2.3 Million More People Visited New York State Parks Over Last Summer

The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation recently announced that nearly 43.7 million people visited state parks and historic sites from the first of the year until now. It is a 2.3 million increase over the same time frame in 2011.

State parks commissioner Rose Harvey attributed the 5.6 percent increase in visits to great weather as well as a number of well attended events, including a number of sold out concerts this summer at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center and Nik Wallenda’s tightrope walk across Niagara Falls in June.

The New York State Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation oversees 178 state parks and 35 historic sites.

(photo of Buttermilk Falls in Ithaca, NY)