State Park Bonanza

It’s finally starting to warm up, which means for many of us we will be planning campouts and vacations aplenty. When I was young, my mother had her hands full with me and my siblings, and so, when school got out for the summer, she would take us to libraries and parks to keep us busy and out of trouble. I don’t know which I liked best, because both were equally enjoyable as a kid, and my memory is chock-full of the different books I read each summer as well as my favorite parks. Despite the fact that I haven’t had a proper summer vacation in over ten years, I still find time to visit the library and a park or two before summer’s end.

This summer can provide a similar, yet unique experience due to a partnership between the libraries in Utah and the State Parks. You can visit your local Wasatch County Library and, with your library card, check out a State Parks pass that allows you to bypass the fees to enter any of Utah’s 43 state parks. If you have any questions about how the pass works, you can ask the librarian for more details. It’s a great way to get out and explore Utah while saving a little cash in the process. And who doesn’t like saving money?

Just think, you could go to the library and check out a few books on Antelope Island or Goblin Valley, and then visit those places and be a sort of mini expert on the park because of what you read. I know a guy who reads all kinds of books about his next vacation destination, whether it’s Chicago or Rome, and then goes and enjoys it more because he has a small bit of background on that location. I’m the type of person who figures I’ll learn about the place as I explore it, but I’ll admit it would be nice to know more about an area before I go.

The last time I visited Antelope Island, I was surprised to find out that people actually lived out there at one time. I thought it was a desolate island in the middle of a salty lake that had random bison living on it. I had no idea how the bison arrived on the island. That wasn’t really something I had thought about before, but after leaving the park I knew a little bit more about our state’s unique history. Not only was the trip highly informative, but it also gave me a chance to see some wonderful scenery and wildlife.

Utah is known for its National Parks, but the State Parks are no less interesting and even breathtaking at times. And there is a variety of activities that the various parks offer, from boating to hiking to digging for dinosaur bones. If you’re really ambitious, you could visit three or four of the State Parks within one day, but the ability to “rent” a park pass from the library makes it easy to visit the parks at your leisure. It’s the perfect educationally entertaining and engaging program if you have children. There is so much to learn from Utah’s landscape, and discoveries are waiting for you and your family to happen upon them.