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A dizzying mile-long switchback trail takes you up 848-foot Beacon Rock, but that’s not the only way to a tip-top experience. Rock climbing and hiking to waterfalls are the rage at this park, where there are plenty of vantage points for eagle-eye views. Cyclists and horseback riders also will find trails to the vistas from Hamilton Mountain saddle, and boaters can delight in the majesty of Beacon Rock from the Columbia River.

Blind Island Marine State Park is a favorite campsite for kayakers located in the heart of the San Juan Archipelago a short distance offshore from Shaw Island.

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.

Posey Island Marine State Park is a small island featuring a popular campsite for kayakers that is easily accessible from the northwestern part of San Juan Island.

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.

Turn Island Marine State Park preserves an entire island that lies just offshore from a point on the eastern side of San Juan Island.

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 — As of Feb. 26, 2024, the cabins and restrooms in the lower area at Cama Beach State Park will be closed until further notice. Day use in that area will remain open but restrooms will only be available in other parts of the park. 

OLYMPIA – November 21, 2022 – The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission invites the public to nominate winter sports enthusiasts for the agency's snowmobile and non-motorized advisory committees. Four positions are available statewide to snowmobilers, and two are available statewide to individuals involved in non-motorized winter sports.


Twenty-Five Mile Creek State Park lies at the farthest uplake point accessible by road on Lake Chelan, just about midway from its toe in the sun-kissed rain shadow of central Washington to its head among the ramparts of the North Cascades.

OLYMPIA — The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission will hold a virtual work session on May 21. 

Commission meeting agenda items include a financial update, a presentation on the current 2025-2027 budget outlook, a look at the 2026 operating supplemental budget request, a legislative update and a discussion of Commission priorities. 

Join Friends of Birch Bay while they take you on a guided walk to explore the beach and learn all about organisms local to our area!

Programs are offered in-person and virtually

OLYMPIA – Oct. 12, 2021 – Washington State Parks offers unique learning opportunities for children and students in person and virtually throughout the year.

The northwestern-most San Juan Island is sure to inspire with beautiful sunsets that glow orange and clear waters. Come prepared to stay overnight at the primitive campground or sleep on your boat. Once you arrive at this water-access-only gem, you won't want to leave.

Spokane County Parks, Recreation, and Golf

State Parks is seeking input on a proposal to amend an easement and update the land classifications of a portion of the property associated with the Spokane River Centennial Trail adjacent to the Plante’s Ferry Sports Complex in Spokane County.

It’s not a hike, campout or road trip unless your loyal pup comes with you. While embarking on a state park adventure is optional, bringing the whole family back healthy and whole is mandatory! So, we have for getting out and camping out with your canine BFF.

Parks host hikes, snowshoe excursions, bike rides and more on New Year's Day!

OLYMPIA – Dec. 6, 2021 - Washington State Parks invites the public to take a First Day Hike on Jan. 1, 2022.


At least 42 state parks have scheduled staff-led hikes, self-guided hikes, dog strolls, cross-country ski trips and more for New Year's Day.

Burrows Island Marine State Park preserves the majority of a wild-wooded island just offshore of Anacortes. Its forested summit rises nearly 650 feet above the churning waters that surround the island. The bedrock that makes up Burrows Island is part of a larger assemblage of rocks that outcrop on nearby islands and collectively make up an ophiolite sequence, a distinctive formation of rocks formed where the sea floor has spread apart at a tectonic plate boundary.

Patos Island Marine State Park provides a favorite campsite for paddlers and moorage for sailors, located on the northernmost edge of the San Juan Archipelago, noted for its historic lighthouse and wild, remote shores.

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.

Accessible only by boat. Blind island provides few amenities but offers tranquil water views and a feeling of escape. During the high season, it's a popular stop for kayak groups. In the off-season, enjoy quiet contemplation among the apple trees planted on the island by visitors long ago.

PASCO – Sacajawea Historical State Park welcomes this year’s Heritage Day, a celebration with living history reenactments, hands-on workshops, demonstrations and learning fun, back to the park this month.  

The family-friendly event, which is free and open to the public, will take place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 28. This date is also National Public Lands Day and a Discover Pass free day. 

The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission (Parks) has implemented changes to its Foster Family Program to provide more families with the opportunity to camp and enjoy parks.

As you enter Sun Lakes-Dry Falls, you may feel like you’re on another planet. The park is surrounded by one of Washington’s most striking and historically significant landscapes.

The 40-mile, 526-acre Spokane River Centennial State Park Trail winds through eastern Washington from Nine Mile Recreation Area on Lake Spokane to the Idaho border.

Hope Island Marine State Park is a delightful South Puget Sound island that owes its form and setting to the effects of Ice Age glacial processes. The island also holds the stories of some of its human residents, who found in it a place to retreat to a simpler life connected with nature, and make dreams come true.

“Islands are still the domain of the explorers, the adventurers, the discoverers.”  --Alexander L. Bond, conservation biologist

Jones Island Marine State Park, an entire island off the southwest corner of Orcas Island in the San Juan Archipelago, offers each visitor a chance to connect with their inner adventurer. Its hills rise nearly 200 feet above a low isthmus. Rock outcrops on its rugged shore reveal that the bedrock of the island was formed deep on the ocean floor and uplifted above the water’s surface by the forces of plate tectonics.

Lake Lenore Caves State Park Heritage Site offers visitors a window into the formation of the Grand Coulee and the lives of people who may have spent time here thousands of years ago.

Application period closes May 10

OLYMPIA – April 20, 2023 – The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission (Parks) will establish a statewide Scenic Bikeways program. As part of that effort, the agency will establish an advisory task force to work with agency staff throughout the development and implementation of this new program.