Via California - May/June 2020 - 15

Q What's your favorite NPS
Instagram post?
A The horse with great hair
[right, from Apr. 2020] at
Assateague Island National
Seashore in Maryland was
fun. I also enjoyed putting
together a safety post over
the holidays that dealt with
taking safe selfies and watching
wildlife. [In the Dec. 2019 post,
gingerbread bison topple a
gingerbread man with a camera.]
Lots of cookies, maybe a pan
or two, were harmed in the
making of the post. But-
the things you do for social
media, right?
Q In February, you offered to
match anyone's personality
to a park if they provided their
favorite animal, hiking level,
and a personality trait selection.
How did you pull this off?
A We're always looking for ways
to engage followers. This was an
idea to get people thinking about
parks, and maybe introduce them
to a new park or two. I tried hard
to respond to as many comments
as possible. The comments numbered
over 7,000, so I probably
missed a few. I apologize to everyone
who is still waiting for their
park match! There did seem to be
quite a few " neurotic marmots "
and " ambitious moose " out there.
Watch out the next time you're in
Yellowstone or Grand Teton.
Q How do you balance humor
and more serious messaging-
especially when we were dealing
with a global pandemic?
A Of all our accounts, Instagram
tends to be the most lighthearted.
But across the platforms, it's
about holding that fine line of
government agency pushing out
important messages and educating
people as we welcome them.
The humor is often used to draw
people in. But beyond the funny,
there is usually a safety message,
a deeper dive into park resources
or policy, or a fun fact.
Q When you're posting, how
aware are you of the parks'
opportunity to lift people's
spirits and offer a visual escape?
A Sometimes just posting an
image of a beautiful mountain
vista or a short clip of a waterfall
can bring a moment of escape
or serenity. By sharing on social
media, we're part of a community
of park supporters. We share trip
ideas, exchange favorite memories,
and connect over funny park
experiences. Our accounts are
meant to be a place where everyone
can come together and share
their love of parks and take a virtual
trip all over the country.
Q Do you have a favorite park in
the West?
A Grand Canyon gets a lot of
the glory, but I've also enjoyed
exploring Arizona's other parks
[and monuments], like Saguaro,
Tonto, and Tuzigoot. Also, Idaho's
Craters of the Moon offers a
unique and unexpected landscape
to explore.
Q What are your favorite bits of
park trivia?
A There are some big parks out
West! Alaska's Wrangell-St. Elias
National Park and Preserve is the
largest national park in the country.
Covering 13.2 million acres,
it's bigger than Vermont and New
Hampshire combined. At 3.4 million
acres, California's Death
Valley National Park is the largest
park in the lower 48. It's also
the hottest, driest, and lowest
place in the United States-so
bring water!
Q What happened in the parks
while humans were mostly away?
A Nature carries on as it always
has. Some parks, like Yosemite,
have shared videos showing the
ongoing transition from winter into
spring with wildlife going about
their business, exploring oncebusy
park roads. On a related
note: Wildlife petting incidents
are way down. -leeanne jones
Visit AAA.com/virtualparks to experience
some of the West's national parks from
the comfort of your home.
AAA | VIA 15
COURTESY NATIONAL PARK SERVICE (2)
http://www.AAA.com/virtualparks
Via California - May/June 2020

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