The Ranger Desk
Protect parks. Protect park rangers.
Recent Essays
Ever wonder how to stay safe in bear country? Here are seven safety tips and several bear stories from a former national park ranger.
Discover the best hidden gems on the Olympic Peninsula. Explore unique scenery and heritage in two (or more) can't miss stops.
An interpretive park ranger conveys a park's story. Every park has a story, a reason that it was protected and staffed with park rangers.
To embrace the inevitable chaos of travel, accept that something will always go wrong. And learn to roll with the changes.
When you need help, tell people. When I was injured and limping on trail, I asked strangers for help. What happened next surprised us both.
Butterflies, children, and guns. How a terrified child's question about butterflies changed the way I thought about migration and borders.
Why are there no stupid questions to ask a park ranger? Because the biggest questions provide the biggest opportunities to learn.
I quit the national park service for the same reason I became a ranger in the first place: to find and do what makes me happy.
Naturalist gatekeeping can frighten people away from trying new things. Lets encourage beginners to love what we love, not shame them.
Hawai'i Volcanoes National Park contains two active volcanoes: Mauna Loa and Kīlauea, one of the most active volcanoes in the world.
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Popular Essays
Interested in US national parks? What about living a wild life? Get started with these popular essays.
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Stephanie McCullough
A former US national park ranger with a master’s degree in environmental education, I created The Ranger Desk to share my passion for national parks and the natural world.