Minnesotans are embracing the outdoors and visiting state parks with increasing frequency to hike, camp and bike — some of them for the first time.
Since 2003, the state's annual park visits have grown 25 percent, outpacing population growth. The biggest crowd came in 2016, when the parks logged 10.3 million visits. That was followed by a slight downturn in 2017, which Erika Rivers, state parks and trails director with the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, attributed to a rainy summer.
The growth coincides with record-breaking interest in national parks and a shift from far-off vacations to more local camping trips.
In Minnesota, much of the growth can be attributed to 2008's Clean Water, Land and Legacy Amendment, Rivers said. The ⅜ percent tax has paid for $2 billion dollars in projects that include millions in state park improvements.
At Minneopa State Park near Mankato, the funds brought a herd of 20 bison to the prairie land park. Massive bulls, cows and caramel-colored calves now range on land they used to roam centuries ago. The return has attracted droves of curious onlookers peeking from their car windows — the park saw a 35 percent increase in attendance after the animals were added in 2015.
"Overall it's been a boost for us here," said Todd Dailey, assistant park manager at Minneopa.
The park that saw the biggest percentage increase in visits since 2003 was Cuyuna Country State Recreation Area, which added a network of mountain biking trails. And the state's most popular parks — attendance juggernauts mostly along the North Shore or near the Twin Cities — saw hundreds of thousands of visitors in 2017. Gooseberry Falls State Park was the most popular park with nearly 900,000 visits.
The Legacy Amendment also led to the I Can! Program Series that eases wary participants into camping, mountain biking and other activities.