Will De Man

Connect What national park do you dream of visiting?

I've longed dreamed of visiting Sequoia National Park, both for it's scenery and history. Sequoia was first protected as the four-square mile General Grant Reserve at the same time as the Yosemite Reserve was created in 1864. Both Sequoia and Yosemite were elevated to national park status in 1890, making them the second and third national parks in the country. I'd love to visit for that reason-- but I also believe that walking amongst those massive trees would be a spiritual experience.

What has been your favorite adventure experience?

While traumatic at the time, my greatest adventure experience was in my camper van in the Utah desert. The transmission on it blew out just outside of Canyonlands National Park. My wife and I ended up having to hitch-hike to Moab with a car of Dutch tourists! While waiting for our van to be fixed, we adventured through Canyonlands and Arches with only Chacos and looped through five other national parks including the Grand Canyon and Zion.

What would you do with $10,000?

I’m a social studies educator who loves national parks and loves to learn more about their history. I'm currently working on a book on the history of Yellowstone, Glacier, and Grand Teton National Parks. My dream for several years has been take a whole summer to research, write, and share about the incredible (and sometimes heartbreaking) stories behind these incredible places. Winning $10,000 would allow me to do just that—and not have to teach summer school.