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Visitors will see intermittent closures on three trails this summer
ISSAQUAH – Beginning this week, visitors will see construction activity on lower Issaquah Creek at Lake Sammamish State Park.
OLYMPIA — Beginning Oct. 1, the annual Discover Pass will increase from $30 to $45, providing critical revenue to keep state parks open and operational.
The Discover Pass is a parking pass that provides one year of unlimited entry to all Washington state lands managed by the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Washington Department of Natural Resources.
Everyone in the passholder's vehicle has access to:
MONTESANO – The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission will lower the water level of Lake Sylvia by approximately five feet on June 23 to relieve pressure on the aging Lake Sylvia dam. The lowering process could take up to a week to complete.
The Lake Sylvia dam, which was built around 1918, is showing signs of age and requires maintenance work. Lowering the level of the lake will alleviate stress on the dam, ensure visitor safety and allow State Parks and its partners to continuing monitoring the structure while preparing for next steps.
OLYMPIA – May 3, 2022 – On May 1, Washington State Parks began managing more than 15 recreation sites owned by Avista Utilities. The properties sit around the Spokane River, Nine Mile Dam, Lake Spokane and Long Lake Dam.
According to a new five-year agreement, State Parks will operate the Avista sites as part of Riverside State Park. The land parcels, which total 2,000 acres, include six trailheads, two water access sites, two overlooks,10 boat-in campsites and one picnic area on Lake Spokane.
The trailheads are:
“May These Gates Never Be Closed”
The inscription inside the east wall of the Peace Arch monument has a simple message: the highest goal between great nations should be perfect peace. This 67-foot-tall structure of concrete on a steel frame was financed and constructed under the direction of lawyer, financier, road builder and humanitarian Sam Hill.
OLYMPIA — The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission (Parks) has begun using a new electronic bidding system for public works projects.
The launch of the Municipal Research and Services Center (MRSC) Bonfire system marks the first phase in the agency’s larger plan to modernize and streamline procurement across all competitive applications.
OLYMPIA — Significant septic failures led to the closure of the cabins and other buildings in the beach area of Cama Beach State Park in February 2024.
Forest thinning will begin this fall
OLYMPIA – Oct. 12, 2022 – Washington State Parks will hold a virtual open house on an upcoming forest health project at Squilchuck State Park. The purpose of this meeting is to share updates about the project and answer questions.
The meeting will take place from 6 to 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Oct. 18 via Microsoft Teams. Attendees do not need to download Teams to join; they can use a web browser on a computer or mobile phone.
OLYMPIA — On July 1, the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission will transition to the statewide small works roster hosted by the Municipal Research and Services Center (MRSC).
Olympia — The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission welcomes the community to attend an open house on Feb. 27 to discuss ongoing planning for Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park.
OLYMPIA — The Washington State Parks Winter Recreation Program will temporarily close fourteen motorized Sno-parks for the 2024-25 winter season, due primarily to a roughly 25 percent reduction in funds available from snowmobile registrations to support the motorized part of the program.
OLYMPIA — Washington State Parks encourages members of the community to participate in the process of developing a new master plan for Blake Island Marine State Park.
State Parks is set to host its first community meeting to discuss the park and learn about the community’s hopes for its future on Sept. 18 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the Ballard Branch of the Seattle Public Library.
The Boring Volcanic Field
Battle Ground Lake is a part of a geologic formation called the Boring Volcanic Field (named for the town of Boring, OR), but the stories revealed in its bedrock are actually quite interesting!
In the Pacific Northwest, the slow-moving subduction of the oceanic crust of the Juan de Fuca tectonic plate underneath North American continent produces molten magma that rises toward the surface. Sometimes, the magma reaches the surface and produces a volcanic explosion (like the eruption of Mount St. Helens in 1980).
Boaters should check project schedule before planning overnight trips
OLYMPIA – April 29, 2022 – Washington State Parks will begin contracted mooring buoy repair work in the San Juan Islands beginning Monday, May 2 and on the eastern Olympic Peninsula beginning Wednesday, June 1. The agency will repair 82 buoys that are currently unsatisfactory and unusable. The months-long maintenance project will service salvageable state-owned, public mooring buoys to ensure they are in top condition for boaters.
BLAINE – The Nooksack Indian Tribe will welcome canoe families today at Birch Bay State Park. The landing is a stopover on the Power Paddle to Puyallup Youth Canoe Journey.
Washington State Parks is conducting a public planning process to update the long-term boundary for Riverside State Park to include the property known as Glen Tana. This project adds over 1,000 acres just outside Spokane, expanding recreation opportunities and environmental protections in a high-demand, urban setting.
OLYMPIA – Celebrate the new year with Washington State Parks during our annual First Day Hikes events on Jan. 1, 2025.
More than 30 state parks will host staff-led and self-guided hikes, snowshoe excursions, trail rides, polar plunges, scavenger hunts and more on New Year’s Day.
BLAINE – The Nooksack Indian Tribe will welcome canoe families on July 23 at Birch Bay State Park for a stopover as they continue their 2025 canoe journey.
Several canoes will arrive at the beach and ask the host Tribe permission to come ashore. Canoe landings will occur throughout the day on the beach at Birch Bay by the Heron Center log building.
SPOKANE — The community is invited to attend an open house to learn more about an upcoming forest thinning project in the 7-Mile area of Riverside State Park.