This Land, Your Land

North Carolina's state parks had a banner year in 2011, recording 14.25 million visits, which matches the all-time record set in 2009 and slightly exceeds the 14.19 million park visits in 2010, the N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation said in a news release today.

Jockey’s Ridge State Park in Dare County had the highest attendance last year at 1.32 million visits, which was actually a bit fewer than 2010's 1.47 million.

Among 39 state parks and state recreation areas, 15 reported increases in attendance in 2011.

Parks with significant increases in visitation include Dismal Swamp State Park in Camden County (34 percent), Elk Knob State Park in Watauga County (50 percent), Jones Lake State Park in Bladen County (26 percent), Kerr Lake State Recreation Area in Vance County (24 percent) and Medoc Mountain State Park in Halifax County (31 percent).

Several parks with new or improved amenities opening last year saw big jumps in attendance. A new 700-foot swim beach and picnic area at Lake James State Park opened for its first full season, and the park saw a 70 percent jump in visitation. A renovated marina opened at Carolina Beach State Park, a new equestrian trail network opened at Medoc Mountain and a number of hiking trails, including a volunteer-built summit trail, opened at Elk Knob.

Full attendance figures are available here.

Jones Lake State Park in Bladen County, below, was one of several state parks to see attendance increases in 2011. Click on the photo for more information about Jones Lake.

The state has added more than 1,500 acres of natural woodlands to the Bladen Lakes State Forest near Elizabethtown, The Fayetteville Observer reported Tuesday.

Bladen Lakes State Forest encompasses about 33,000 acres adjacent to Jones Lake and Singletary Lake state parks and Turnbull Creek Educational State Forest. White Lake is nearby, as well.

Bladen Lakes is one of the largest state-owned forests in North Carolina, The Observer says. It has 130 miles of dirt roads, and is open for hunting, fishing, camping, hiking and horseback riding, but requires permits.

The 1,562-acre addition comprises an approximately 777-acre Prestage tract, a 683-acre Boyette tract and the approximately 140-acre Stevens tract.