As In Wisconsin first reported back in August 2009. The PBS series American Masters will air a documentary about Wisconsin's own John Muir. (Father of the National Park System)

A freelance producer and crew were shooting on the former Muir property in Marquette County (Fountain Lake Farm) last fall for the upcoming documentary called, "John Muir in the New World." The documentary is in editing right now and will be ready to air on Earth Day in mid-April 2011 right here on Wisconsin Public Television.

For more information about the documentary and to hear from the series producer you can watch our web extras. Also, only on the web you can learn about Muir's strict religious upbringing, the biggest threats to the Muir property today and find out what the current landowner would say if he ever met John Muir.

For more on John Muir's legacy and the Wisconsin man who's walking in his footsteps you can watch our In Wisconsin report about the former Muir property. Click here to watch!

It's a very busy time around Wisconsin Public Television as we prepare to launch our new season of In Wisconsin on Thursday, October 1 at 7:00 p.m.

But first we have the premiere of our new special National Parks: Wisconsin. You can watch it at 7 p.m. Thursday, September 24. Encore 4:30 p.m. Sunday, September 27. You will meet the stewards of Wisconsin's National Park sites and relish in the beauty of each location in this special hosted by In Wisconsin's Patty Loew and Outdoor Wisconsin's Dan Small. We shot parts of it on location at the John Muir Homestead in Marquette County in early August.

This project has been in the works for months and will air in tandem with the Ken Burn's documentary about our National Park System. We hope you enjoy the view of these Wisconsin treasures. Send us your feedback on what you thought of the program.

I'm vacationing this week in the north woods... my family has visited one of my favorite spots -- the state park on Madeline Island. We had a beautiful, sunny day for swimming and hiking. We're also canoeing and fly-fishing the Brule River in Douglas County. We plan a trip to the mouth of the Brule, where it empties into Lake Superior.

I love looking out over the giant expanse of Lake Superior -- thinking I can see Canada. Actually, I think it's the north shore of Minnesota, but still the expanse! At any rate, everyone's getting rested up for back to school and back to work. Maybe I'll find some story ideas while I'm up here. I know I'll meet some interesting people and see some interesting north woods sights!

You heard it here first. In the 2010-11 television season, American Masters on PBS will air a documentary about Wisconsin's own John Muir. (Father of the National Park System)

We just got word a freelance producer and crew will be shooting in our state this fall to help tell the story of Muir and to convey his insights about the land. Muir's childhood home was on Fountain Lake Farm in Marquette County. It's where he dreamed of preserving the land and later that notion would evolve into our National Park System.

For more on John Muir you can watch National Parks: Wisconsin premiering on September 24th at 7:00 p.m. right here on Wisconsin Public Television. Then tune in for the Ken Burns National Parks special coming to PBS Sunday, September 27th at 8:00 p.m.

We will also keep you posted on any new developments with the John Muir documentary in the works for the American Masters series.

"As the summer rolls on with astonishing speed Mike Eicher and I are editing a second story from the footage we shot on Stockton Island in May. Stockton Island is 15 miles off Wisconsin's north shore--part of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore. This report will air on our weekly Thursday night news magazine program, In Wisconsin.

It highlights an outdoor education experience for middle school students from Westfield, Wisconsin. It's a 2 ½ day class taught by 6 energetic and inventive college students from Northland College. It's the only program of its kind offered in the National Park System. In this report we find out how the kids deal with a lot of firsts including how to safely remove wood ticks and camping on an island with bears.

We had a lot of fun getting to know the middle school kids, the college kids, the Chaperones and the Park Service staff at the Apostle Island School. I know you'll enjoy meeting them and finding out what this school is all about too."

I promised in my last post to tell you about the shoot I did for Wisconsin's National Parks special. The story is about the work of the park's Cultural Educator, Damon Panek. We shot this report on Stockton Island during his Apostle Island School, a 2 1/2 day outdoor education experience organized by Northland College for middle school kids.

The crew and I had a great time even though it was still quite cold on this island in Lake Superior. The days were long, lugging camera gear along to each location. I was more than ready to crawl into my sleeping bag at the end of each day. But, it was a joy to be out in nature, to hear the birds each morning and witness the crashing of the waves.

Speaking of waves, it was so windy we got stranded on the island for an extra day. Some people have all the luck.

Pictured: Videographer Mike Eicher and Sound Recordist Eric Zitske with Park Ranger Damon Panek.

National Parks: Wisconsin is the name of the 30-minute special, co-produced by Wisconsin Public Television and Milwaukee Public Television

It's in the works right now and on July 6th Videographer Mike Eicher and I were out scouting locations to use as a backdrop to tell the unique stories of Wisconsin's National Parks.

We will be shooting on location in August with hosts Patty Loew of Wisconsin Public Television and Dan Small of Milwaukee Public Television. We picked the former homestead of Wisconsin's own John Muir located in Marquette County. It was in this spot that Muir developed a vision for a national parks system and that's the reason he's known as the "Father" of our National Parks.

So can you name the 4 National Parks in Wisconsin? No, John Muir's homestead is not one of them. Wisconsin's contributions include the Ice Age National Scenic Trail (which by the way does border John Muir's childhood farm), the St. Croix National Scenic Riverway, the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore and the North Country National Scenic Trail. We will explore some of the most unique features of each park and introduce viewers to people who are passionate about those natural wonders.

Watch for National Parks: Wisconsin coming this September to Wisconsin Public Television. PBS is also working with Producer Ken Burns on a National Parks special. Watch for it September 27 - October 2nd. We hope you'll join us.