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Patos Island is a 207-acre marine park that features dramatic rock formations, a landscape of madrone trees and a working lighthouse. Boat in and stay overnight at a primitive campsite and immerse yourself in the remote beauty of the San Juan Islands.

Washington water fans, look no further! Bust out your kayak, sand bucket, swimsuit or fishing rod, and head straight for Dash Point State Park! Hidden in plain sight between Seattle and Tacoma, this park offers miles of forested hiking and biking trails, but its main draw is the beach.

Crawford State Park feels like it's at the end of the earth, and its star attraction, Gardner Cave, feels like the center of the earth.
Join Ranger Gladson for a New Years Day hike to Clayton Beach at Larrabee State Park. This newly renovated trail is family friendly and includes stream bridges, boardwalks over wetlands, and a new pedestrian overpass. Ranger Gladson will provide interpretation along the way with local flora and fauna as well as history of Larrabee State Park.

Nationwide recruitment efforts lead to internal talent

OLYMPIA – March 16, 2022 – The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission announced today the appointment of Diana Dupuis as the agency's new director. Dupuis will be the first female director since the agency was established more than 100 years ago.

Try a new trail this Jan. 1 at Spencer Spit State Park.
Willie Keil’s Grave is located in a small, private cemetery just off State Highway 6, about 5 miles east of Raymond. Stop at the State Parks highway pullout to view the gravesite, pay your respects, and read about the so-called "Pickled Pioneer."
Eagle Island is a great place to moor or anchor your boat. Gaze at the splendor of Mount Rainier, relax on the beach and watch harbor seals close to the shore.
Olmstead Place demonstrates homesteader family life, farming history and equipment. Walk the grounds or book a tour to experience life in the late-19th century.

Clark Island Marine State Park preserves an entire long, narrow island along the northern edge of the San Juan Archipelago.

A Rocky Island

The San Juan Islands are distinct from most of Puget Sound in that they feature shorelines with exposures of hard bedrock, rather than the bluffs of clay, sand and gravel left by Ice Age glaciers that are predominant on most of Washington’s Salish Sea, the state’s inland saltwater passages.

OLYMPIA —  Washington State Parks will perform its annual mooring buoy maintenance at marine state parks in Puget Sound and the San Juan Islands in June.

This ongoing maintenance creates safe conditions for boaters who tie up to buoys at marine state parks and recreate or sleep in their vessels.

The following parks will have limited mooring buoy availability during the following timeframes:

This park at the confluence of the Columbia and Wenatchee rivers is a popular destination for campers, swimmers, boaters, jet skiers and bicyclists.

Flaming Geyser State Park straddles the Green River at the lower end of the Green River Gorge, a unique place where sandstone bedrock, covered by glacial deposits in most of the Puget Sound lowlands, is revealed by the downcutting of the river through the formation. Seams of coal interwoven with the sandstone fueled a mining industry in the local area. On October 4, 1911, coal miner Eugene Lawson drilled a test bore in today’s park area, attempting to locate a coal seam. At 390 feet deep, he found a seam 6.5 feet thick.

Lyons Ferry State Park occupies a place at the drowned confluence of the Palouse and Snake Rivers, where people have crossed over the rivers for millennia.

Ice Age Floods Carve a Canyon

The walls of the Snake and Palouse River Canyons, and the cliffs which soar over the park are made of basalt lava flows that erupted from vents in southeast Washington. The forces of plate tectonics continue to shape this landscape, wrenching and stressing the vast layered basalt flows that make up Washington’s Columbia Plateau, weakening the rock along subtle fractures.

Learn about the marine life in Jarrell Cove State Park. All ages welcome!

The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission is developing a long-range plan for its property located on Miller Peninsula. This 2,800-acre undeveloped park is located in the north Olympic Peninsula, just east of Sequim and north of Highway 101 in Clallam County. The property includes a trail system for hikers, mountain bikers, and equestrians through a beautiful second-growth forest.

A rare cluster of old-growth trees creates an inspiring shadow to stand in. Rainbow Falls State Park, 16 miles west of Chehalis, is a walker’s paradise. Miles of loamy trails wind through the forest and along the river, to a small cascade that throws rainbows of spray at the sun.
Among the enchanting San Juan Islands, snag a cliffside campsite for breathtaking views, explore untamed beaches, and glimpse native residents such as deer and otter on Jones Island.
Located on the Yakama Indian Reservation, Fort Simcoe is one of the few remaining pre-Civil War forts in the west. Take a walk through the fort and enjoy the landscape.

Come on out and camp in Schafer's new campground, join the park's centennial commemoration event and do some fishing. 

This unassuming park has a welcoming campground in a thicket of trees, and its forested creek was recently restored for salmon health. Local elk herds roam through the area, and pileated woodpeckers are busy with their beaks, tapping out rhythms on the trees.

Battle Ground Lake State Park is a forested camping park in the Cascade Mountain foothills; its proximity to Vancouver and Portland and its cool green lake make it a great escape from the bustle of city and suburbs.
Join the fun and run at Steamboat Rock State Park this Jan. 1.