the buzz log
Come and Get 'Em While They're Hot: America's Parks for Free
America's parks may be the country's preserved wildernesses, but even they can't dodge the political and economic effects of the urban world.
The recession could shutter some of California's state parks, but now national park lovers have a reprieve: Interior Secretary Ken Salazar just swung open the gates to let visitors in for free at all 391 national parks on three weekends: June 20-21, July 18-19, August 15-16.
Of course, since 244 parks didn't charge in the first place, the deal's only a deal at 147 parks and monuments. Still, Salazar's heart is in the right place—our wallets.
That makes the timing of the top-searched national parks spot on. Take a look, and don't forget to pack a lunch before you go.
1. Grand Canyon National Park (Arizona)
2. Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming)
3. Yosemite National Park (California)
4. Rocky Mountain National Park (Colorado)
5. Glacier National Park (tie) (Montana)
5. Sequoia National Park (tie) (California)
6. Zion National Park (Utah)
7. Estes National Park (Colorado)
8. Great Smoky Mountains National Park (Tennessee)
9. Mammoth Cave National Park (Kentucky)
10. Bryce Canyon National Park (Utah)
Filed under: Parks, Outdoors, Tourist Attractions, Economics
Grand Canyon Under Glass
Just the other day we were saying how we'd love to stand over a canyon with nothing but a few inches of glass separating us from a 4,000-foot drop. Now, thanks to the Hualapai tribe of Arizona and their newly unveiled Grand Canyon Skywalk, our wish is fulfilled.
With $30 million from a Las Vegas businessman, the troubled tribe erected the glass-and-steel Skywalk project to invigorate their economy. Their portion of the canyon, Grand Canyon West, is less frequented and poverty and unemployment run rampant in the tribe's community.
The Hualapai have hit the jackpot with the Skywalk. With its proximity to Vegas and its stunning vista over a gargantuan drop, plenty of feet are lining up to tread the Skywalk. Searches on the attraction soared this week: "grand canyon skywalk" jumped 1,274% into the top 400 searches, "grand canyon glass bridge" rose 358%, and "grand canyon" ticked up 116%. Gazing out at the Skywalk buzz, we bet opening day on March 28 will be a site to see.
Filed under: Tourist Attractions, Grand Canyon
top movers
| Rank | Subject | 1-Day Move |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ford 400 | Breakout! |
| 2 | Indonesia Ferry | Breakout! |
| 3 | Jordan Chandler | 3481% |
| 4 | Evan Chandler | 2322% |
| 5 | American Music Awards | 1841% |
| 6 | John F. Kennedy | 1529% |
| 7 | Turkey Stuffing Recipes | 1361% |
| 8 | Liam Hemsworth | 1172% |
| 9 | Lou Dobbs | 1142% |
| 10 | Hendrick Motorsports | 888% |
top leaders
| Rank | Subject | Move | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Black Friday | +340 | 1290 |
| 2 | NFL | +489 | 670 |
| 3 | Jennifer Lopez | +451 | 515 |
| 4 | New Moon | -67 | 250 |
| 5 | American Music Awards | +236 | 249 |
| 6 | UFC | -36 | 239 |
| 7 | Miley Cyrus | +66 | 169 |
| 8 | Hulu | -11 | 154 |
what's the buzz?
A subject's buzz score is the percentage of Yahoo! users searching for that subject on a given day, multiplied by a constant to make the number easier to read. Weekly leaders are the subjects with the greatest average buzz score for a given week.
For more detailed information, visit our FAQ.