38-883: Hickory Run State Park is a 15,990-acre (6,471 ha) Pennsylvania state park in Kidder and Penn Forest Townships in Carbon County , Pennsylvania in the United States. The park is spread across the Pocono Mountains . The park is easily accessible from Interstate 476 and Interstate 80 . Hickory Run State Park was chosen by the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR) and its Bureau of Parks as one of "25 Must-See Pennsylvania State Parks". The park supports many activities, some of which vary seasonally. During
76-526: A land lease from the U.S. government , while Mackinac National Park was handed down to become the first of the Michigan state parks . As with national parks, facilities at state parks are often leased to concessionaires to operate. Breaks Interstate Park is operated under an interstate compact by Virginia state parks , although it is also one of the Kentucky state parks , straddling both sides of
114-476: A brief history of their development since the first park opened in 1893. State parks range in size from 3 acres (1.2 ha) to 21,122 acres (8,548 ha) and comprise one percent of Pennsylvania's total land area. According to Dan Cupper (1993), "Pennsylvania is the thirty-third largest state, but only Alaska and California have more park land". There are state parks in 62 of Pennsylvania's 67 counties , which nearly reaches Pennsylvania's goal of having
152-591: A division of the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), is the governing body for all these parks, and directly operates 116 of them. The remaining parks are operated in cooperation with other public and private organizations. The first Pennsylvania state park, at Valley Forge , opened in 1893 and was given to the National Park Service (NPS) for the United States Bicentennial in 1976. There are
190-589: A few exceptions such as Anza-Borrego Desert State Park in California, and Wood-Tikchik State Park in Alaska, the largest state park in the United States . In addition to preserving natural landscapes and providing recreational opportunities, many state parks also serve as important educational resources . They often offer guided tours, interpretive programs, and exhibits that help visitors learn about
228-699: A restaurant) for lodging at some parks. These typically use "Resort" in the name, such as "_____ Resort State Park" in West Virginia state parks and "_____ State Resort Park" in neighboring Kentucky state parks , which has 17 such resort parks, the most of any state. Other states use the Resort name inconsistently (like DeGray Lake Resort State Park , the only one out of three resorts in Arkansas state parks ), or have only one such park ( South Carolina state parks ' Hickory Knob State Resort Park ), or do not use
266-475: A state park within 25 miles (40 km) of every resident in the Commonwealth. Eleven parks do not have "State Park" in their name. Three are " Conservation Areas ": Boyd Big Tree Preserve , Joseph E. Ibberson , and Varden ; four are "Environmental Education Centers": Jacobsburg , Jennings , Kings Gap (also a "Training Center") and Nolde Forest ; White Clay Creek is a "Preserve"; Norristown
304-866: A total of seventeen former Pennsylvania state parks: four former parks have been transferred to the NPS, four to the Pennsylvania Historical Museum Commission , two to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers , one to both the Corps and the Pennsylvania Game Commission , five to the Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry , and one has ceased to exist. Nine current and two former state parks have had major name changes or have been known under alternate names. The list gives an overview of Pennsylvania state parks and
342-661: Is a "Farm Park"; and Big Spring is a "State Forest Picnic Area". Seven parks are undeveloped with no facilities: Allegheny Islands , Benjamin Rush , Bucktail , Erie Bluffs , Prompton , Swatara , and Varden ; the last four of these are in the process of being developed. Five state parks are small picnic areas: Laurel Summit , Patterson , Prouty Place , Sand Bridge , and Upper Pine Bottom . Five state parks have major U.S. Army Corps of Engineers dams and/or lakes: Bald Eagle , Beltzville , Elk , Kettle Creek , and Sinnemahoning . Three former parks now belong, at least partly, to
380-512: Is dammed at certain points, creating lakes. The Fireline, Gould, and Pine Hill Trails are suitable for cross-country skiing in winter. A short 0.7-mile (1.1 km) walk on the Hawk Falls trail leads to a popular waterfall. Biking is prohibited on all trails. The most notable feature of Hickory Run State Park is the huge boulder field located in the northeast corner of the park. The field can be reached by car on Boulder Field Road or by hiking
418-975: Is now Cherry Springs , "Codorus Creek" is now Codorus , "Kooser Lake" is now Kooser , "Laurel Hill Summit" is now Laurel Summit , and "Promised Land Lake" is now Promised Land ). Such minor name changes are not included in this table. The following eighteen were once Pennsylvania state parks, but have been transferred to federal ( National Park Service , U.S. Army Corps of Engineers ) or state ( Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission , Pennsylvania Game Commission , Pennsylvania Bureau of Forestry ) agencies, or ceased to exist. The following are significantly different former or alternate names for two former Pennsylvania state parks. One former park dropped one word from its name ("Colerain Forge" became "Colerain" sometime between 1924 and 1937). Such minor name changes are not included in this table. State park State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at
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#1732801330768456-569: Is shattered in situ. One of two processes, both involving periglacial processes, explains the formation of boulder fields, such as the Hickory Run boulder field. First, boulder-size blocks are generated from the fracturing of an upslope bedrock outcrop by alternating freeze and thaw. As boulders accumulate at the base of the rock slope, periglacial ice-catalyzed heaving and sliding transports them downslope during cold climatic periods to form boulder fields. Finally, boulder fields are also formed by
494-529: Is the largest of its kind in the Appalachian region. It consists of a very gently sloping expanse of boulders that occupies the axis of a small valley with approximately 100-foot (30 m) of relief. A coniferous forest with stony loam soils surrounds the field. The field's boulders range from less than 3-foot (0.91 m) to more than 30-foot (9.1 m) in length. They consist of hard, gray-red, medium-grained sandstone and conglomeratic sandstone from
532-660: The Australian states of Victoria and New South Wales . The equivalent term used in Canada, Argentina, South Africa, and Belgium, is provincial park . Similar systems of local government maintained parks exist in other countries, but the terminology varies. State parks are thus similar to national parks , but under state rather than federal administration. Similarly, local government entities below state level may maintain parks, e.g., regional parks or county parks . In general, state parks are smaller than national parks, with
570-546: The Catskill Formation which forms the adjacent ridgelines. The boulders at the northeast, upslope end of the boulder field, are generally more angular than those found downslope to the southwest. In the southwest part of the boulder field, boulders are typically subrounded and overlie a layer of small, polished clasts with a red weathering rind. To the southeast is a distinct group of boulders, which are less than 15-foot (4.6 m) long. They appear to be bedrock that
608-589: The 1930s, some mere camping and picnic areas in state forests, while others preserved unique sites. The 1930s saw a great expansion of parks and their facilities under Governor Gifford Pinchot , who cooperated with President Franklin Roosevelt , despite their being of different political parties. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) established 113 CCC camps in Pennsylvania (second only to California). Using CCC and Works Progress Administration (WPA) labor,
646-486: The 3.5-mile (5.6 km) long Boulder Field Trail from the trailhead on SR 534. The field comprises about 720,000 square feet (67,000 m) (16.5 acres (6.7 ha) or 0.026 square miles (0.067 km)) in area (1,800 feet (550 m) east-west by 400 feet (120 m) north-south). The top of the boulder layer is virtually level with the approaching path. This boulder field, known as the Hickory Run boulder field ,
684-656: The DCNR, the state parks in Pennsylvania are on more than 300,000 acres (120,000 ha) with some 606 full-time and more than 1,600 part-time employees serving approximately 36 million visitors each year. Admission to all Pennsylvania state parks is free, although there are fees charged for use of cabins, marinas, etc. Pennsylvania's state parks offer "over 7,000 family campsites, 286 cabins, nearly 30,000 picnic tables, 56 major recreational lakes, 10 marinas, 61 beaches for swimming, 17 swimming pools" and over 1,000 miles (1,600 km) of trails. Pennsylvania's first state park
722-402: The Hickory Run boulder field have been exposed at the near surface for about 600,000 years. The interpretation of this data concluded that this boulder field has survived multiple glacial-interglacial cycles and possibly at least one glaciation. This conclusion would indicate that it and other boulder fields are dynamic features that persisted through multiple glacial-interglacial cycles because of
760-492: The NPS built five Recreation Demonstration Areas , which became Pennsylvania state parks in 1945 and 1946: Blue Knob , French Creek , Hickory Run , Laurel Hill , and Raccoon Creek . The CCC also "fought forest fires, planted trees, built roads, buildings, picnic areas, swimming areas, campgrounds and created many state parks". In 1956, there were forty-four state parks in Pennsylvania, mostly in rural areas. Forty-five parks had been added by 1979, mostly near urban areas, and
798-422: The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. Seven parks preserve the industrial past: Canoe Creek is the site of a former lime kiln , and Caledonia , French Creek , Greenwood Furnace , Kings Gap , Mont Alto , and Pine Grove Furnace (plus one former park) are all former iron furnace sites. Eight current parks and one former park contain at least part of eight different National Natural Landmarks . According to
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#1732801330768836-441: The area of the Hickory Run boulder field indicate that this area has been covered by an ice sheet at least once, although the timing of the ice sheet or multiple ice sheets is uncertain. The most extensive ice sheet to cover the area containing this boulder field occurred prior to 900,000 years ago as evidenced by reversed magnetic polarity glacial deposits found south of the boulder field. Proglacial deposits of normal polarity suggest
874-675: The country's state parks. The NASPD further counts over 43,000 miles (69,000 km) of trail, 217,367 campsites, and 8,277 cabins and lodges across U.S. state parks. The largest state park system in the United States is Alaska State Parks , with over 100 sites encompassing 3.3 million acres. Many states include designations beyond "state park" in their state parks systems. Other designations might be state recreation areas , state beaches, and state nature reserves . Some state park systems include long-distance trails and historic sites . To encourage tourism in rural areas, several states have simple lodges, inns, hotels, or motels (usually with
912-478: The designation at all (such as the lodges of Georgia state parks ). The term "lodge" may also refer to a hiking lodge , essentially a large cabin for hikers rather than a large facility with private rooms and a restaurant. Other lodging may include yurts and tipis . Not all parks owned by a state are necessarily part of its state-park system, such as Stone Mountain Park near Atlanta. Some Texas state parks are
950-600: The exhumation of corestones . Initially, corestones form underground by the action of spheroidal weathering on jointed bedrock . Later, the weathered rock, which is called saprolite and formed by the alteration of rock, is progressively removed by erosion from around the corestones to expose them as isolated boulders. In time, these boulders are altered and redistributed over time by the accumulation of unconsolidated soil and sediment; freeze and thaw; and perhaps by periglacial action or glaciation during cold periods to form boulder fields. The presence of glacial erratics south of
988-501: The former state parks were also chiefly historic. In addition to preserving historic sites, Pennsylvania also sought to preserve natural beauty and offer opportunities for recreation in its state parks. In 1902 Mont Alto State Forest Park was the second park established, a year after the state "Bureau of Forestry" was set up to purchase, preserve, and restore Pennsylvania's forests, which had been ravaged by lumbering, charcoal production, and wild fires. Parks were added sporadically until
1026-493: The local flora , fauna , geology , and cultural history of the area. These programs are designed not only to enhance the visitor experience but also to promote conservation awareness and encourage responsible enjoyment of natural resources. There are 6,792 state park units in the United States, according to the National Association of State Park Directors (NASPD). There are some 813 million annual visits to
1064-404: The occurrence of another glaciation extensive enough to cover this area sometime after 740,000 years ago. The last glaciation to have covered the area of the Hickory Run boulder field is mapped as Illinoian, about 150,000 years ago. However, it is possible that this ice sheet is somewhat older than this at about 400,000 years ago However, cosmogenic nuclide studies demonstrate that some boulders of
1102-504: The park, with white-tailed deer , black bear , and squirrels among the game that may be hunted legally. Additional hunting opportunities are available in nearby state game lands, some of which border the park. The park contains 44 miles (71 km) of trails that offer a variety of hiking experiences. For example, the 1.5-mile (2.4 km) long "Shades of Death" Trail follows the course of Sand Spring Run through dense rhododendron bushes that bloom from mid-June through mid-July. The run
1140-446: The resistance of boulders to weathering and erosion. The large size of Hickory Run boulder field likely reflects multiple periods of periglacial activity during a number of glacial periods. The following state parks are within 30 miles (48 km) of Hickory Run State Park: List of Pennsylvania state parks As of 2024 , there are 124 state parks in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania . The Pennsylvania Bureau of State Parks ,
1178-474: The state line. Other multi-state parks are legally two separate parks with the same name and more informal cooperation between them. The title of oldest state park in the United States is claimed by Niagara Falls State Park in New York , established in 1885. Several public parks previously or currently maintained at the state level pre-date it. Indian Springs State Park has been operated continuously by
Hickory Run State Park - Misplaced Pages Continue
1216-454: The state of Georgia as a public park since 1825, although it did not gain the title "State Park" until 1931. In 1864 Yosemite Valley and Mariposa Grove were ceded by the federal government to California until Yosemite National Park was proclaimed in 1890. In 1878 Wisconsin set aside a vast swath of its northern forests as "The State Park" but, needing money, sold most of it to lumber companies within 20 years. Mackinac National Park
1254-506: The sub-national level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational potential. There are state parks under the administration of the government of each U.S. state , some of the Mexican states , and in Brazil . The term is also used in
1292-492: The summer months, swimming is available in Sand Spring Lake. Swimming is allowed only at one designated swimming area, which is a sand beach, of Sand Spring Lake. Furthermore, this swimming area is open for swimming only from late May to mid-September. Because there are no lifeguards, swimming is at your own risk. In winter, the frozen lake can be used for ice skating. Seasonal hunting is permitted in many areas of
1330-434: The system had increased by 130,000 acres (53,000 ha). This was thanks largely to the efforts of Maurice K. Goddard , who served as director of the precursors to the DCNR for twenty-four years under six administrations. The number of visitors to parks more than tripled in this time and two voter approved bond issues (Projects 70 and 500) raised millions of dollars for park expansions and improvements. All this expansion
1368-699: Was Valley Forge State Park , purchased by the Commonwealth on May 30, 1893, to preserve Valley Forge . It was transferred to the National Park Service (NPS) on the Bicentennial of the United States , July 4, 1976. Many state parks still preserve history: as of 2012, forty-two Pennsylvania state park sites are on the National Register of Historic Places , including two National Historic Landmarks ( Delaware Canal and Point ), twenty-eight Civilian Conservation Corps sites in nineteen parks, and twelve other parks' historic sites and districts. Eight of
1406-473: Was established in 1875 as the second U.S. national park before being converted to a state park in 1895. The first state park with the designation of "state park" was Itasca State Park in Minnesota , established in 1891. Many state park systems date to the 1930s, when around 800 state parks (and several national ones) across the country were developed with assistance from federal job-creation programs like
1444-748: Was not without costs and by 1988 there was an estimated $ 90 million in deferred maintenance. In 1993, as the park system celebrated its one-hundredth anniversary, new tax and bond revenues were earmarked for the parks. Since 2000, parks are being improved through the state's Growing Greener and Growing Greener II and bond programs. The following are significantly different former or alternate names for nine current Pennsylvania state parks. Note that many parks were originally "State Forest Parks" or were state public camping or picnic areas in Pennsylvania state forests. In modern times, some "State Parks" have become "Environmental Education Centers", while other parks have dropped one word from their name ("Cherry Springs Drive"
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