Meet America's first extreme hiker

The following is an excerpt from Ramble On: A History of Hiking:

In all likelihood, Norwich, Vermont native Alden Partridge is America’s first avid hiker. Although he’s probably best known as the fifth superintendent of the United States Military Academy at West Point, he also established a series of private military academies. According

to A History of Norwich, Vermont, Captain Partridge was also “a noted pedestrian, on several occasions walking sixty miles a day, and once pacing off seventy miles within that limit.” As an example of his endurance, strength and tenacity, in 1818 he undertook an extended excursion that included ascents of both Mt. Mansfield and the Camel’s Hump, the highest and third-highest peaks in Vermont. The entire trip, which covered roughly 200 miles, was made within a week, much of it in cold, drenching rain that involved tough, challenging bushwhacks up both mountains. In 1830, at the age of 45, Captain Partridge trekked to Massachusetts and back, a roundtrip hike that covered roughly 300 miles and ended with a grueling 64-mile march on the last day. During his fairly long life, the indefatigable military instructor recorded numerous extended treks across the Northeast, as well as ascents of several prominent peaks, including Mt. Washington, Mt. Lafayette, Mt. Equinox, Mt. Ascutney, Killington Peak, Grand Monadnock and Mt. Moosilauke. In an article published on the Norwich University website, journalist and historian Mark Bushnell proclaimed Partridge to be “the first extreme hiker.” According to Bushnell, Partridge also “wrote widely circulated newspaper columns about his wilderness treks and in so doing helped popularize the sport of hiking.”

Learn more about Alden Partridge and the other pioneers of hiking in Ramble On: A History of Hiking.



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Virtually no one went hiking before the 19th century. What occurred that inspired ordinary people to take a walk through the woods for pleasure? Ramble On: A History of Hiking explores the rich history of hiking, and how it evolved into one of the most popular pastimes in the world.

National Park Service finds no significant environmental impact for North Entrance Road reconstruction project in Yellowstone National Park

The National Park Service (NPS) signed a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) and associated Wetlands/Floodplains Statement of Findings (SOF) to reconstruct the North Entrance Road between Mammoth Hot Springs, Wyoming, and Gardiner, Montana, in Yellowstone National Park.

In January 2026, NPS, in cooperation with the Federal Highway Administration, Western Federal Lands (FHWA-WFL), prepared an environmental assessment (EA) to assess potential impacts for proposed reconstruction of the North Entrance Road. The FONSI, approved by the NPS Regional Director, describes the selected action and establishes that there will be no significant impact on the environment. The preferred Alternative 2: Center Alignment was selected.

The purpose of the project is to provide reliable and essential long-term access for park visitors, staff, emergency responders, commercial users and residents of gateway communities.

Yellowstone experienced a 500-year flood event on June 13, 2022. The flood destroyed infrastructure in the northern portion of the park, including several sections of the North Entrance Road, and segments of the Northeast Entrance Road between Tower Junction and Cooke City/Silver Gate, Montana. Both roads are open year-round and serve as the only winter vehicle access in and out of the park. After briefly closing the park to regular visitor traffic on June 13, 2022, a temporary North Entrance Road was constructed between Mammoth Hot Springs and Gardiner using the historic Old Gardiner Road (OGR) wagon trail, which opened to the public Oct. 30, 2022. Although this temporary road has successfully provided visitor access to the park, it was not engineered for the long-term. The selected alternative will turn the OGR into a multi-use recreation trail and most of the damaged road, located in the Gardner Canyon, will be reclaimed.

The FONSI and other project materials can be viewed and downloaded from the NPS Planning, Environment and Public Comment website.



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Check out our online trail guides:

• Glacier National Park: HikinginGlacier.com

• Grand Teton National Park: TetonHikingTrails.com

• Rocky Mountain National Park: RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

• Ramble On: A History of Hiking

National Public Lands Day 2026

This Saturday, September 26, an estimated tens of thousands of volunteers across the country will join together for the 33rd annual National Public Lands Day (NPLD), which supports and celebrates America's public lands through activities like trail maintenance, tree planting, beach clean-ups, and more. NPLD is a fee-free day that not only supports conservation efforts but invites participants to experience and appreciate the beauty of America's public lands.

This year's theme, "Caring for our Shared America," calls on all of us to show up for the parks, trails, forests, and waterways we hold in common. Hosted by the National Environmental Education Foundation, National Public Lands Day is a collective act of care that brings communities together and strengthens our shared American story.

National Public Lands Day is more than a clean-up—it connects communities, provides meaningful outdoor experiences for attendees, and showcases the educational, recreational, and health benefits of public lands. The excitement surrounding NPLD also provides a boost in volunteer recruitment for federal, state, and local public land managers. Last year, over 52,000 volunteers participated in more than 750 events across the US, representing $10.5 million in volunteer service.

To find interesting NPLD events happening near you, please visit https://www.neefusa.org/npld-event-search, or visit the National Parks event page.



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From Montana to New Mexico, the American Rockies stretch for more than a thousand miles. Within this spectacular mountain range are thousands of miles of hiking trails. With such an overwhelming number of options, how will you find and choose the most scenic and rewarding hikes?

Ultimate Hiking Guide to the Rocky Mountains takes all the guesswork out by focusing on some of the most amazing hikes across this range, and provides you with a handpicked list of options that will allow you to make the most of your trips in the Rockies:

The first modern travel guide and its role in helping to promote hiking

The following is an excerpt from Ramble On: A History of Hiking:

Among the more significant events that would help spur growth in the budding endeavor of walking for pleasure was the publication of one of the first modern travel guides. In 1778, an English priest by the name of Thomas West published A Guide to the Lakes, which detailed the landscape and scenery of the Lake District in northwestern England. While many say the guide marked the advent of modern tourism, the book also helped to promote the idea of walking for leisurely purposes. Perhaps more importantly, it also advanced the emerging concept of seeking out sublime and picturesque viewpoints, or what he called “stations,” for purposes of appreciating natural landscapes. Modern historians contend that this was a new way of understanding nature and mountains, which in a few years would become an integral part of what is now known as Romanticism. Instead of looking at mountains with fear or as obstacles, the Romantics proposed they should be seen for their rugged beauty, and as sources of profound awe and spiritual inspiration. West underscored this notion by declaring:

Whoever takes a walk into these scenes must return penetrated with a sense of the creator’s power in heaping mountains upon mountains, and enthroning rocks upon rocks. And such exhibitions of sublime and beautiful objects cannot but excite at once both rapture and reverence.

Learn more about Thomas West and how the Romantics inspired people to take walks in nature for pleasure in Ramble On: A History of Hiking.



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Virtually no one went hiking before the 19th century. What occurred that inspired ordinary people to take a walk through the woods for pleasure? Ramble On: A History of Hiking explores the rich history of hiking, and how it evolved into one of the most popular pastimes in the world.

This year's most funky finds in Yellowstone National Park

The latest edition of Yellowstone Caldera Chronicles features an itemization of all the trash left behind by visitors in the park’s hydrothermal areas this year. As a result, Yellowstone National Park’s Geology team has collected some pretty interesting stuff.

According to the article, "As of early September 2026, Yellowstone’s Geology team has removed more than 20,100 pieces of trash, 5,600 rocks and sticks, and over 280 hats from hydrothermal areas around the park—a record-setting year so far! Among all that debris have been a lot of interesting items, some wacky, some yucky, and others... puzzling?

Here are (some of) the 2026 hydrothermal debris highlights:

Most head-scratching: Some of the more bizarre things to find in a hydrothermal area: 5 Airpods, 3 Delta Flight Pins, an inhaler, 3 golf tees, and an Uno card.

Most common: Besides the abundant plastic and paper trash collected by the team, the most common items found in hydrothermal areas are camera lens caps (54), hair ties (47), binkies (17), hotel key cards (20), pencils (42), and sunglasses (36)!

Grossest: In 2026, the Geology team found 6 (!) Invisalign retainers, 15 fake nails, numerous floss picks, and one lump of glittery pink children’s slime stuck to a handful of geyserite sinter pieces.

Please click here to read the full story.



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Check out our online trail guides:

• Glacier National Park: HikinginGlacier.com

• Grand Teton National Park: TetonHikingTrails.com

• Rocky Mountain National Park: RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

• Ramble On: A History of Hiking