Yellowstone Park visits continue to set records

More than 900,000 people entered Yellowstone National Park in July, up more than 11 percent from the same month in 2008, and up over the previous all time record of 847,000 visitors set in July 1995. Year to date, park attendance is up 10.3 percent. July is typically the park’s peak visitation month, followed by August, June, September, and May.

Visitation in June was just below 644,000, well above the previous record of 609,000 visitors in June 2007.

The West Entrance remains the park’s busiest, with more than 385,000 visitors this July compared to 337,000 a year ago. The greatest percentage increase in visitation was recorded through the East Entrance, up 15.1 percent from July 2008.

Park managers believe the decrease in gasoline prices from over $4 a gallon last July to near $2.50 a gallon this summer helped spur the increase in visitation.

Photo: Great Fountain Geyser.

Mt. Rushmore to be digitally mapped in 3-D

At South Dakota's Mount Rushmore National Memorial preservationists will soon use leading edge technology to digitally document the monument to four American presidents in three dimensions.

Through a groundbreaking partnership with CyArk, a US-based non-profit pioneering in digital preservation, and the Culture Minister of the Scottish Government, Mount Rushmore will become the first international World Heritage site outside of Scotland to be rendered in 3D.

Starting in September, project staff will begin laser scanning, modeling and archiving at the monument. The final three-dimensional, digital model will reveal sculpted surfaces with an accuracy of less than one centimeter. This 3D model will be the focus of the comprehensive CyArk website for showcasing to the public the heritage and historic assets contained within the Memorial boundary.

No entrance fees to National Parks Aug. 15-16

The National Park Service invites you to come by for a free visit later this month-- to relax, to learn a little bit about this nation or to just have some fun. About 200 national parks never charge an entry fee. The 147 National Park Service sites across the USA that do charge fees for entry will waive them the weekend of August 15-16. This is the third and final "free admission" weekend to National Parks this year.

Alaska's Wrangell-St. Elias milestone event

Wrangell-St. Elias National Park and Preserve will be in the spotlight this fall as public television airs Ken Burns’ newest documentary on national parks.

But for America's largest national park — with an area equivalent to six Yellowstones — there is even more excitement as the park celebrates 10 years of restoration work at the historic Kennecott Mine. Designated a National Historic Site in 1998, historians have been busy documenting the century-old mining community, recording interviews with residents who grew up as "Kennecott Kids" and restoring buildings at a site that remains the best example of early 20th century mining. On Sept. 6, a ribbon cutting ceremony will mark the completion of restoration on the mine's General Manager's Office.

Visitors can tour this and other historic mining structures, explore nearby glaciers or watch for wildlife that frequent the area. With four mountain ranges and nine of the 16 highest peaks in the United States, the park and its newly restored Kennecott buildings are a great place to step off into a true Alaska adventure.