Lewis and Clark Trail in 2022: a wildlife walk, a NASA tie and a tribal archive

A stuffed toy of Meriwether Lewis's Newfoundland dog, Seaman Junior, traveled into space in 2018 through a partnership between the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail and NASA. That partnership is one of the items in the trail's 2022 annual report, in which the National Park Service looked back at its projects and collaborations.

Map of the National Trails System. Image from the National Park Service's page.

What the trail did in 2022

• National trails partnership. The National Trails System includes more than 55,000 miles of National Scenic and Historic Trails that connect the public to culture, history and nature. The trail's superintendent and an interpretive specialist attended the Partnership for the National Trails System annual conference, and the interpretive specialist presented with staff from the National Trails Office.
• Missouri River Wildlife Walk. The trail continued a partnership with a local photographer and sites along the Missouri River for this temporary summer outdoor exhibit about the river's animals. Big sidewalk stickers carry detailed close-up wildlife photographs and an interactive challenge for kids: stretch out your arms and see whether your wingspan matches a bald eagle's.
• NASA and the Earth to Sky Academy. The trail's volunteer and partnerships specialist coordinated the NASA partnership that sent Seaman Junior to space, and in 2022 the specialist met NASA and Park Service professionals at the Earth to Sky Academy meeting, a group that works on bringing NASA science to Park Service interpreters. The specialist is coordinating a group to document and interpret climate change along the trail.
• Railroads and Native America gathering. The superintendent served on the planning committee for the 2022 Railroads and Native America gathering in Ogden, Utah, on May 19 to 21. More than 25 presentations representing 10 federally recognized Tribes were featured, in a gathering meant to inspire conversations about the historical effects of railroads on Indigenous communities.
• A new visitor center manager. A new manager joined to oversee the trail headquarters visitor center in Omaha, Nebraska.
• LC Tribal Legacy website. Staff finished updating this site, which gives access to a broad selection of presentations from the Tent of Many Voices, a performance venue of the Lewis and Clark Bicentennial from 2003 to 2006. The archive preserves and shares talks by American Indian elders, scholars, historians and community members, and the update improved usability and navigation and added captions and audio descriptions.

Sources

• National Park Service, Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail, Lewis and Clark Trail Updates 2022, from the Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail 2022 Annual Report; rewritten in hubnx's own words, with staff names and photos left out.