Indiana State Parks geared up for busy summer season

Jun. 12—Despite — or perhaps aided by — the coronavirus pandemic, Indiana State Parks welcomed record-breaking numbers of people last year.

"Last year, wow, they came by the millions," said Angie Manuel, interpretive manager for Indiana State Parks. "Maybe the things people enjoy doing were more indoors or group-related. They couldn't do those things so they came to a state park or natural area where you could space out and it was healthier."

As a result, relatively few events at the parks had to be canceled. Rather, those events happened with "extra precautions," according to Manuel, and most of them were outdoors.

This year, with increasing numbers of Hoosiers being fully vaccinated and a growing sense that the worst of the pandemic has passed, parks officials expect business to boom again.

'We had most of our activities going last year, but there were restrictions on the number of people we could have," said Vernon Gillum, property manager at Tippecanoe River State Park in Winamac. "We're looking forward to having some of those restrictions lifted and getting back to normal."

There will still be reminders that the pandemic looms large in the process of event planning and presentation. Many staffers are still wearing masks, even outdoors, and some programs will likely be duplicated in multiple time slots or on different days to allow for smaller crowds.

"Our staff still identifies safety protocols and are still cognizant of that," Manuel said. "They're not packing 100 people into an auditorium for a program. They may have 100 people outside at an amphitheater, so they are still cognizant of safety and social distancing and when it's appropriate to have hands-on activities or things like that."

Nature, history and recreation are the significant themes of most of the parks' planned programming this summer, Manuel said. One unusual offering is planned at Clifty Falls State Park, where the public will be able to tour 30 vintage campers and RVs — some built in the 1950s.

"Last year we tried to have it for our centennial, but it was only people who were camping could come," said Kayla Leach, a naturalist at Clifty Falls, in Madison. "This year we're opening up to the public so more people will have a chance to see them."

She added that the campers will be parked at Clifty Falls' campsites, and all the spots have been filled.

In addition to swimming, hiking, camping and other recreational activities, state parks offer a wealth of historic and cultural attractions, Manuel said.

"We have a lot of historic features like Spring Mill Village (in Mitchell), the prehistoric mounds at Mounds State Park (in Anderson)," she said.

"A lot of our properties have (similar) features, so we do cultural history programs, too. And we do a lot of recreation-based programming — lots of paddling hikes, bike hikes, lots of campground, campfire programs, so nature, history and recreation — all of those."

Also prominent among the hundreds of program offerings, Manuel said, are informational sessions on natural resources such as plants, animals, water, birds and bugs.

"Obviously, cicadas are a huge thing this summer," she said. "So is fishing. We do lots of fishing programs, fishing derbies."

With the Fourth of July a few weeks away, Manuel said that "only a handful" of properties will offer fireworks displays. Those include Pokagon State Park in Angola, Raccoon State Recreation Area in Rockville and possibly Versailles State Park in Versailles, she said.

Even though many activities will look similar to last year, staffers at many state parks have already noticed a different vibe among visitors as mask mandates and other pandemic-related restrictions continue to ease.

"A lot of people kind of rediscovered the outdoors last year and wanted to continue on with that," Gillum said. "We're seeing a lot of people coming into the parks and wanting to enjoy them."

Added Manuel: "I think what we're seeing is that last year, they came to us maybe out of necessity. They didn't have anywhere else to go and spend their leisure time, so they went to a state park. And they have figured out this year, that was pretty cool."

Follow Andy Knight on Twitter @Andrew_J_Knight, or call 765-640-4809.