All of our lives have ebbs and flows, and therefore a passion-project website created by someone in his free time has them as well. Since I’ve really committed to spending time on updating NPMaps, I’ve moved multiple times, got married, and had a baby. So understandably my attention has waned a bit.

But in recent weeks I’ve been back on the case, fixing broken links, correcting formatting errors, and replacing out-of-date maps with new versions. There’s so much more to do — I’m not smart enough to figure out how to automate this website so I had to update every page, word, and map individually — but it’s a good first step. Please let me know if you see any glaring issues that need fixing for me to prioritize first using the Contact form here.

I hope everyone is having a safe and healthy summer! With no opportunity to go on international trips, it’s a great time for Americans to stay local and visit their nearby parks.  (International visitors: we’ll see you next year.)

I’ve been updating pages with new map upgrades, adding a few dozen within the last week, with many more to come. I have to say, the National Park Service is getting better and better at publishing visually-pleasing and interesting maps. Take a look at some of the recent map edition updates:

Compare the new Lassen Volcanic National Park brochure map on the left with the old one here. I love the trail mileages and topography; what a difference! View the rest of the maps on the Lassen Volcanic maps page.

We see the same upgrades to the Theodore Roosevelt National Park brochure maps. To the left is the new South Unit map, and here’s the old one. See other updates on the Theodore Roosevelt maps page.

Even the grand ol’ parks like Yellowstone got facelifts! The new map is on the left and the old one is here.  Great job by the NPS maps team! View the rest of them on the Yellowstone maps page.

And at long last, I’ve finally got a new map of all national parks uploaded as well. This one is current as of today, featuring all 419 units.

Those are just a few examples of the many behind-the-scenes map upgrades I’ve made to this site. More to come later! And yes, I will eventually get around to creating some new pages as well — Gateway Arch National Park is feeling left out, I’m sure…

I realize this is my first posting in quite a while, but have no fear — the site isn’t dead! As life has gotten busy, I’ve been more in “maintenance mode,” updating pages with current maps rather than creating new pages. I realize I’m a little behind, as we have two new national parks since my last update: Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore is now Indiana Dunes National Park, and Jefferson Expansion National Memorial is now Gateway Arch National Park. Stay tuned!

What I’m especially pleased with is that I can finally remove this note I’ve had on the Yosemite maps page for over three years:

Please note: starting March 2016, the National Park Service renamed some locations in the park pending the settlement of a trademark lawsuit. This page and these maps continue to refer to the traditional names, as the site author has faith that the name change will only be temporary.

The court case has now been settled, so we are seeing the return of the classic place names such as Badger Pass, Curry Village, The Ahwahnee, etc. My Yosemite maps are once again accurate!

Thanks to all those who have written in with kind words over the years. It’s nice getting an affirmation every once in a while that people are finding this site useful. Thanks, and you’re welcome!

I hope everyone’s summer has gotten off to a great start full of some grand national park adventures! Personally I’ve paid visits to Canyonlands, Arches, and Rocky Mountain national parks over the last couple months, but sadly got snowed out of a recent trip to Colorado National Monument. So I’ve been busy, but got a chance to create a handful of new pages for you as I’ve crossed the 1,700 map threshold:

Montezuma Castle Maps. Ever been to Montezuma Castle National Monument? This small park is just off I-17 between Flagstaff and Phoenix and makes a nice stop-off if you’ve never been.

Pearl Harbor Maps. Technically this park is called World War II Valor in the Pacific National Monument… but that’s just too much. I called the page Pearl Harbor Maps instead and added 12 maps for now.

Canaveral Maps. No, these aren’t maps of the really famous stuff at Cape Canaveral, like Kennedy Space Center. This page instead features 7 maps of nearby Canaveral National Seashore.

Fossil Butte Maps. Fossil Butte National Monument is one of the quietest parks I’ve ever personally visited, located in a pretty empty stretch of Wyoming near the industrial town of Kemmerer. Here are 9 maps to start.

Washita Battlefield Maps. Finally: my first page featuring an Oklahoma park! Washita Battlefield National Historic Site preserves a small piece of the sad history of American troops warring with tribes.

Cumberland Island Maps. It can be difficult to get a wilderness experience on the east coast, but Cumberland Island National Seashore preserves pristine coastline that was once threatened with development.

Padre Island Maps. This should not be confused with South Padre Island! Although they’re nearby, Padre Island National Seashore has a slightly different visitor experience than the parties you’ll find on South Padre.

Since my last update, I’ve added another five parks to this site. But before I introduce those pages as I traditionally do in these updates, I wanted to instead share with you a couple non-map pages I’ve created. The first is Operation: Thank A Ranger.

OK, maybe that’s a silly name. Whatever. I created this new page after receiving an email last week from a site visitor that included the following:

My fellow co-workers and I are concerned about the future of our national parks — specifically regarding their funding and land protection. We are finding ways/places to donate both our time and money to help preserve and support — do you have any favorites or suggestions?

I pondered on this for a while, trying to avoid responding with the traditional “volunteer for x, support organization y.” Eventually I came up with what I thought was a nice idea, replied to the email, and went on about my life.

But I soon realized my idea would work much better if a critical mass was reached. I wanted to share my idea with others, so I got to work, spent hours organizing and compiling links, and put together my new Thank A Ranger page. Check it out! I won’t repeat that whole page here, but the gist is that I’d love it if we could show our support to park employees by writing them letters of support and appreciation — helpful reminders for those dealing with record crowds and questions about the future of their agency.

On the Thank a Ranger page you’ll find links to the contact information of every national park, sorted by state. In case you’d rather see a full list of parks alphabetically, I also created the Contact A Park page. This page should be super-helpful for those of you want to have official brochures and maps sent to your home, as parks will generally send those upon request. Keep these two pages handy and you’ll be able to get your trips planned faster.

OK, enough blabbing — what new pages have I created?

Flight 93 Maps. Did you even know Flight 93 National Memorial existed? As you can imagine, it’s one of our newer national park units, and the only one related to the tragic events of September 11, 2001.

Natural Bridges Maps. If you’re looking for dark night skies, Natural Bridges National Monument may be your best bet as the first International Dark Sky Park.

San Antonio Missions Maps. I’ve finally got so many large natural park pages uploaded that I get to spend time working on historical parks! Stay tuned for a much larger percentage of them from here on out.

C&O Canal Maps. Like this one. Although many visitors go to the C&O Canal for running, biking, and outdoor activities, the park actually protects the historic canal and towpath, so important in the 1800s.

Rock Creek Park Maps. And I always have a soft spot in my heart for urban parks such as Rock Creek. Not everyone can afford to travel to large western parks; here, the rangers can come to them.

That’s it for this update! As a reminder, you can keep abreast with the latest updates here by following me on Facebook or on Twitter.