Tag: national park

Visitors came out in droves to celebrate Pinnacles upgrade from a national monument to a park on Feb. 11. Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar visited the park from Washington, D.C. to speak on the momentous occasion. Hear from Mark Paxton, the interim executive director of the Pinnacles Partnership, and Timothy Babalis, a National Park Service, historian.

Secretary of Interior Ken Salazar said the National Park Service is striving to become a place that is more inclusive and the redesignation ceremony Monday surely reflected that effort.

While San Benito County officials prepare for an influx of visitors for the Pinnacles National Park redesignation ceremony on Feb. 11 at the east entrance visitors center, officials in a community along the west entrance are making plans to promote their own community as a Gateway to the new national park.

The Department of Interior began circulating invitations Monday for a ceremony to redesignate Pinnacles National Monument as a National Park on Feb. 11 at the Pinnacles National Park Visitors Center on the east side of the park.

Pinnacles National Park has a partial advisory in place in areas of the park where birds of prey are nesting. In January, park staff instituted a partial advisory in an area where a prairie falcon pair is nesting. Climbs are still open on Discovery Wall. The advisory will remain through June or July. Guests are encouraged to check with a ranger or to check the climbing information bulletin board as they plan for climbing or hikes.

President Barack Obama signed a bill to make Pinnacles National Monument the newest national park Thursday morning.

After months of working its way through the House of Representatives and into the Senate, a bill to make Pinnacles National Monument into a national park was approved this week and awaits the signature of President Barack Obama to make it official.

The House of Representatives today passed Congressman Sam Farr’s (D-Carmel) bill to elevate the 26,000 acres of Pinnacles National Monument to a National Park. The bipartisan bill, H.R. 3641, the Pinnacles National Park Act, co-sponsored by Rep. Jeff Denham (R-CA), recognizes and preserves the diverse ecosystems, geology and cultural history of the area by conferring National Park status. Additionally, the bill renames the Pinnacles Wilderness as the Hain Wilderness.

San Benito County Supervisor Jerry Muenzer said his short time in Washington, D.C. last week to testify before a legislative subcommittee on the benefits of making Pinnacles National Monument a national park was “very worthwhile.”

The San Benito County board of supervisors added an emergency item to the agenda Tuesday to approve out-of-state travel for Supervisor Jerry Muenzer.