Hosted by two friends who share a passion for public lands and a fascination with what can go wrong there, each week hosts Danielle and Cassie explore the darker side of our National Parks. But it isn’t always chills and thrills. By sharing inspiring tales and their desire for protecting our planet’s wild places, they hope listeners will be inspired to take a walk into the wild and create meaningful adventures of their own.
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In today’s long awaited collaboration, we team up with Kaelyn Moore of the podcast Heart Starts Pounding. Kaelyn covers all sorts of creepy, strange and unexplainable topics from around the world on her show, but today we all dive into the Reddit world (which is scary in and of itself) to bring you some tales of scary and strange happenings from where we know best ... the forest. For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our socials at: I...
This episode delves into the mysterious disappearance of British explorer Percy Fawcett, his son Jack, and Jack's friend Raleigh Rimmel, who vanished in the Amazon in 1925 during a quest for the legendary Lost City of Z. It explores Fawcett's life, his expeditions, and the growing obsession that fueled his final, fateful journey into Xingu National Park. The narrative also examines the decades of failed search parties, various theories surrounding their fate, and the critical questions raised about the ethics of exploration, indigenous land rights, and the true meaning of "discovery."
Today’s stories include lightning drama, peeing with friends, and choosing the bear. Outsiders Only bonus stories available for Patreon and Apple Subscribers! Listen to Watch Her Cook on Apple and Spotify ! Follow us on Instagram For a full list of our sources, visit npadpodcast.com/episodes For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our socials at: Instagram: @nationalparkafterdark TikTok: @nationalparkafterdark Support the show by becomi...
Today marks the NPS’s 109th birthday! In celebration (?) we pulled a few less than enthusiastic 1 star reviews of some of our favorite places. A few are straight up silly, some are maddening and others prove that just because National Parks are for everyone, not everyone are for National Parks. All reviews found on Yelp For a full list of our sources, visit http://npadpodcast.com/episodes For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our soci...
This episode recounts the tragic murder of Tomomi Hanamure, a Japanese woman deeply drawn to the American West, who was killed while hiking to Havasu Falls in the Grand Canyon on her 34th birthday. It delves into her life, passion for travel, and the challenges faced by investigators and the Havasupai tribe due to historical distrust, culminating in the arrest and conviction of local teenager Randy Weskogame for the brutal crime. The narrative emphasizes honoring Tomomi's vibrant life over the details of her death.
Today’s stories include traumatizing children, urns in odd places and a day of the grizzlies. Outsiders Only bonus stories available for Patreon and Apple Subscribers! Listen to Watch Her Cook on Apple and Spotify ! Follow us on Instagram For a full list of our sources, visit npadpodcast.com/episodes For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our socials at: Instagram: @nationalparkafterdark TikTok: @nationalparkafterdark Support the show ...
She’s been called the wildest woman in America—and with good reason. Carol Ruckdeschel has wrestled alligators, dissected roadkill in the name of science, and lived off the grid in the wilderness she vowed to defend. But behind the sensational headlines is a sharp, fearless conservationist whose tireless efforts helped protect one of the last truly wild places in the Southeast: Cumberland Island National Seashore. Taking on powerful families and even the National Park Service, Carol waged a rele...
Today’s episode is a collaboration a long time coming! Our friends Josh and Austin of the Lights Out podcast hosted us in their studio during a recent trip to Denver to discuss the extremely disturbing case of Robert Hansen aka The Butcher Baker. Listen to Lights Out wherever you listen to your favorite shows! For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our socials at: Instagram: @ nationalparkafterdark TikTok: @ nationalparkafterdark Sup...
Today’s stories include getting schmacked, stinky ghosts, victorian asylums, salty situations and rescues from beyond the grave. Outsiders Only bonus stories available for Patreon and Apple Subscribers! Listen to Watch Her Cook on Apple and Spotify ! Follow us on Instagram For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our socials at: Instagram: @nationalparkafterdark Twitter/X: @npadpodcast TikTok: @nationalparkafterdark Support the show by b...
Val Plumwood was an Australian philosopher, environmental activist and crocodile attack survivor. During a 1985 trip to Kakadu National park, Val was attacked repeatedly by a crocodile but miraculously survived. The experience completely reshaped her life and her perspective of her role within it. For a full list of our sources, visit npadpodcast.com/episodes For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our socials at: Instagram: @ national...
This week NPAD is on vacation, but as a special treat, we wanted to share an episode of our other podcast, Watch Her Cook, with you. This episode has a few surprising NPAD tie ins, and we are so excited to share it with you all. We will be back to our regularly scheduled National Parks programing next week! - Cassie and Danielle What began as a vivid dream on a stormy night during the “Year Without a Summer,” after a round of German ghost stories by the fire, would go on to spark the birth of sc...
In today’s exciting crossover episode we are joined by Aaron Habel from the Generation Why Podcast. We recap four of our most memorable NPAD true crime and mysterious disappearance cases, provide some updates and discuss what makes them so intriguing. Aaron also brings us a story we have never covered that remains one of the most puzzling cases to ever come out of Yosemite. Listen and follow Generation Why wherever you get your podcasts! Listen to Watch Her Cook on Apple and Spotify ! Follow us ...
This episode recounts the horrific 1889 Johnstown Flood, a man-made tragedy disguised as an "act of God," where a poorly maintained dam owned by wealthy industrialists collapsed after heavy rains, unleashing 20 million tons of water and debris. It details the flood's devastating path, the obliteration of towns, and the thousands of lives lost, including the heartbreaking story of Anne Fenn Maxwell. The narrative also highlights the crucial role of Clara Barton and the nascent American Red Cross in organizing relief amidst chaos, and the frustrating lack of accountability for those responsible.
Come for the animal stories, stay for the giggles. T&C and NPAD are reunited for another collab episode! Listen to Tooth & Claw: True Stories of Animal Attacks here , snag some fun merch here , and keep an eye on their upcoming trips here ! For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our socials at: Instagram: @nationalparkafterdark TikTok: @nationalparkafterdark Support the show by becoming an Outsider and receive ad free listening...
Today’s stories include small town legends, embarrassing young canoodling, haunted cheese factories, Hidebehinds and visits from the great beyond. Outsiders Only bonus stories available for Patreon and Apple Subscribers! Listen to Watch Her Cook on Apple and Spotify ! Follow us on Instagram For a full list of our sources, visit npadpodcast.com/episodes For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our socials at: Instagram: @nationalparkafter...
George and Joy Adamson lived for lions. After raising a cub they named Elsa and telling the world about it, they were catapulted into the center of conservation and controversy. Their methods were questioned, but their love for the wild was not. While they were both murdered, their legacy remains alive in Africa and beyond. Grab some Merch ! Listen to Watch Her Cook on Apple and Spotify ! Follow us on Instagram For a full list of our sources, visit npadpodcast.com/episodes For the latest NPAD up...
Atlas Obscura began as a website and global community to catalog and celebrate the world's unusual and obscure places, stories and foods. Since 2009, it has expanded to include six books, group adventures around the world, a Youtube Series and a podcast! Today, we have the immense pleasure of speaking with Dylan Thuras, co-founder of Atlas Obscura to talk all things weird and wonderful. Atlas Obscura Podcast: Listen Here Danielle’s AO Profile Listen to Watch Her Cook on Apple and Spotify ! Follo...
Today’s stories include debunking aliens, an outdoorsy Maya Rudolph, Hot Springs love, spooky family lore and horny birds. Outsiders Only bonus stories available for Patreon and Apple Subscribers! WE HAVE NEW MERCH! Listen to Watch Her Cook on Apple and Spotify ! Follow us on Instagram For a full list of our sources, visit npadpodcast.com/episodes For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our socials at: Instagram: @nationalparkafterdark ...
Today we are joined by the founder of LGBTQ Outdoors, Justin Yoder, as we recount the story of Marsha P. Johnson and the Stonewall Uprising. In the early hours of June 28, 1969, a police raid on the Stonewall Inn ignited a rebellion that would change history. The Stonewall Uprising became the catalyst to a nationwide LGBTQ rights movement. At the heart of this moment was Marsha P. Johnson, a Black trans activist, drag queen, and revolutionary who became a symbol of resilience and joy in the face...
In the 1970s Shirley Dougherty moved to Harpers Ferry West Virginia and started experiencing strange occurrences. And she wasn’t alone. Residents were quick to tell her their own encounters with the paranormal, and she eventually complied them into a book - a text that became the foundation of what she claims to be America’s’ oldest ghost tour. Today Danielle brings us on a tour of our own through one of the country’s most spooky locations. For a full list of our sources, visit npadpodcast.com/e...
Today’s stories include women in STEM, chirping mountain lions, cabin guardians, simultaneous hauntings, family lore and dead dad signs. Outsiders Only bonus stories available for Patreon and Apple Subscribers! Listen to Watch Her Cook on Apple and Spotify ! Follow us on Instagram For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our socials at: Instagram: @nationalparkafterdark Twitter/X: @npadpodcast TikTok: @nationalparkafterdark Support the s...
This episode delves into the 1961 abduction of Betty and Barney Hill, an interracial couple whose traumatic encounter in New Hampshire's White Mountains became the blueprint for alien abduction stories. Through hypnosis, they recounted detailed, consistent memories of being examined by humanoid figures aboard a craft, revealing unprecedented details like gray aliens and telepathic communication. Despite skepticism, their sincerity, the physical evidence, and the story's influence on pop culture solidify its place as one of the most credible and foundational UFO accounts.
In the summer of 2021, the world was captivated by the story of Gabby Petito, a young woman who went missing and was later found murdered in Wyoming. While her story is heartbreaking, the widespread media coverage concerning her case revealed something equally disturbing - the disproportionate attention to cases of missing young, conventionally attractive white women, compared to cases involving missing people of color, particularly those of Indigenous women. In honor of Missing and Murdered Ind...
Today’s stories include life saving coolers, Fyre festival honeymoons, ripples in the space/time continuum, laughing lights, weird guys in the woods and a wilderness medicine origin story. Outsiders Only bonus stories available for Patreon and Apple Subscribers! Listen to Watch Her Cook on Apple and Spotify ! Follow us on Instagram For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our socials at: Instagram: @nationalparkafterdark Twitter/X: @npad...
In the winter of 1997 a man-eating tiger terrorized a remote village in the Russian Far East. This wasn’t a defensive attack — the tiger was hunting specific humans, with eerie patience and purpose. What followed is one of the most chilling wildlife stories ever documented. For a full list of our sources, visit npadpodcast.com/episodes Listen to Watch Her Cook on Apple and Spotify ! Follow us on Instagram For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast...
On October 11th, 1923 deep in Tunnel 13 high in the Siskiyou mountains of Oregon, four men were killed in a train robbery gone wrong. The trio responsible had planned the crime and dreamed of stealing their way to a life of riches but made a series of fatal mistakes that would haunt them forever. What has gone down in Pacific Northwest history as “the last great American train robbery” is also recognized as the birth of modern American forensic criminology. For a full list of our sources, visit ...
Today’s stories include lighting strikes, protective birbs, family lore, finding yourself, poor planning and a strangely large amount of pet psychics. Outsiders Only bonus stories available for Patreon and Apple Subscribers! Listen to Watch Her Cook on Apple and Spotify ! Follow us on Instagram For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our socials at: Instagram: @nationalparkafterdark Twitter/X: @npadpodcast TikTok: @nationalparkafterdark...
This episode recounts the harrowing 1910 Wellington avalanche, the deadliest in U.S. history, where two Great Northern Railway trains were stranded for days in Washington's Cascade Mountains before being swept away. It delves into the events leading up to the disaster, including severe weather, questionable decisions by railway management like Superintendent O'Neill, and the tragic experiences of passengers. The episode also explores the aftermath, the coroner's inquest that debated human fault versus natural disaster, and the lasting legacy of the ghost town of Wellington.
Explore the complex story of Grant Hadwin, a passionate logger turned environmental activist, who felled the ancient and sacred Golden Spruce, K'iid K'yaas, belonging to the Haida Nation. Driven by a deep love for forests and a growing frustration with unsustainable logging, Hadwin's radical act was a desperate attempt to ignite change. The episode examines the tree's significance to the Haida people, Hadwin's mental health struggles, and the enduring mystery surrounding his subsequent disappearance during a perilous journey to face trial.
Today’s stories include paranormal protectors, New Jersey karma, close calls, ghost sailors and slip and slides from hell. Outsiders Only bonus stories available for Patreon and Apple Subscribers! Listen to Watch Her Cook on Apple and Spotify ! Follow us on Instagram For the latest NPAD updates, group travel details, merch and more, follow us on npadpodcast.com and our socials at: Instagram: @nationalparkafterdark Twitter/X: @npadpodcast TikTok: @nationalparkafterdark Support the show by becomin...
