The red rock canyons of Utah are some of the most iconic landscapes in the National Park System. In the Needles district of Canyonlands National Park, red and orange sandstone spires create a dramatic landscape remote from the luxuries of society. The silence and darkness are a stark contrast to the urban environments most of us are used to today.
On this episode of Podcasts with Park Rangers we explore the purpose of interpretive park rangers, cowboys in the desert, and what life is like as a Ranger living in the Canyonlands.

Show Notes found at: https://www.virtualkamper.com/pwpr7/

Podcast Resources:

* Canyonlands NPS website
* Patreon – We hope you love Podcasts with Park Rangers as much as we love working on this passion project! Consider joining our Patreon where we host exclusive content for our Patrons!
* Tales of Canyonlands Cowboys – Richard Negri
* Western Soundscape Archive – Canyon Wren

Topics Covered

* About Ranger Shannan
* Purpose of Interpretive Rangers
* About Canyonlands
* What Draws People to Canyonlands?
* Canyonlands Activities
* Cryptobiotic Soil Crust
* About the Needles District
* How are the Needles Formed?
* Unique Aspects of Being a Ranger In Canyonlands
* Canyonlands Cultural History
* Ranger Shannan’s Love for the Canyonlands and the National Parks
* Canyonlands Volunteer Efforts
* Thanks to Our Listeners – Let’s Connect More!
* Disclosure

About Ranger Shannan
Ranger Shannan Marcak has been the lead interpretive park ranger at the Canyonlands Needles district for 5 years, and with the NPS since 2000. However, she’s been working in National Parks since 1988 when she worked in hotels at Yellowstone.
Working in hospitality, she only served part of the park’s mission: the enjoyment of the people. She also wanted to protect the places she worked, and thus became a park ranger. That delicate balance between enjoyment and protection is what she strives for in her work today.
The moment she knew she wanted to become a park ranger was in a temporary position in Yellowstone when she gave a talk called “Geology Rocks”. A kid and his grandfather attended the talk, and the kiddo said that while his grandpa forced him into attending the talk, he found that geology really does rock! That kind of connection with kids is something Shannan still seeks in her interpretive talks today.
Purpose of Interpretive Rangers
With a world of people becoming more disconnected from natural landscapes as new technologies emerge, interpretive rangers have been asked to step up. The way we communicate has changed, and thus how we connect with the environment must change as well.
Sometimes people have a hard time understanding what’s special about a natural landscape. Or, at cultural and historic sites, people might not connect with the history. The job of an interpretive ranger is to interpret the places or history of the park they’re locat...