Washington State Parks announce 12 free days in 2016

OLYMPIA, Wash. — The Washington State Parks Commission announced that New Years Day will be the first of 12 free days in 2016. Free days allow visitors admission into the parks without a Discover Pass.

In 2016, seven of the twelve free days will take place over the weekend. These free days are in keeping with legislation that created the Discover Pass, providing that State Parks could designate up to 12 free days per year. Free days apply only to state parks; Discover Passes are still required on WDFW and DNR lands on these days.

“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 as follows:

January 1 – (Thursday) New Year’s Day and State Parks’ First Day Hikes Day
January 17 and 18 – (Sunday and Monday) Martin Luther King Jr. Day March 19 – (Saturday) Washington State Parks’ 103rd birthday
March 26 – (Saturday) A springtime free Saturday April 22 – (Friday) Earth Day May 8 – (Sunday) A springtime free Sunday June 4 – (Saturday) National Trails Day June 11 – (Saturday) National Get Outdoors Day Aug. 25 – (Thursday) National Park Service 100th birthday Sept. 24 – (Saturday) National Public Lands Day Nov. 11 – (Friday) Veterans Day