PIERRE, S.D. (MITCHELLNOW) State Parks Division Director Jeff VanMeteren reported to the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Commission that April usage of South Dakota’s state parks totaled 5,875. That’s up from 4,576, a 23% improvement over April of 2023.
According to the report, those facilities with lodging on site, as opposed to just camp sites, did better. That’s to be expected VanMeteren explained since April in South Dakota tends to be rainier and colder than during the peak of the camping season in the heat of the summer months.
Camping numbers from January through April are up 37%, a harbinger of a good summer season hope officials from the Parks Division of the Game Fish and Parks Department.