Utah State Parks is the common name for the Division of Utah State Parks and Recreation; a division of the Utah Department of Natural Resources. This is the state agency that manages the state park system of the U.S. state of Utah.
Utah's state park system began with four heritage parks in 1957: Sugar House Park (which was later removed from the system), Utah Territorial Statehouse in Fillmore, This Is the Place Monument in Salt Lake City, and Camp Floyd outside of Lehi. Today, there are 43 Utah State Parks and several undeveloped areas totaling over 95,000 acres (380 km2) of land and more than one million surface acres of water. Utah's state parks are scattered throughout Utah; from Bear Lake State Park at the Utah/Idaho border to Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum deep in the Four Corners region, and everywhere in between.
The Division of Utah State Parks and Recreation also administers the Utah off highway vehicle, boating, and trails programs. In this capacity, they work to provide access to waterways and trails, and promote education, safety, and resource protection.
The division's mission statement is "To enhance the quality of life by preserving and providing natural, cultural, and recreational resources for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations."
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A herd of bison on Antelope Island -
The Colorado River from Dead Horse Point State Park -
Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park -
Goblin Valley State Park -
Sand pipe, Kodachrome Basin State Park
| Park Name | Web- site |
County or Counties | Area in Acres (ha) | Elevation | Date Opened |
Remarks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Anasazi State Park Museum | Garfield | 70006000000000000006 acres (2.4 ha) | 70036700000000000006,700 ft (2042 m) | 1970 | Interprets a large Ancestral Puebloan village occupied from AD 1160 to 1235. | |
| Antelope Island State Park | Davis | 700422022000000000022,022 acres (11340 ha) | 70035308000000000005,308 ft (1618 m) | 1969 | Protects Antelope Island, the largest island in the Great Salt Lake and habitat for bison, Pronghorn, and bighorn sheep. | |
| Bear Lake State Park | Rich | 70035900000000000005,900 ft (1798 m) | 1962 | Comprises three units on Bear Lake. | ||
| Camp Floyd / Stagecoach Inn State Park and Museum | Utah | 700140000000000000040 acres (16 ha) | 70034877000000000004,877 ft (1487 m) | 1958 | Interprets sites from the time of a massive 1858-1861 U.S. Army camp prompted by fear of the Utah War. | |
| Coral Pink Sand Dunes State Park | Kane | 70033730000000000003,730 acres (1510 ha) | 70036000000000000006,000 ft (1829 m) | 1963 | Preserves the only dune field on the Colorado Plateau, with a unique color caused by iron oxides and minerals in the Navajo sandstone. | |
| Dead Horse Point State Park | Grand and San Juan | 70035300000000000005,300 acres (2145 ha) | 70035900000000000005,900 ft (1798 m) | 1959 | Showcases views of the Colorado River and Canyonlands National Park from a finger of land once used as a horse corral. | |
| Deer Creek State Park | Wasatch | 70033260000000000003,260 acres (1319 ha) | 70035400000000000005,400 ft (1646 m) | 1971 | Adjoins the extremely popular 2,965-acre (1,200 ha) Deer Creek Reservoir. | |
| East Canyon State Park | Morgan | 7002267000000000000267 acres (108 ha) | 70035700000000000005,700 ft (1737 m) | 1962 | Features a reservoir in a canyon first traversed by the Donner Party and soon thereafter by Mormon pioneers. | |
| Edge of the Cedars State Park Museum | San Juan | 700116000000000000016 acres (6.5 ha) | 70036200000000000006,200 ft (1890 m) | 1978 | Interprets an Ancestral Puebloan village occupied from AD 825 to 1125. | |
| Escalante Petrified Forest State Park | Garfield | 70031350000000000001,350 acres (546 ha) | 70035900000000000005,900 ft (1798 m) | 1976 | Features petrified wood and other fossils plus a recreational reservoir. | |
| Flight Park State Recreation Area | Salt Lake and Utah | 7002147000000000000147 acres (60 ha) | 70035146000000000005,146 ft (1569 m) | 2006 | Offers one of the world's best training sites for hang gliding and parasailing, plus a modelport for radio control aircraft. | |
| Fremont Indian State Park and Museum | Sevier | 7002889000000000000889 acres (360 ha) | 70035900000000000005,900 ft (1798 m) | 1987 | Preserves rock art and artifacts from the largest Fremont culture village yet discovered. | |
| Frontier Homestead State Park Museum | Iron | 700111000000000000011 acres (4 ha) | 70035800000000000005,800 ft (1768 m) | 1973 | Preserves historic structures and equipment from the 1850s to the 1920s, including Old Iron Town and an extensive collection of horse-drawn vehicles. Formerly called Iron Mission State Park. | |
| Goblin Valley State Park | Emery | 70033654000000000003,654 acres (1479 ha) | 70035000000000000005,000 ft (1524 m) | 1974 | Showcases an unearthly landscape of hoodoos and other rock formations. | |
| Goosenecks State Park | San Juan | 700110000000000000010 acres (4 ha) | 70034500000000000004,500 ft (1372 m) | 1962 | Overlooks some dramatic meanders of the San Juan River. | |
| Great Salt Lake State Marina | Salt Lake | 7002162000000000000162 acres (66 ha) | 70034200000000000004,200 ft (1280 m) | 1978 | Maintains a public boat launch and 320-slip marina on the Great Salt Lake. | |
| Green River State Park | Emery and Grand | 700153000000000000053 acres (21 ha) | 70034050000000000004,050 ft (1234 m) | 1965 | Features a shady campground, nine-hole golf course, and float trip launching on the Green River. | |
| Gunlock State Park | Washington | 7002549000000000000549 acres (222 ha) | 70033600000000000003,600 ft (1097 m) | 1970 | Adjoins a 266-acre (108 ha) reservoir. | |
| Historic Union Pacific Rail Trail State Park | Summit | 7002450000000000000450 acres (182 ha) | 70036900000000000006,900 ft (2103 m) | 1992 | Comprises a 28-mile (45 km) rail trail on a route used by the Union Pacific Railroad from 1880 to 1989. | |
| Huntington State Park | Emery | 7002111000000000000111 acres (45 ha) | 70035840000000000005,840 ft (1780 m) | 1966 | Features a warm-water reservoir. | |
| Hyrum State Park | Cache | 7002264000000000000264 acres (107 ha) | 70034700000000000004,700 ft (1433 m) | 1959 | Surrounds a 450-acre (180 ha) reservoir. | |
| Jordan River Off-Highway Vehicle State Recreation Area | Salt Lake | 7002350000000000000350 acres (142 ha) | 70034700000000000004,700 ft (1433 m) | 2002 | Offers four tracks for off highway vehicles along the Jordan River. | |
| Jordanelle State Park | Wasatch | 70036166000000000006,166 ft (1879 m) | 1995 | Comprises two recreation areas on Jordanelle Reservoir. | ||
| Kodachrome Basin State Park | Kane | 70032240000000000002,240 acres (906 ha) | 70035800000000000005,800 ft (1768 m) | 1963 | Showcases 67 rock spires and other geologic wonders in a basin so photogenic it was named after Kodachrome film. | |
| Millsite State Park | Emery | 7002638000000000000638 acres (258 ha) | 70036100000000000006,100 ft (1859 m) | Features a reservoir and lands for off highway vehicles and mountain biking. | ||
| Otter Creek State Park | Piute | 700180000000000000080 acres (32 ha) | 70035900000000000005,900 ft (1798 m) | Features a 3,120-acre (1,260 ha) reservoir, begun in 1897 as one of the earliest dam projects in Utah. | ||
| Palisade State Park | Sanpete | 700164000000000000064 acres (26 ha) | 70035800000000000005,800 ft (1768 m) | 1962 | Features a reservoir and 18-hole golf course on the former site of a private resort founded in the 1860s. | |
| Piute State Park | Piute | 700140000000000000040 acres (16 ha) | 70035900000000000005,900 ft (1798 m) | 1963 | Protects a quiet fishing reservoir on the Sevier River. | |
| Quail Creek State Park | Washington | 70033300000000000003,300 ft (1006 m) | 1986 | Adjoins a 600-acre (240 ha) reservoir surrounded by red rock desert. | ||
| Red Fleet State Park | Uintah | 70031963000000000001,963 acres (794 ha) | 70035500000000000005,500 ft (1676 m) | 1988 | Features a 750-acre (300 ha) reservoir and a fossil trackway of dinosaur footprints. | |
| Rockport State Park | Summit | 7002550000000000000550 acres (223 ha) | 70036000000000000006,000 ft (1829 m) | 1966 | Features a 1,080-acre (440 ha) reservoir. | |
| Sand Hollow State Park | Washington | 700420611000000000020,611 acres (8341 ha) | 70033000000000000003,000 ft (914 m) | 2003 | Features a 1,322-acre (535 ha) reservoir and an extensive off highway vehicle recreation area. | |
| Scofield State Park | Carbon | 70037600000000000007,600 ft (2316 m) | 1965 | Features a 2,800-acre (1,100 ha) reservoir. | ||
| Snow Canyon State Park | Washington | 70037400000000000007,400 acres (2995 ha) | 70033100000000000003,100 ft (945 m) | 1962 | Showcases a canyon carved out of colorful Navajo sandstone and landforms created by the Santa Clara Volcano. | |
| Starvation State Park | Duchesne | 70033500000000000003,500 acres (1416 ha) | 70035700000000000005,700 ft (1737 m) | 1972 | Features a 3,495-acre (1,414 ha) reservoir where early settlers once struggled against starvation. | |
| Steinaker State Park | Uintah | 70032283000000000002,283 acres (924 ha) | 70035500000000000005,500 ft (1676 m) | 1964 | Features an 820-acre (330 ha) reservoir. | |
| This Is the Place Heritage Park | Salt Lake | 7002450000000000000450 acres (182 ha) | 70034921000000000004,921 ft (1500 m) | Interprets Utah's settlement era with a living history village and This Is the Place Monument. | ||
| Territorial Statehouse State Park Museum | Millard | 70003000000000000003 acres (1.2 ha) | 70035100000000000005,100 ft (1554 m) | 1957 | Interprets the capitol of Utah Territory, the state's oldest government building, constructed between 1852 and 1855. | |
| Utah Field House of Natural History State Park Museum | Uintah | 70002000000000000002 acres (0.8 ha) | 70035300000000000005,300 ft (1615 m) | 1959 | Houses a state-owned museum of natural history. | |
| Utah Lake State Park | Utah | 7002308000000000000308 acres (125 ha) | 70034500000000000004,500 ft (1372 m) | 1970 | Adjoins Utah Lake, the state's largest body of fresh water. | |
| Wasatch Mountain State Park | Wasatch | 700421592000000000021,592 acres (8738 ha) | 70035900000000000005,900 ft (1798 m) | 1968 | Features extensive recreational developments, including facilities built for the 2002 Winter Olympics. | |
| Willard Bay State Park | Box Elder | 70034200000000000004,200 ft (1280 m) | 1966 | Provides water recreation opportunities on a 9,900-acre (4,000 ha) freshwater reservoir on the floodplain of the Great Salt Lake. | ||
| Yuba State Park | Juab and Sanpete | 700415940000000000015,940 acres (6451 ha) | 70035100000000000005,100 ft (1554 m) | 1970 | Features a reservoir on the Sevier River. |
Famous quotes containing the words state and/or parks:
“The wealthy man is not he who has money, but he who has the means to live in the luxurious state of early spring.”
—Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (1860–1904)
“Perhaps our own woods and fields,—in the best wooded towns, where we need not quarrel about the huckleberries,—with the primitive swamps scattered here and there in their midst, but not prevailing over them, are the perfection of parks and groves, gardens, arbors, paths, vistas, and landscapes. They are the natural consequence of what art and refinement we as a people have.... Or, I would rather say, such were our groves twenty years ago.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)