Here are 8 stories from national parks across the country

From a ranger who died during a water rescue to a tourist caught off guard by grizzlies, these stories show what happens in national parks across the country.

Take a look at the stories below.

A trail camera captured two people swiping historical artifacts from a closed archeological site at Canyonlands National Park in Utah, park service officials said. Photo by Dann Petty via Unsplash

NO. 1: FRAGILE ARTIFACTS SWIPED FROM CLOSED AREA OF UTAH NATIONAL PARK, RANGERS SAY. ‘SAD’

“It’s really sad. Why do some people always want to destroy beautiful things?” | Published May 16, 2024 | Read Full Story by Brooke Baitinger

A tourist was seriously injured after he surprised two grizzlies on a hiking trail in Grand Teton National Park. Photo by Zdeněk Macháček via Unsplash

NO. 2: TOURIST SURPRISES GRIZZLY BEARS AND IS SERIOUSLY INJURED IN GRAND TETON, RANGERS SAY

One of the bears made contact with him and left him badly injured, officials said. | Published May 21, 2024 | Read Full Story by Brooke Baitinger

A tourist told others she was going to Death Valley National Park for “spiritual reasons,” then vanished and spent the night alone on a steep, unstable ridge. National Park Service photo

NO. 3: DEATH VALLEY TOURIST SPENDS NIGHT ALONE ON RIDGE AFTER WANDERING FROM GROUP, RANGERS SAY

She had tipped her tour guide at the start of the tour and told others she was there for “spiritual reasons.” Then she vanished. | Published May 23, 2024 | Read Full Story by Brooke Baitinger

Visitors are leaving gross discoveries in Yosemite National Park in California, photos show and rangers say. Yosemite National Park on Facebook

NO. 4: GROSS ‘SURPRISE’ SOILS ‘MAJESTIC WILDERNESS’ IN YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, PHOTO SHOWS

“That’s humans for you unfortunately.” | Published July 11, 2024 | Read Full Story by Brooke Baitinger

This photo shows the Colorado River, near mile marker 137 in the Grand Canyon National Park. A man was found dead in this area while on a river trip. E. Whittaker National Park Service

NO. 5: MAN FOUND DEAD IN GRAND CANYON NATIONAL PARK BY HIS RIVER TRIP GROUP, RANGERS SAY

At least 15 people have died at the national park so far this year, officials said. | Published September 10, 2024 | Read Full Story by Helena Wegner

A park ranger died after their boat capsized in a Minnesota lake, officials say. Getty Images/iStockphoto

NO. 6: PARK RANGER FALLS OUT OF BOAT AND DIES DURING WATER RESCUE, MINNESOTA OFFICIALS SAY

A family the park ranger was rescuing was able to swim to safety, officials said. | Published October 7, 2024 | Read Full Story by Mike Stunson

A pair of elusive apex predators were spotted prowling Yellowstone’s ridge line in an extremely rare sighting, stunning video shows. Screenshot of Yellowstone Insight's video on Facebook

NO. 7: APEX PREDATORS SPOTTED IN EXTREMELY RARE YELLOWSTONE SIGHTING. SEE ‘SPECIAL MOMENT’

“Amazing! When I first started visiting the park I was told that they were there but (were) like ghosts because even Rangers never saw them.” | Published February 5, 2025 | Read Full Story by Brooke Baitinger

A tourist received jail time after she ventured off the boardwalk and about 10 feet onto the cone of the Old Faithful geyser at Yellowstone National Park, federal officials said. Photo by Judy Beth Morris via Unsplash

NO. 8: TOURIST GOES TOO CLOSE TO YELLOWSTONE’S OLD FAITHFUL — AND GETS JAIL, FEDS SAY

“The number one priority is public safety, but natural resources are also important in places like Yellowstone National Park.” | Published April 9, 2025 | Read Full Story by Brooke Baitinger

The summary above was drafted with the help of AI tools and edited by journalists in our News division. All stories listed were reported, written and edited by McClatchy journalists.