Rangers
Travis County Parks
Park Rangers
Hey, Ranger!
That exclamation is familiar to most of the world's rangers. Whether they are called park ranger, forest ranger, park warden, or park police, what usually follows is a question of great significance to an excited person. The question may be about the local wildlife, where to find a certain feature, or perhaps if the person is a youngster, it may be the beginning of an interesting story.
What is a park ranger?
What are their duties?
Here at Travis County, our Park Rangers ensure that visitors and park resources are safe. They patrol the parks on foot, by vehicle, and by boat. They must be prepared to deal with everything from children who have misplace their parents, to guiding nature tours, assisting with maintenance and litter control. They are prepared to handle technical rescues that jeopardize their own lives and they provide emergency medical services to injured park visitors.
They also enforce the county's park rules and state laws. As certified peace officers, they sometimes make arrests. Unlike police agencies, however, whose primary duty is law enforcement, our Park Rangers duties are 70% park visitor services, 10% law enforcement, 10% emergency medical and 10% paperwork. Our Park Rangers are Travis County's "Ambassadors" to the parks.
Park Ranger Resources
Last Modified:
Friday, May 22, 2009 11:39 AM