but he was a Johnny cum Lately. 260 00:16:55.320 --> 00:17:01.159 Yellowstone was started in eighteen seventy two, and so Ulysses S. 261 00:17:01.279 --> 00:17:04.000 Grant was the first guy to put his pen on 262 00:17:04.079 --> 00:17:05.759 a piece of paper to say, Okay, this is going 263 00:17:05.799 --> 00:17:08.680 to be a national park. When there were no other 264 00:17:08.839 --> 00:17:14.680 national parks anywhere on the planet, Yellowstone was the first one. 265 00:17:14.759 --> 00:17:17.440 And as ken Burns told you in his film It's 266 00:17:17.519 --> 00:17:23.000 America's best idea now the national Parks. There were several 267 00:17:23.079 --> 00:17:29.039 national parks that were already in use when Teddy Roosevelt 268 00:17:29.039 --> 00:17:32.839 decided it would be good to have places that were 269 00:17:32.880 --> 00:17:39.319 not quite as big or maybe as important as the 270 00:17:39.400 --> 00:17:43.400 specific national parks that were in existence in nineteen hundred 271 00:17:43.400 --> 00:17:48.039 and nineteen oh five. So he signed into law in 272 00:17:48.119 --> 00:17:52.319 nineteen oh six the national monuments which were kind of 273 00:17:52.359 --> 00:17:57.319 smaller than national park areas. That's how Devil's Tower got 274 00:17:57.359 --> 00:18:00.319 to be the first national monument in the United States. 275 00:18:01.599 --> 00:18:04.680 The Star of Close Encounters of a third kind? 276 00:18:05.039 --> 00:18:07.480 Right, that was Wyoming? Am I right? 277 00:18:07.640 --> 00:18:11.480 That was Wyoming? Yes, so that there were a lot 278 00:18:11.480 --> 00:18:16.680 of as. As the years went by, more and more 279 00:18:16.799 --> 00:18:21.759 areas were decided to be important enough to save and 280 00:18:21.960 --> 00:18:25.599 large enough to become national parks. But then in nineteen 281 00:18:25.640 --> 00:18:29.240 oh six we had an influx of smaller areas and 282 00:18:29.279 --> 00:18:33.599 also historical sites, not just not just wilderness areas or 283 00:18:33.720 --> 00:18:34.519 natural areas. 284 00:18:34.680 --> 00:18:36.359 Let me stop you here because if a break to 285 00:18:36.400 --> 00:18:38.640 take and I'll let people know if you want to 286 00:18:38.680 --> 00:18:42.720 call in and join our conversation. Six one, seven, two, five, 287 00:18:42.920 --> 00:18:45.960 four ten thirty or eight eight nine, two nine ten thirty, 288 00:18:46.319 --> 00:18:49.240 please call in and join our conversation. I mean Dixie 289 00:18:49.240 --> 00:18:50.640 and I will be here in at midnight. You may 290 00:18:50.680 --> 00:18:55.160 as well come on board. Time and temperature ten thirty 291 00:18:56.000 --> 00:19:00.279 eighty four degrees. 292 00:19:01.480 --> 00:19:05.759 You're on Night Side with Dan Ray on WBZ, Boston's 293 00:19:05.799 --> 00:19:06.519 news radio. 294 00:19:06.839 --> 00:19:13.960 We are speaking with Dixie aka Ranger Richard Tranto, who 295 00:19:14.119 --> 00:19:18.359 worked for over thirty years in the Parks Service, and 296 00:19:18.400 --> 00:19:21.440 we're talking national parks. And if you'd like to join 297 00:19:21.480 --> 00:19:25.640 the conversation six one, seven, two, five four ten thirty 298 00:19:25.680 --> 00:19:29.240 or eight eight eight nine to nine, ten thirty. And 299 00:19:29.400 --> 00:19:32.160 if I'm not mistaken on the information you sent me 300 00:19:32.960 --> 00:19:40.240 ahead of time, there's a new center at Constitution Park 301 00:19:40.279 --> 00:19:42.319 where old ironsides it's located. 302 00:19:43.359 --> 00:19:47.039 Well, there's there's going to be. There's not one right now. Okay, 303 00:19:47.440 --> 00:19:49.039 they have to have to take care of a lot 304 00:19:49.039 --> 00:19:52.079 of things first before building it. But that is one 305 00:19:52.119 --> 00:19:55.279 of the plans for Boston Park. Is then they've been 306 00:19:55.319 --> 00:19:58.920 planning this since I was there twelve thirteen years ago. 307 00:19:59.799 --> 00:20:02.279 Is who is to take down a building or two 308 00:20:02.559 --> 00:20:06.359 and to use it for a brand new visitor center 309 00:20:06.400 --> 00:20:10.039 and different different kinds of other things replacing what they 310 00:20:10.039 --> 00:20:13.480 have now, which is true all over the park Service. 311 00:20:14.680 --> 00:20:18.200 One thing that the regular visitors to the parks do 312 00:20:18.279 --> 00:20:22.200 not understand or know is the number of things that 313 00:20:22.319 --> 00:20:28.559 need fixing in national parks. The backlog of work is 314 00:20:28.640 --> 00:20:34.559 now at twenty three billion dollars of what needs to 315 00:20:34.599 --> 00:20:37.880 be repaired, fixed, upgraded or built new. 316 00:20:38.240 --> 00:20:41.680 Give me a couple of examples, well, a couple of 317 00:20:41.759 --> 00:20:44.440 years ago or a year or so ago, Yellowstone had 318 00:20:44.440 --> 00:20:49.279 a road taken out by a combination earthquake and a flood. 319 00:20:49.680 --> 00:20:52.359 And things like that have to be fixed all the time. 320 00:20:53.000 --> 00:20:56.000 And you're talking about areas where there are not streets 321 00:20:56.000 --> 00:20:58.240 everywhere where. You've got to bring in equipment from all 322 00:20:58.279 --> 00:21:01.079 over the place and work going to maybe a mile 323 00:21:01.119 --> 00:21:05.200 of road. It's going to be completely rebuilt and fixed 324 00:21:05.359 --> 00:21:08.279 so that people can travel on it. And things like 325 00:21:08.319 --> 00:21:11.279 that happen all the time. But what has happened in 326 00:21:11.319 --> 00:21:15.519 the last twenty five years, well more than that actually, 327 00:21:15.519 --> 00:21:21.279 But let's just take this century. The parks. The parks 328 00:21:21.279 --> 00:21:25.720 have budgets. Okay, everybody's got a budget. The parks have budgets, 329 00:21:26.119 --> 00:21:29.359 But the parks really have three budgets. Now, I know, 330 00:21:29.440 --> 00:21:33.440 there wouldn't be a superintendent worth his or her assault 331 00:21:33.480 --> 00:21:36.400 that would it would tell you this, But there are 332 00:21:36.440 --> 00:21:40.519 really three budgets. The one that the superintendents of the 333 00:21:40.559 --> 00:21:47.079 park submit for money, the one that they actually get 334 00:21:47.359 --> 00:21:52.000 from Congress, and the one that they should get from 335 00:21:52.079 --> 00:21:57.559 Congress but never get. And that there's a big difference there, 336 00:21:57.599 --> 00:22:00.559 and the reason why they don't get it, it's because 337 00:22:00.559 --> 00:22:02.640 there are other things going on in the country that 338 00:22:02.759 --> 00:22:07.200 take precedent. Now that only can happen so many years 339 00:22:07.240 --> 00:22:10.559 in a row before you end up twenty three billion 340 00:22:10.640 --> 00:22:11.400 dollars down. 341 00:22:11.559 --> 00:22:17.160 I was about to say, if it's nineteen sixty and 342 00:22:17.240 --> 00:22:22.839 they needed to make improvements at the Grand Canyon, they 343 00:22:22.839 --> 00:22:26.519 didn't get done because other things happened in nineteen sixty 344 00:22:27.119 --> 00:22:32.000 that took priority. And now it's nineteen seventy. What was 345 00:22:32.000 --> 00:22:35.200 supposed to be done ten years earlier didn't get done, 346 00:22:36.559 --> 00:22:39.720 and they keep pushing or kicking the can down the road, 347 00:22:39.839 --> 00:22:40.640 so to speak. 348 00:22:40.920 --> 00:22:44.400 Well, some things are like that. In some parts, some 349 00:22:44.480 --> 00:22:48.039 of the work actually gets done. New visitor centers are 350 00:22:48.079 --> 00:22:51.480 put up eventually, but every time you put up one 351 00:22:51.559 --> 00:22:54.440 visitor center, there are two or three that are fifty 352 00:22:54.519 --> 00:22:58.279 years old and need to be fixed or knocked down 353 00:22:58.279 --> 00:23:02.240 and start all over again. So that's what they're facing. 354 00:23:02.319 --> 00:23:07.880 But the thing is that the visitors hardly ever recognize 355 00:23:07.920 --> 00:23:12.799 the fact of what money the park that they're at 356 00:23:12.880 --> 00:23:17.160 doesn't get. So you could be visiting Park X and 357 00:23:17.160 --> 00:23:20.440 you could be having a marvelous time. What you don't 358 00:23:20.480 --> 00:23:25.759 realize is that if the park had enough money, they 359 00:23:25.799 --> 00:23:29.799 would have two or three more rangers, and you would 360 00:23:29.880 --> 00:23:36.039 be getting two or three more, two or three more 361 00:23:36.079 --> 00:23:38.279 times during the day where there would be park ranger 362 00:23:38.839 --> 00:23:43.079 tours or lectures or something else. Instead, you might get one. 363 00:23:43.559 --> 00:23:46.640 You might get one a day, which is you know, 364 00:23:46.680 --> 00:23:49.039 when you're there, you don't realize you could have three 365 00:23:49.119 --> 00:23:53.039 or four, but you only get one. And that's the problem. 366 00:23:53.319 --> 00:23:57.279 The problem is the parks are trying to do as 367 00:23:57.319 --> 00:24:01.079 best they can with what they have, but they don't 368 00:24:01.519 --> 00:24:03.160 have enough. Ever. 369 00:24:03.839 --> 00:24:07.400 Okay, let's talk about the Grand Canyon. 370 00:24:07.839 --> 00:24:09.440 All right, it's a big hole in the ground. 371 00:24:09.519 --> 00:24:13.920 I understand that, and I know of the Grand Canyon 372 00:24:13.960 --> 00:24:19.680 because in nineteen seventy five thereabouts, I took a Grand 373 00:24:19.880 --> 00:24:25.799 Canyon tour from Las Vegas via helicopter, and you know, 374 00:24:25.839 --> 00:24:29.599 they flew in a big arc and you got to say, ooh, 375 00:24:29.680 --> 00:24:33.640 and I looking at the vast expanse of the big 376 00:24:33.680 --> 00:24:34.480 hole in the ground. 377 00:24:34.920 --> 00:24:35.160 Yep. 378 00:24:35.680 --> 00:24:41.000 But from my helicopter looking out, I could see other 379 00:24:41.440 --> 00:24:49.839 vehicles flying a route around the Grand Canyon. And they 380 00:24:49.920 --> 00:24:55.240 have since kept back on the amount of air traffic 381 00:24:55.400 --> 00:25:01.039 allowed circling the Grand Canyon. And that's just one change. 382 00:25:01.519 --> 00:25:06.599 There have been many changes to that specific tour, so 383 00:25:07.079 --> 00:25:13.160 speak to changes at the Grand Canyon and they have 384 00:25:13.279 --> 00:25:16.599 built a big jack Gunda hotel. 385 00:25:16.759 --> 00:25:21.480 Correct, well, there are six hotels there all, right, at 386 00:25:21.599 --> 00:25:26.200 least the Altivar being the biggest and most fancy one, 387 00:25:26.920 --> 00:25:27.920 the fanciest one. 388 00:25:28.160 --> 00:25:28.279 Right. 389 00:25:29.759 --> 00:25:31.960 If you get to eat breakfast at the Ultavar, you've 390 00:25:32.000 --> 00:25:35.960 done well, and you get to stay at the Altavar, 391 00:25:36.039 --> 00:25:37.359 that means you're really doing well. 392 00:25:37.640 --> 00:25:39.920 What's on the menu at the Altovar. 393 00:25:39.920 --> 00:25:44.519 Just about anything you could ask for. Anyway. As for 394 00:25:44.559 --> 00:25:49.000 the Grand Canyon, yeah, they cut back on the amount 395 00:25:49.079 --> 00:25:53.200 of planes and helicopters flying around because the people who 396 00:25:53.240 --> 00:25:57.359 were there to enjoy the quiet of the canyon were now, 397 00:25:57.759 --> 00:26:03.799 you know, being bombarded by plane and helicopter traffic. Aside 398 00:26:03.839 --> 00:26:05.640 from the fact that they were, you know, some of 399 00:26:05.680 --> 00:26:10.839 them were hitting each other and that's never good. So 400 00:26:11.000 --> 00:26:13.480 they decided to cut back a little on that. I 401 00:26:13.480 --> 00:26:16.119