26-462: Sea Rim State Park is a 4,141-acre (1,676 ha) state park in southeast Texas . The park is located on the Gulf of Mexico in southern Jefferson County , south of Port Arthur and just west of Sabine Pass . The park was closed for several years due to extensive damage from Hurricanes Rita (2005) and Ike (2008). The park reopened in 2010. The D. Roy Harrington Beach unit is the coastal portion of
52-582: A fur trading post in the area that remained active until the Alaska Purchase in 1867. The National Park Service at one point considered managing the area, but the Alaska State Legislature voted in 1978 to make it a state park. Due to its remote location, the park is not accessible from the contiguous road system. The only road access is from Dillingham, which has an airport with regularly scheduled flights. Many visitors to
78-526: 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
104-707: 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 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
130-699: 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
156-545: The Civilian Conservation Corps and Works Progress Administration . Wood-Tikchik State Park Wood-Tikchik State Park is a state park in the U.S. state of Alaska north of Dillingham . Over 1,600,000 acres (650,000 ha) (6,500 km ) in area—about the size of the state of Delaware —, comprising more than half of all state park land in Alaska and 15% of the total state park land in
182-569: The Texas coast - Brazoria N.W.R. , San Bernard and Big Boggy - form a vital complex of coastal wetlands harboring more than 300 bird species. The park land was purchased from the Planet Oil and Mineral Corporation and Horizon Sales Corporation in 1972, and opened in 1977. The portion of Texas State Highway 87 extending through Sea Rim to High Island is closed, having been destroyed in 1989 by Hurricane Jerry . Previous storms had eroded
208-533: 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
234-402: The beach, leaving the highway vulnerable to storm-generated surf. In September 2005, Hurricane Rita did extensive damage to Sea Rim State Park, forcing its closure. Hurricane Ike caused further damage in 2008. In April 2010 the park re-opened to limited daytime use. By June 2014 TPWD had restored services at the park. The park provides water and electric service to campsites located off of
260-468: The beach. Visitors have an option to camp on the beach in primitive campsites. More detailed information is available on the Texas Parks and Wildlife Division website. State park State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve
286-424: The country. Despite being the largest state park in the nation, the park had no staff whatsoever for its first five years, and even now at times only a single ranger is in charge of patrolling the entire park, usually by aircraft . Yup'ik people inhabited the area that is now the park for centuries before contact with Europeans . In 1818 a Russian expedition explored the area and its rivers and established
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#1732791350469312-478: 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
338-532: The establishment of the park. The park is bounded on the west by Togiak National Wildlife Refuge and on the northwest by the Yukon Delta National Wildlife Refuge , providing an extremely large area of remote wilderness on public lands. The park is considered a critical habitat for a variety of wildlife, however a primary reason for the park’s existence is to preserve salmon spawning areas. All five major salmon species breed in
364-481: The lake systems as long as 60 miles (97 km), all within park boundaries. Wood-Tikchik is one of only two state parks in Southwest Alaska . The other is Lake Aleknagik State Recreation Site at 59°16′46″N 158°37′29″W / 59.27944°N 158.62472°W / 59.27944; -158.62472 , a small 11-acre (4.5 ha) park whose primary purpose is to serve as a jumping off point for
390-486: 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 the local flora , fauna , geology , and cultural history of the area. These programs are designed not only to enhance
416-464: The park arrive by charted floatplane and land on one of the many lakes , all of which are open to floatplane landings. Marine access to the Wood River lake system is via the Wood River itself. There are a few privately owned remote lodges within the park, by reservation only. The entire park is open to camping, but a few areas do require a permit. Leave No Trace camping is heavily emphasized by
442-485: The park managers and fires are only permitted on beaches or gravel bars, or one of the few provided fire pits . The park is deliberately mostly undeveloped wilderness, with various conservation groups working to purchase publicly available parcels within the park, either to hold in trust or to sell back to the park system. This has created some friction with pro-development groups, including Yupik natives who would like to develop on land claims they have that predate
468-539: The park, offering beach access between the Gulf of Mexico and the mainland marshes. Swimming in the marshes is not recommended due to the presence of alligators . The Marshlands unit is located in the inland marshes of southern Jefferson County. It holds the park’s only cabin as well as the boat launch for the boat trails. The park does rent canoes and kayaks so that these areas of the park may be explored by visitors. Many species of migratory birds stop in or pass through
494-413: The park, with sockeye considered the most important for subsistence fisheries in the area. Other wildlife in the park include whitefish , black and brown bears , moose , caribou , wolverines , marmots , porcupines , otters and foxes. Both sport and subsistence hunting of large game is allowed in the park with proper permits. The name of the park refers to two different lake systems within
520-641: The park. Ideal places to view them include the Gambusia Nature Trail, Willow Pond boardwalk, and wildlife viewing platform located in Fence Lake accessible by boat. The park loans out fishing equipment, crabbing equipment, junior ranger backpacks, binoculars, and personal flotation devices at the headquarters building for free. McFaddin National Wildlife Refuge borders the park. Three nearby national wildlife refuges on
546-771: The park. The southern lake system eventually forms the Wood River, which flows into Bristol Bay , and the more northern Tikchik lakes empty into the Nuyakuk River , a tributary of the Nushagak River which also flows into Bristol Bay. The Wood River system of lakes are all directly connected to one another by streams, forming a water trail of over 85 miles (137 km). The lakes of these two systems are large and deep, ranging from 15 to 45 miles (24 to 72 km) long and maximum depths of 342 to 940 feet (104 to 287 m). A dozen of these lakes have over 1,000 acres (400 ha) of surface area. There are rivers connecting
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#1732791350469572-474: 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
598-454: 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
624-481: 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 a few exceptions such as Anza-Borrego Desert State Park in California, and Wood-Tikchik State Park in Alaska,
650-575: 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 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
676-473: 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
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