They came, they saw, they hiked: Oregon state parks see near-record visitations in 2023

You don’t have to tell Oregonians, or the tourists the state draws, to stop and smell the roses.

Oregon State Parks continued to experience near record-breaking levels of both day use and camping in 2023.

It was the second busiest year for day-use visits with an estimated at 52.2 million visits, just behind the historic record of 53 million in 2021, according to a release from the Oregon Parks and Recreation Dept.

It was the fourth busiest camping year with 2.9 million camper nights, which is slightly less than the record high of 3 million in 2021.

The popularity of the parks is the reason for the department’s general obligation bonds projects totaling $50 million in improvements to aging infrastructure and to protect Oregon’s resources with projects at nine parks. The work also will add visitor facilities and expand camping at several parks, including Champoeg State Heritage Area between Newberg and Woodburn, as well as Silver Falls State Park near Silverton by 2026. The improvements were funded by bonds approved by the Oregon Legislature in 2021.

Parks with the largest increases in day-use visits include Beachside State Recreation Site, Ecola State Park, Harris Beach State Recreation Area (most visited in the state), Oswald West State Park, Maud Williamson State Recreation Site, Lewis and Clark State Recreation Site, Clyde Holiday State Recreation Site and Farewell Bend State Recreation Site.

Camping was slightly down overall due in part to closures at two popular campgrounds, Beverly Beach State Park and Bullards Beach State Park, which were closed starting in the fall for construction projects.

The valley and mountain region saw a slight increase in camping, however, with some of the largest increases at Detroit Lake State Park, Milo McIver State Park, Prineville Reservoir State Park and Lake Owyhee State Park.

In February, the department started its 2024 seasonal recruitment effort to hire 250 seasonal rangers and ranger assistants with the goal of filling all those roles this year.

Parks with some of the lowest visitation include Catherine Creek State Park, Bates State Park, Jackson F Kimball State Recreation Site, Unity Lake State Park, Cottonwood Canyon State Park, Clay Myers State Natural Area at Whalen Island and Golden and Silver Falls State Natural Area.