Maintained by the Kentucky Department of Parks, Kentucky's system of 49
state park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural ...
s has been referred to as "the nation's finest" and experiences more repeat business annually than those of any other
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...
.
The state's diverse geography provides a variety of environments to experience. From mountain lakes to expansive caves to forests teeming with wildlife, park-goers have their choice of attractions, and they are all within a day's drive of each other.
Unless otherwise specified, data in the following lists are taken from ''Kentucky State Parks'' by Bill Bailey.
Although the
Kentucky Horse Park
Kentucky Horse Park is a working horse farm, international equestrian competition venue, and an educational theme park opened in 1978 in Lexington, Kentucky. It is located off Kentucky State Highway 1973 (Iron Works Pike) and Interstate 75, at Exi ...
is owned by the Commonwealth of Kentucky, it is administered separately from the Department of Parks.
Breaks Interstate Park
Breaks Interstate Park is a bi-state state park located partly in southeastern Kentucky and mostly in southwestern Virginia, in the Jefferson National Forest, at the northeastern terminus of Pine Mountain. Rather than their respective state par ...
is also separate, administered under an
interstate compact
The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. Th ...
with the state of
Virginia
Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States, between the Atlantic Coast and the Appalachian Mountains. The geography and climate of the Commonwealth ar ...
, in partnership with the parks departments of both states.
State recreational parks
Kentucky's 24 "rec parks" span the state from
Columbus
Columbus is a Latinized version of the Italian surname "''Colombo''". It most commonly refers to:
* Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Italian explorer
* Columbus, Ohio, capital of the U.S. state of Ohio
Columbus may also refer to:
Places ...
to
Pikeville. Each features outdoor camping areas with a variety of outdoor activities.
State resort parks
Kentucky offers more state resort parks than any other state. Each features a lodge complete with dining room and
Wi-Fi
Wi-Fi () is a family of wireless network protocols, based on the IEEE 802.11 family of standards, which are commonly used for local area networking of devices and Internet access, allowing nearby digital devices to exchange data by radio wave ...
wireless Internet access.
State historic sites
Ten of Kentucky's recreational parks and two of its resort parks are simultaneously designated as state historic sites. An additional eleven state historic sites are also maintained by the Kentucky Department of Parks.
See also
*
List of Kentucky state forests
*
List of U.S. national parks
References
External links
Kentucky Department of Parks
{{Lists of state parks by U.S. state
Kentucky state parks
Maintained by the Kentucky Department of Parks, Kentucky's system of 49 state parks has been referred to as "the nation's finest" and experiences more repeat business annually than those of any other U.S. state. The state's diverse geography provi ...