Nat Geo Gives Us 20 National Park Leaders Under the Age of 30

As most everyone knows by now, last week the National Park Service celebrated its 100th anniversary. In the days since then, we've seen a lot of celebrations across the country, with thousands of people saluting the government agency tasked with protecting the parks while at the same time making them accessible to the public.

The celebration will continue throughout the rest of the year, but it is also a time to begin looking forward to the next century. There is still a lot of work to be done to ensure that the national parks will be around for future generations to enjoy as well. To that end, National Geographic has selected 20 scientists, filmmakers, activists, and educators who have dedicated their lives to protecting the parks, both in the U.S. and abroad. Oh yeah, and each of these men and women happen to be under the age of 30 as well.

Amongst those making the list are Ben Masters, a filmmaker and horseman who is working to protect wild mustangs. He's joined by Cassi Knight, an NPS scientist who is searching for dinosaur remains in Denali National Park, and Elizabeth and Cole Donelson who spent the past 12 months visiting all 59 U.S. national parks. Others include Jen Guyton, a scientists helping to protect animals from poachers in Mozambique, and cartographers Ross Donahue and Marty Schnure, who are mapping remote areas of Patagonia.

As you can see, this is a diverse and interesting group of individuals, each of which is playing a vital role to help promote national parks both at home in the U.S. and in other countries around the world. The concept of creating public lands that are set aside for future generations to enjoy too has been called "America's Best Idea," and these young men and women are helping to spread that idea further. Hopefully in another hundred years we'll be continuing to celebrate the National Park Service, and the effort that these individuals have made along the way.

Tomorrow is the Opening Day for Trails!

Need yet another excuse to get outside and hit a trail this weekend? Than let the Rails to Trails Conservancy provide one. The non-profit has declared Saturday, April 16 Opening Day for Trails in celebration of all of the great trails that are available to outdoor enthusiasts in the U.S.

The Rails to Trails Conservancy is an organization that is dedicated to taking unused railway corridors and converting them to trails for use by hikers, mountain bikers, trail runners, or anyone else is looking for a good place to enjoy nature. Their goal is to have 90% of all Americans living within 3 miles of a trail system by 2020. That's an ambitious, but noble goal for sure and one that I'm sure Adventure Blog readers can relate to.

For Opening Day for Trails there are over 140 free events taking place across the U.S. to celebrate the arrival of spring and our ability to hit the trail once again. Some of the great events on tap include organized bike rides, group hikes, bird watching excursions, and more. Events are scheduled in 25 states and the District of Columbia.

Of course, you don't have to attend one of these outings, as you can also just organize one for you and your friends locally too. The point is to head out on a trail and enjoy the benefits that those routes provide in terms of health and well being. But, if you head over to the Rails to Trails website and take the pledge to get outside, you can also be entered to win one of two Fuji bikes as well.

Seems like as good of a reason as any to get outside this weekend. Find out more at RailstoTrails.org.

Video: Nat Geo Tells Us Why it is so Hard to Catch Poachers

As the world's population of elephants and rhinos wanes dramatically, many countries across the globe have stepped up their efforts to combat poaching in Africa and elsewhere. This is a battle that has been raging for sometime however, and yet we continue to hear how poaching is having a dramatic impact on the number of these creatures that roam the wild. Why is it so hard to stop these illegal activities? In this video from National Geographic Live, Naftali Honig – founder of the EAGLE Network – tells us why it is so hard to bring these people to justice.

Comprehensive Elephant Census in Africa Brings Sobering News

As someone who has a deep, personal love for Africa and the amazing wildlife that lives there, this story was particularly sad to read. Yesterday, the results of a comprehensive census of the African elephant population were released, and the were sobering to say the least.

The study was conducted by an organization called the Great Elephant Census, which is backed by Microsoft co-founder Paul Alan's Vulcan organization. Using a method of arial data collection and surveillance, researchers have come to the stunning conclusion that there are now only 352,271 elephants left on the African continent. That population is spread out over 18 countries and is estimated to be down 30% in just 7 years. That's the equivalent of 144,000 elephants lost between 2007 and 2014.

According to the findings, the current elephant population loss is about 8% per year, with roughly 100 animals killed each and every day. Most of that is due to illegal poaching as the demand for ivory remains high in certain parts of the world, including Asia and even the United States. Measures have been taken recently to stem the sale of Ivory across the globe, but a thriving black market remains.

The 352,000 elephants counted in the census are believed to be at least 93% of the population that still exists in the 18 countries surveyed. That number could be higher, but it is difficult to track them completely precisely. Of those counted as part of this research study, 84% lived on protected lands, with the remaining population spotted outside preserves and national parks where they don't receive any kind of protection at all. That said, many carcasses were found inside those protected regions as poachers ignore laws and cross boundaries to seek their prey.

As you can imagine, with such a massive drop in numbers over the past decade, the possible extinction of the wild elephants in Africa is a real possibility within our lifetimes. Having seen these magnificent creatures up close and personal both on foot and from a vehicle, I can't imagine them not being a part of the wild landscape on that continent. But, if poaching continues at its current rate, they may be completely gone in as little as 20 years. When you consider that at one point, there were more than 20 million elephants in Africa, you begin to get some perspective about just how decimated the population is there.

Sad news for conservationists for sure. Lets hope we can turn this trend around in the near future.