01.30.09
And our 2008 haul . . .
As Mike noted, he just barely eked out a victory in a close-fought race. Here’s what Sheryl and I got together in ‘08:
- Richmond NBP (Tredegar Iron Works), Richmond, VA, May 26 2008
- Richmond NBP, Cold Harbor, VA, May 26 2008
- Richmond NBP, Malvern Hill, VA, May 26 2008
- Prince William Forest Park, Triangle, VA, Jun 01 2008
- Potomac Heritage NST (Prince William Forest Park), Prince William, VA, Jun 01 2008
- National Mall and Memorial Parks, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- Old Post Office Tower, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- Pennsylvania Avenue NHS, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- U.S. Navy Memorial, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- Ford’s Theatre NHS – Petersen House, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- Ford’s Theatre NHS, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- Ulysses S. Grant Memorial, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- National Mall, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- Washington Monument, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- John Paul Jones Memorial, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- World War II Memorial, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- Consitution Gardens, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- MEM to the 56 Signers of the Dec. of Independence, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- Lincoln Memorial, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- John Ericsson Memorial, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- Korean War Veterans Memorial, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- District of Columbia World War Memorial, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- West Potomac Park, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- Franklin Delano Roosevelt Memorial, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- George Mason Memorial, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- Thomas Jefferson Memorial, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- National Capital Region, Washington, DC, Aug 29 2008
- Potomac Heritage NST (Harpers Ferry NHP), Harpers Ferry, WV, Sep 01 2008
- Harpers Ferry NHP, Harpers Ferry, WV, Sep 01 2008
- C&O Canal Historical Park, Sandy Hook, MD, Sep 01 2008
- Underground RR Freedom Network (Harpers Ferry NHP), Harpers Ferry, WV, Sep 01 2008
- Virgin Islands NP, St. John, VI, Nov 29 2008
- Virgin Islands Coral Reef NM, St. John, VA Nov 29 2008
And here are the ones Sheryl got when she was out west with Mike:
- Pony Express NHT (MO-KS-NE-CO-WY-UT-NV-CA), Mar 27 2008
- Mormon Pioneer NHT (IL-IA-NE-WY-UT), Mar 27 2008
- Oregon NHT (MO-KS-NE-WY-ID-OR-WA), Mar 27 2008
- California NHT (MO-OK-KS-NE-CO-WY-UT-ID-NV-CA-OR), Mar 27 2008
In addition, she had repeat stamps for 1, 2, and 4 on Mar 29 2008. AND the signature of the State Coordinator-Utah of the National Park Service.
As Mike noted, the 2008 Muffin prompted an examination of the rules–should Sheryl be on her own or are we a team? We decided that we’re doing this as a team, so only the stamps that we see together count. On the other hand, if a tiebreaker is needed then the additional stamps by one of us would come into play. So one team member’s additional stamps can break a tie, but they can’t make a tie.
And there you have it. It’s 2009, baby. Game is ON.
01.06.09
New Muffin Stamps?
Yellow Tang near Maug Island in the Mariana Archipelago. Credit: NOAA, Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center, Coral Reef Ecosystem Division, Robert Schroeder, photographer
Today, President Bush used his executive authority (granted under the Antiquities Act of 1906) to create three new marine national monuments in the Pacific, protecting more than 195,280 square miles of ocean. As the president said, “the monuments will prohibit resource destruction or extraction, waste dumping, and commercial fishing. They will allow for research, free passage, and recreation — including the possibility of recreational fishing one day. For seabirds and marine life, they will be sanctuaries to grow and thrive. For scientists, they will be places to extend the frontiers of discovery. And for the American people, they will be places that honor our duty to be good stewards of the Almighty’s creation. “
The three areas are:
- Rose Atoll, a ring of pink-hued coral near American Samoa.
- The Marianas Marine National Monument, which encompasses the three northernmost islands in the northern Marianas chain, as well as the entire length and breadth of the Mariana Trench – the deepest rift of any on the ocean floor.
- The Pacific Remote Islands National Monument, an array of seven remote islands and atolls in the central Pacific.
More here on the specifics, from the White House.
Click here for lovely shots of the new monuments from the Washington Post.
President Bush also designated 140,000 square miles as the Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument around the Northwest Hawaiian Islands in 2006. Combined, that’s a lot of ocean.
No precise word yet as to whether the Park Service will have any jurisdiction (Papahanaumokuakea, for instance, is managed by “the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Commerce Department’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, in close coordination with the State of Hawaii” ), and whether we’ll be able to get any Pacific muffin stamps.
08.18.08
More trees down
Keeping up with the recent theme of “things falling in national parks,” here’s an article from today’s Washington Post on the clearing of 140 acres of rare oak trees at Manassas National Battlefield Park. They’re being cleared to restore the historic vistas of the Union assault at 2nd Manassas (Bull Run, for you boys in gray).
Trees Lose on Manassas Battlefield
National Park and Pr. William Officials Try to Restore Civil War-Era Views
By Kristen Mack
Washington Post Staff Writer
Monday, August 18, 2008; Page B01There is Jackson, sitting astride his mount, Little Sorrel, surveying vistas of rolling fields, towering signs, high-voltage power lines and trees.
The iconic statue of Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson commemorates the place where he inspired Confederate troops to victory. Federal and Prince William County officials want to preserve views of Manassas National Battlefield Park. There’s not much they can do about the signs and power lines. But the trees? They can go.
More than 140 acres of rare oak trees on the Civil War site were getting in the way of historic vistas of the last Union assault at the second battle of Manassas. So the National Park Service cut them down.
Preserving Prince William’s physical battlegrounds is no longer enough. Historians want to re-create historic battlefields so visitors can see the land the same way that those who fought in the Civil War would have seen it.
Staff members from the park and the county’s planning department are studying how to protect views on the battlefield. The study will attempt to guide future development outside park grounds and potentially limit road construction and the heights of office parks, apartment buildings and billboards.
I like the idea of restoring vistas–we inhabitants of the 21st century lose so much in our understanding of the historic topography when it’s obscured by trees–but it’s still painful to see!
05.04.08
Journey Through Hallowed Ground is a go
Country road – Spring
Photo credit: Ken Garrett, on the Journey Through Hallowed Ground Partnership website
I got an e-mail announcing that the House passed the legislation for the Journey Through Hallowed Ground National Heritage Area on Tuesday (the Senate had passed it on April 10). If you’re not familiar with the JTHG, it’s a 175-mile corridor stretching across four states, from Gettysburg, PA, to Monticello outside of Charlottesville, VA.
Or, as the bill itself says: “The Heritage Area shall consist of the 175-mile region generally following the Route 15 corridor and surrounding areas from Adams County, Pennsylvania, through Frederick County, Maryland, including the Heart of the Civil War Maryland State Heritage Area, looping through Brunswick, Maryland, to Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, back through Loudoun County, Virginia, to the Route 15 corridor and surrounding areas encompassing portions of Loudoun and Prince William Counties, Virginia, then Fauquier County, Virginia, portions of Spotsylvania and Madison Counties, Virginia, and Culpepper [sic], Rappahannock, Orange, and Albemarle Counties, Virginia.”
Got it? Maybe this will help, from the Journey Through Hallowed Ground Partnership, the folks who advocated for the corridor:
“The natural and cultural heritage within the proposed boundaries are unparalleled,” U.S. Rep. Frank R. Wolf (R-VA-10), who introduced the initial bill two years ago, said in a statement. “In addition to 13 national park units, the corridor is also home to 14 national historic landmarks, two World Heritage areas and more than 1 million acres of land already listed on the National Register.
“America’s history can literally be traced along this corridor,” Wolf continued. “The Monroe Doctrine, the Marshall Plan and the Camp David Accords were penned right here in our backyard.”
This is great stuff. Now it’s on to the president for his signature!
In case you’re interested, the bill that passed is the Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008, which included the previously-introduced legislation for the Journey Through Hallowed Ground National Heritage Area.
Twelve of the thirteen national park units that Rep. Wolf mentioned are (I think):
Pennsylvania
- Gettysburg National Military Park
- Soldiers National Cemetary at Gettysburg
- Eisenhower National Historic Site
Maryland
West Virginia
Virginia
- Manassas National Battlefield Park
- Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park
- Brandy Station Battlefield
- Cedar Mountain Battlefield
I’m not sure what the thirteenth one is, unless somehow it’s the Bristoe Station Battlefield in Prince William County; the JTHG Partnership folks link to the Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania NMP website about the battle. However, as the latter folks also mention, it’s in private hands and not public.
Finally, if all this has whetted your appetite, check out the new National Geographic Society book Journey Through Hallowed Ground: Birthplace of the American Ideal, with text by Andrew Cockburn and photographs by National Geographic photographer Kenneth Garrett. This and other titles also available from the Journey Through Hallowed Ground Partnership here. (We’re not at all affiliated.)
Now that all this is done–on to preserving Natural Bridge!
04.08.08
Well, I never considered that
I knew from our travels that parks like Glacier and Yellowstone occasionally have to close (or the roads in them have to) due to impassable snows. But I was startled to see today that Hawaii Volcanoes National Park is closed because “because winds are blowing sulfur dioxide from an eruption of ash and gas from Kilauea Volcano.” There’s more in the report here and on the Park website here (kudos to the park for including links to more in-depth scientific info in their report).
We don’t get too much park-closing sulfur dioxide on the east coast of the continental U.S.!
Here’s NASA’s read on the sulfur dioxide:
02.19.08
Paw Paw redux
See what happens when you trot out the “Year of the Yard?” I’m forced to append additional pictures of Paw Paw, starring . . . you.
(Actually, I had wanted to post these anyway once you posted the Paw Paw pics.)
More from that same trip!
