The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission has announced 12 free days for visiting state parks in 2016. The U.S Bureau of Land Management has also announced fee-free days.
The first free day at Washington State Parks is Jan. 1; visitors are not required to display the Discover Pass to visit state park on free days.
The “free days” are in keeping with legislation that created the Discover Pass. Passes cost $30 for an annual pass or $10 for a one-day permit. Passes are required for vehicle access to state recreation lands managed by Washington State Parks, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife and the Department of Natural Resources. The free days apply only at state parks; the Discover Pass is still required on WDFW and DNR lands.
“We are happy to offer the free days to give folks a chance to check out some of the parks,” said State Parks Director Don Hoch. “We hope that the free days give people a taste of the parks that are out there to enjoy and that they will consider buying a pass to support the park system. We appreciate our pass holders and really depend on revenue from the Discover Pass program to keep operating parks.”
The 2016 State Parks free days are:
• Thursday, Jan. 1 – New Year’s Day and State Parks’ First Day Hikes Day
• Sunday and Monday, Jan. 17 and 18 – Martin Luther King Jr. Day
• Saturday, March 19 – Washington State Parks’ 103rd birthday
• Saturday, March 26
• Friday, April 22 – Earth Day
• Sunday, May 8 –Mothers Day
• Saturday, June 4 – National Trails Day
• Saturday, June 11 – National Get Outdoors Day
• Thursday, Aug. 25 – National Park Service 100th birthday
• Saturday, Sept. 24 – National Public Lands Day
• Friday, Nov. 11 – Veterans Day
More information about the Discover Pass is at www.discoverpass.wa.gov.
Fee-free days on Bureau of Land Management sites are:
• Jan. 18
• Feb. 13 to 15
• Sept. 24 – National Public Lands Day and
• Nov. 11.
