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 Get holiday gifts at our online store!
It's that time of year again! Time to pull out those tacky sweaters, indulge your sweet tooth and start thinking about gifts for your loved ones. This year, we hope you’ll join us in giving the gift of the great outdoors.
Some outdoors folks have all the gear they need. Before you even think of a gift, they’ve probably bought it for themselves. But they may not have seen our Pendleton wool blankets or icon prints of their favorite state parks...
Or maybe your favorite outdoorspeople could still use practical items, like a solid backpack, water bottle or thermos?
Either way, we’ve got you! Check out our online store and order by Dec. 3 to ensure your gifts arrive by Dec. 24.
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New Year's Day, First Day Hikes are six weeks away!
Are we alone in feeling like 2024 flew by? Can you believe we are six weeks from New Years?
If a jaunt in a park sounds like the way to ring in 2025, join us for a First Day Hike!
Last Jan. 1, we hosted 50 First Day Hikes (FDH) around the state. More than 1,700 people celebrated the new year in the outdoors with us. They walked, rolled, pedaled, snowshoed and even kayaked a total of 2,907 miles with our staff.
FDH is part of a national initiative in all 50 states to help people start the new year with healthy fun in state parks.
Jan. 1 is a Discover Pass free day. There’s no parking fee on state recreation lands.
Look for info in future emails and on Facebook and Instagram.
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November/December events
It may be getting cold outside, but events are still on in several state parks.
Riverside State Park will host volunteer cleanup events on Nov. 22 and 23.
Fort Casey will hold its annual “Light Up Your Holiday” event early this year, on Nov. 30, at the Admiralty Head Lighthouse. The lighthouse will also have hosts giving tours in November and December.
Moran State Park will host its annual holiday swag making party from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Dec. 7 at Camp Moran. Bring art supplies (some will be provided, along with cocoa and cookies), and decorate an evergreen bough to hang on your door.
Check our Calendar of Events for updates!
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 Dredging up the past at Tolmie, McMicken Island
If you happened to be at Tolmie State Park in October, you might have seen the huge Washington Department of Natural Resources (DNR) barge in the bay, dredging up… car tires!
In the 1960s, 70s and 80s, more than 25 “tire piles” or “tire reefs” were installed in Puget Sound, including one at Tolmie and one off the end of McMicken Island.
The “reefs,” each one with 500 to 30,000 (no, that’s not a typo) tires sitting 12 to 80 feet underwater, were bundled together with polyproline line.
They were supposed to entice rockfish and lingcod populations and bolster recreational fishing. But the fish never came, some piles fell apart and DNR staff worried the tires could be polluting the environment.
DNR Science and Restoration staff did a study of 20 Puget Sound tire piles using multibeam sonar to map the piles, underwater drop cameras and remotely operated vehicles to see the tire piles and divers
Between Oct. 16 and Oct. 25, the Tolmie tires were pulled up with cranes, elevators and giant barges. The Case Inlet tires near McMicken were removed Oct. 27-29. Once collected, the tires were disposed of at a tire monofil facility.
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It’s time to gear up for the winter season!
The winter months offer unique opportunities to explore new hobbies or new locations! With more than 130 Sno-Parks in Washington State, there’s something for everyone, from snowshoeing to skijoring.
Sno-park permits are on sale now. They are required to park at Sno-parks across the state. Get yours today and get out on the trails this winter.
From emergency car kits to staying dry while tenting in a downpour, we have tips to boost your off-season outdoor mojo.
Check out these blogs for expertise on rainy and snowy camping at WA State Parks campgrounds:
The final tallies are in – our volunteers are amazing. We hosted our three annual beach cleanups this year and saw the most volunteers and trash collected since these events started. While it’s tough to see how much garbage there is to gather on our beaches, the dedication of our volunteers gives us hope.
- Washington Coast Cleanup: 636 volunteers, 16,193 lbs
- July 5 Cleanup: 1,138 volunteers, 129,526 lbs
- International Coastal Cleanup: 565, 13,712 lbs
Totals from all three 2024 cleanups:
- Volunteers: 2,339 volunteers
- Trash removed: 159,431 lbs
Thank you to everyone who participated! We hope to see you (and more of your friends) next year.
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Looking for a new adventure?
Join our team!
We are fortunate to manage one of the largest, most diverse — and most beautiful — parks systems in the country.
Nearly 1,000 employees help steward our parks, including park rangers, maintenance and construction specialists, customer service staff, planners, engineers, managers, administrative professionals and support staff serving in seasonal or career full-time capacities.
We invite you to join us on the adventure!
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