The Green and Gray Retort, Volume I, Issue 6

Dec 31

Welcome back for a winter edition of the Green and Gray Retort, the official newsletter of the Resistance Rangers. In this edition, we catch up on fall & winter happenings. As always: come for the real stories unfolding on our public lands; stay for the adorable animals, a healthy amount of snark, and heartwarming personal anecdotes.

In Memoriam

Betty Reid Soskin passed away on December 21, 2025. We celebrate her life and impact through our continued work to ensure that the contributions of often marginalized people are not forgotten.

Gratitude and Thanks

We hope that every reader had a happy and healthy holiday season. In what has been a trying year, finding silver linings can be difficult. That said, Resistance Rangers are most grateful for the community we have built here: a coalition of everyone from parkgoers to employees, who are standing together when the land and its stewards need it most. We are so appreciative of your support of public lands. We are also thankful that illegal firings were reversed, for the public outcry that prevented the stripping of protections of National Park sites, and for temporary layoff protections.

We look forward to brighter days to come, with a Park Service that better serves our nation and everyone who calls it home.

Passed Out?

On November 25th, following up on a prior Executive Order, DOI announced concepts of a plan to change the cost of the annual “America the Beautiful Pass” (officially known as the Interagency Annual Pass) for foreign tourists only from $80 to $250. In addition, international visitors who do not purchase the pass will be required to pay an additional $100 on top of the entrance fee for 11 of the most popular parks in the country:

Fee Free Days will no longer apply to international tourists as of January 1, 2026. In addition, the list of Fee Free Days has changed. See below:

2025

1/9 - Passing of President Jimmy Carter (National Day of Mourning)
1/20 - Martin Luther King Jr. Day
4/19 - Opening day of National Park Week
6/19 - Juneteenth
8/4 - Great American Outdoors Day
9/27 - National Public Lands Day
11/11 - Veteran’s Day

2026

2/16 - President’s Day
5/31 - Memorial Day
6/14 - Trump’s Birthday/Flag Day
7/3-7/5 - July 4th Weekend
8/25 - 110th Anniversary of the NPS
9/17 - Constitution Day
10/27 - Teddy Roosevelt’s Birthday
11/11 - Veteran’s Day

Heck yes we have thoughts! Besides some ~interesting~ choices when it comes to certain Fee Free Days, this could only worsen the lines at our busiest parks. Parks have exploded in popularity in recent years, and hour-long lines to enter popular parks are not uncommon. Some of our lowest paid staff, our fee teams, will now need to ask for and verify residency for every vehicle entering these 11 parks. If a more “efficient” experience is the goal, this ain’t it!

Another item of note: digital park passes will be fully phased in on January 1, 2026. As we move into the digital era, here are two pro tips to plan like a ranger:

1 - If you want both a physical pass and a digital pass, there are 2 ways to achieve this on the same pass number: by clicking the option to have a physical pass mailed to you when ordered the digital version on recreation.gov, or by purchasing the physical pass first and then uploading it to your rec.gov account.

2 - Please put your digital pass in your phone’s wallet if you are going to a park where you may be without cell signal; otherwise, you may not be able to access your pass on rec.gov!

No One is Pleased When We All Get 3’s

It is legally required to review the performance of all federal workers at least once per year. 2025 was an odd year. For starters, the rating period was significantly reduced. And - the usually highly-specific and measurable rating categories which individuals are rated against were changed in many cases from multiple elements (which encompassed the myriad requirements of a successful employee) into one or two vague or broad categories. To add insult to injury, in mid-December supervisors were told that they were to limit the amount of employees who received anything above the ‘average’ rating (a 3 out of 5). Only 1-5% MAXIMUM were to receive a 4 or a 5 rating. In an agency filled with mission-driven people who frequently go above and beyond their paygrades in quality and quantity of work, this was an especially egregious blow to receive just before the holiday. With nearly a quarter of positions in the NPS vacant, and many employees picking up that slack, completely ignoring their hard work during a stressful year may feel like a slap in the face.

Open For Business

On November 12th, the longest shutdown of the federal government in United States history (43 days!) ended when both chambers of Congress and the president signed a Continuing Resolution (CR) bill to fund the government at current spending levels through January 30, 2026. That evening, NPS employees received a message stating that they were recalled to duty immediately, beginning on November 13th or their next scheduled workday.

During the shutdown, as the largest parks remained open, public lands were impacted in ways that are still unfolding. Certain events made the news: a 72-acre fire caused by burning toilet paper in Joshua Tree, graffiti in Arches, and out-of-bounds camping and BASE jumping in Yosemite.

Cast A-RIF’ed…in 2026(?)

Tucked into the list of provisions in the CR is that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is prevented from enacting the mass layoffs throughout the federal government previously planned. These layoffs, which include the National Park Service, have been discussed in almost every edition since we started, and we are grateful for a respite, albeit a brief one. These protections expire as soon as the continuing resolution expires on January 30th.

Of Freezes and Facades

According to a leaked memo addressed to Regional Directors from the Office of Human Capital,

“The Department of the Interior’s Personnel Action Freeze has been officially lifted, allowing previously paused personnel actions to proceed…While Interior’s freeze has been lifted, certain personnel actions continue to require NPS leadership approval, and ongoing hiring controls mandated by OPM and the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) remain in effect. Moreover, some positions and actions continue to be subject to the government-wide hiring freeze, which limits the ability to initiate new hires or fill certain vacancies.”

Clear as mud, right? A translation: the NPS is still unable to fill most vacancies.

On the Air!

Resistance Rangers on the Air will be back spitting truths and fighting the good fight in the new year- stay tuned for our upcoming episodes. Currently in the works is a deep dive into the effects this year has had on our Indigenous partners, more about how the DOI is trying to censor history and science at our parks, and a special episode that asks: Why We Ranger?

National Snark Service

In November, employees who were fired in the Valentine’s Day Massacre (the illegal firing of probationary employees), received a follow-up. In March, the firings were deemed illegal. A mere 9 months after their lives were uprooted in an instant, those who were able to return to service finally received an “apology” in the form of an official letter:

“As required by Paragraph 5 of the district court’s order, U.S. Department of the Interior informs

you that you were not terminated on the basis of your personal performance.”

Northern California’s Lava Beds National Monument

433 Spotlight

We head to California to spotlight a park that just put 100 candles on the cake! With so many iconic parks in the state, Lava Beds National Monument might slip under the radar - but it deserves its day in the spotlight! In the very rural, northern edge of the state lies this gem of a park, which combines natural splendor with thousands of years of human history.

This area is the traditional homeland of the Modoc people. After living in the area for generations, they were displaced during the settlement of the West and forcibly removed to a reservation in Oregon. A small group of Tribe members held out and fought to defend their ancestral home, leading to a bloody, months-long conflict in 1872 and 1873.

Miller and caver J.D. Howard was instrumental in mapping the land and the series of caves beneath, successfully popularizing the area and helping it achieve National Monument status in 1925.

A network of 24 explorable caves (with free permits!) make this a spelunker’s paradise. Above ground, day-use and overnight hiking are possible on the lava beds. The park’s climate allows bats to thrive, with over 16 species known to be in the park. As for the lava beds themselves, the park is located on the largest volcano in the Cascade Range, which most recently erupted roughly 950 years ago. Eruptions such as this led to a unique and beautiful landscape, with geological diversity and stunning landforms resulting from volcanic activity.

A note on future issues:

Have a cool story you want highlighted here? Want to showcase that once-in-a-lifetime pic you captured at a park recently? Have some insight, reflection, or idea that you feel is worth sharing to the Resistance? What are you waiting for?! Reach out to us, and we may just include your submission in future editions!

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In solidarity - and for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations,

Resistance Rangers

Retort

Resistance Rangers