Attendance at North Carolina’s state parks set a new record in 2015. George Olsen has more.
The Governor’s Office reports attendance at the state’s 39 parks was over 17.3 million in 2015, up from 15.6 million in 2014. It’s the third straight year attendance numbers have set a record. Of the 39 parks, 30 reported increased usage last year over the prior. Jordan Lake State Recreation Area in Chatham County led the way with 1.6 million visits, while five other state parks… including Fort Macon… having over a million visitors. Several parks reported significant increases in attendance, including Gorges State Park whose visitor numbers were up 48 percent from 2014. State Parks Director Mike Murphy hopes for a fourth straight year of record attendance as 2016 marks the 100-year anniversary of the state park system. I’m George Olsen.