NATIONAL PARK SERVICE
                           MORNING REPORT

To:        All National Park Service Areas and Offices

From:      Division of Ranger Activities, Washington Office

Day/Date:  Monday, February 26, 1996

Broadcast: By 1000 ET

INCIDENTS

95-241 - Blue Ridge (North Carolina/Virginia) - Resource Conviction

On May 17, 1995, G.M., owner of a motel adjacent to the parkway, pled
guilty in federal magistrate's court to constructing a road across park land
and cutting down 22 trees which were on park property.  The magistrate ordered
G.M. to pay a fine of $2,500 for each offence, $3,100 to rehabilitate the
area where the road was constructed, and $63,400 in restitution for the trees
which he had cut down.  G.M. appealed the restitution order.  A federal
district judge recently reviewed and upheld the magistrate's decision, having
determined that the government established its loss by a preponderance of
evidence.  G.M.'s appeal was dismissed and he was ordered to pay the sum. 
The value of the trees was established through the testimony of William ,
the park's landscape architect.  Orr testified that the "highest and best" use
of the trees was to provide screening rather than lumber.  The 1992
International Society of Arborculturist Guide to Plant Appraisal was used to
determine the valuation; if "sawmill" valuation had been used, the amount would
have been between $1,200 and $1,400 instead of $63,400.  Anyone with questions
about the formula that was used should contact William Orr at 704-271-4779 ext.
208.  [CRO, BLRI]

96-61 - Harpers Ferry (West Virginia) - Follow-up on Death of Corpsmen

On Friday, February 23rd, approximately 300 people attended a memorial service
for the eight Job Corps students who had been killed in the train accident the
previous week.  The service began with presentation of colors by the NPS color
guard from the National Capital Area.  Letters from President Clinton,
Secretary Babbitt and Secretary Reich were read.  Senator Barbara Mikulski was
the principal speaker.  Biographies of the students were read; a candle
lighting ceremony followed.  Numerous officials and community leaders attended
the event.  [Bill Lynch, LES, NCFO]

96-69 - Mount Rushmore (South Dakota) - Special Event

Music Television Network (MTV) Productions filmed an outdoor television concert
at the park under a commercial filming permit on February 17th.  The taped
event featured a popular rock band known as "The Presidents of the United
States."  About 2,500 people came to view the taping, and a typical concert
atmosphere prevailed.  Rangers provided crowd control and responded to several
minor incidents, including public intoxication and suspected marijuana use. 
MTV paid for all of the costs which the park incurred in managing the event and
also made an unexpected additional donation to the NPS.  The program aired on
MTV on the February 19th President's Day holiday.  [Mike Pflaum, CR, MORU]

96-70 - Mount Rushmore (South Dakota) - Special Event

Republican presidential candidate Pat Buchanan made a public appearance and
speech in the park's amphitheater under a special use permit on Wednesday,
February 21st.  About 600 people attended.  Numerous national and local media
representatives were also present.  Rangers worked closely with the Secret
Service and local enforcement agencies on logistics and security, and also
handled several minor incidents associated with the event.  [Mike Pflaum, CR,
MORU]

96-71 - National Capital Parks (D.C.) - EMS Response

Three racing shells containing 29 members of the George Washington University
women's crew team capsized while training on the Potomac River near West
Potomac Park at 8 a.m. on February 24th.  High winds flipped the shells,
spilling the occupants into frigid waters.  All were able to swim to shore. 
They received treatment for hypothermia from Park Police officers and city
firefighters.  [Bill Lynch, LES, NCFO]

96-72 - Lake Meredith (Texas) - Vandalism Arrests

During the period since the first government furlough, the park has suffered
from a series of two dozen incidents of vandalism in which a total of $9,000 in
damage was incurred.  At 1 a.m. on February 17th, rangers discovered that a
comfort station which was under video surveillance had been vandalized by five
juveniles.  Ranger Mark Foust spotted one of the suspects from the video in a
restaurant later that evening.  The subsequent investigation led to the
identification of five juveniles who confessed to this and five of the most
significant of the previous vandalism cases.  All will likely get supervised
probation and will be required to make restitution.  [Dale Thompson, CR, LAMR]

96-73 - Pinnacles (California) - Rescue

Climbers C.C. and M.S. finished an ascent of the 700-foot
Machete Direct route on Machete Ridge just before dark on February 18th.  They
decided to rappel down the route in the dark rather than use the descent gully. 
Rocks broke away under C.C.'s feet, causing him to tumble over backwards.  He
slid down his rappel rope about 40 feet before his safety prussik arrested his
descent and he was able to reach a ledge.  His right knee was injured in the
fall.  M.S. rappelled down to him; they then doubled their ropes and rappelled
down a single line to the ground.  Rangers Andy Artz, Alan Cline, Paul Biddle,
John Portillo and park medic Gerry Reynolds stabilized C.C., then transported
him to the parking lot.  The pair left in their own vehicle and drove to
Salinas hospital for treatment.  Both climbers were very experienced.  C.C.
said he'd climbed El Capitan in Yosemite over 20 times.  Apparently they had
only one headlamp between them, though.  [Gerry Reynolds, Acting CR, PINN]

RESOURCE MANAGEMENT

Yellowstone (Wyoming) - Update on Wolf Reintroduction

On January 23rd, eleven gray wolves were brought to the park as part of
"Operation Wolfstock," part two of the effort to restore wolves to Yellowstone. 
Four days later, they were joined by another six wolves.  All the wolves will
spend about ten weeks in acclimation pens prior to being released into the
wild.  The wolves range in size from 72 to 130 pounds and are between nine
months and five years old.  Eleven are females, six are males.  They were
captured from at least six different Canadian packs and include wolves known to
have fed on bison, elk and deer.  The wolves were transported by airplane from
Canada along with 20 wolves destined for immediate release into the central
Idaho wilderness.  During the acclimation period, biologists will visit the
pens approximately twice weekly to feed road-killed ungulate meat to the wolves
and check on their welfare.  Other observations of the penned animals will be
extremely limited.  The wolves will be released in late March or early April,
prior to any denning activity that might occur among breeding pairs.  Since the
wolves released into the park last year have established territories on the
northern range, wolves now penned in Crystal Creek, Rose Creek and Blacktail
may be transported to other parts of the park for release.  ["Yellowstone Wolf
Tracker," YELL]

OPERATIONAL NOTES

No notes.

MEMORANDA

No memoranda.

OBSERVATIONS

It seems, as several readers noted, that there was a historical error in one of
the pair of entries in the February 21st "Observations."  Lt. Joseph Ives was
NOT the "first European to view the Grand Canyon."  According to the research
librarian at Grand Canyon, it was Garcia Lopez de Cardenas, who reached the
south rim somewhere between Desert View and Moran Point with a native guide in
1540.  Cardenas was part of the Coronado expedition, but Coronado didn't make
it to the canyon.  As far as we know, Cardenas' words went unrecorded.

But we do know what Carl Sandburg said about Indiana Dunes, because Dale
Engquist passed on this quote:

"I have known those dunes for more than 40 years and I give my blessing and
speak earnest prayers for those who are striving for this project.  Those dunes
are to the Midwest what the Grand Canyon is to Arizona and the Yosemite to
California.  They constitute a signature of time and eternity; once lost, the
loss would be irrevocable."

                            Poet Carl Sandburg in a letter to
                            Senator Paul Douglas (IL), 1958

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Prepared by the Division of Ranger Activities, WASO, with the cooperation and
support of Delaware Water Gap NRA.

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