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Work in State Parks — flexible schedules, benefits available, starting pay as high as $20/hour!
Shop Wilder Ranch Merch
Support the flood recovery efforts at Wilder Ranch State Park when you shop online
Visit Big Basin Redwoods State Park
Many trails are open! Come enjoy Big Basin. Make a reservation to visit.
Castro Adobe Open House Tours
Visit Castro Adobe State Historic Park during a monthly open house event.
Seacliff State Beach Recovery Fund
In the wake of devastating winter storms, make a donation to support long-term recovery efforts.
What's New
Make your state parks adventures easier with a Golden Poppy Pass. Valid at all local state parks and beaches, this pass is available in the ParkStore Online.
SHOP
New bilingual interpretive panels have been installed at Seabright State Beach and the historic Castle Beach gate has been restored. Check them out next time you visit.
EXPLORE
Flash flooding at Wilder Ranch State Park damaged portions of the park’s historic dairy ranch. Your help is needed to support the short-term response and long-term recovery efforts.
DONATE
The Horse Camp at Rancho Del Oso Unit on the coast side of Big Basin is open for interim walk-in and bike-in, non-equestrian camping. Reservations required.
CAMPPlan Your Visit
Our Mission, Our Passion
Our local parks and beaches: thriving and available to all!
Friends of Santa Cruz State Parks (Friends) is a vital partner with California State Parks, creatively working to ensure our cherished local parks and beaches are thriving and available to all. Friends’ innovative and collaborative community partnership provides support and investment for education, equity and inclusion, conservation, facilities improvements, historic preservation and cultural events.
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🔥 Prescribed burn update!
Repost bigbasin_sp
The Natural Resources crew's efforts to burn some of the debris left over from the CZU Lightning Complex Fire incident have been going well. They had a couple of days of good conditions for reducing fuel along Johansen Road between China Grade and Middle Ridge Road.
Today was too wet though, so the crew will be keeping an eye on the plot while they wait for it to dry out enough to keep going. That means there will be no lighting today or Saturday, April 27. The crew's current plan is to get back at it on Sunday, April 28 and start working their way down China Grade Road from its intersection with Johansen Road.
Be sure to visit our website www.parks.ca.gov/santacruzprescribedburns to stay informed about our efforts to preserve our public lands, improve biodiversity, and ensure a safer environment for our community.
📷: A Natural Resource crew in yellow turnout gear with hose poses for a quick photo with recovering redwood trees behind them while working on a very steep slope securing the edges of the prescribed burn plot in Big Basin.
📍 Ohlone Tribal Land
#BigBasin #BigBasinRedwoodsStatePark #ThatsMyPark #PrescribedBurns #RXFire #GoodFire mountainparksfoundation friendsofscstateparks
🔥 Prescribed burn update!
The Natural Resources crew's efforts to burn some of the debris left over from the CZU Lightning Complex Fire incident have been going well. They had a couple of days of good conditions for reducing fuel along Johansen Road between China Grade and Middle Ridge Road.
Today was too wet though, so the crew will be keeping an eye on the plot while they wait for it to dry out enough to keep going. That means there will be no lighting today or Saturday, April 27. The crew's current plan is to get back at it on Sunday, April 28 and start working their way down China Grade Road from its intersection with Johansen Road.
Be sure to visit our website www.parks.ca.gov/santacruzprescribedburns to stay informed about our efforts to preserve our public lands, improve biodiversity, and ensure a safer environment for our community.
📷: A Natural Resource crew in yellow turnout gear with hose poses for a quick photo with recovering redwood trees behind them while working on a very steep slope securing the edges of the prescribed burn plot in Big Basin.
📍 Ohlone Tribal Land
#BigBasin #BigBasinRedwoodsStatePark #ThatsMyPark #PrescribedBurns #RXFire #GoodFire mountainparksfoundation friendsofscstateparks
Throwback to the rainy weather 🌧️ when Dylan McManus, an interpreter at Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park, showed us the world of salamanders. 🦎
Check out the youtube video linked in our bio.
@santacruzmountainsstateparks
#Thatsmypark #Salamander #Wildlife #Video #Nature #Forest #Redwoods #SantaCruz
🌎 Earth Day Every Day!
🌸 We celebrate the planet year round at Big Basin and there is always something going on. Currently many wildflowers are starting to bloom. Some say this is the most flowering Big Basin has seen since the park was established in 1902. Why you may ask?…Sunshine!
☀️ The CZU Lightning Complex fire depleted the Redwood canopy which is a major tragedy, but consider another perspective. The lack of shading limbs and leaves is now allowing more sunlight onto the forest floor. With the addition of a couple of very wet winters, this has made some other plants very happy. Though this not typical for a Redwood forest, this is post-fire succession. Mother Nature is in charge here, and she is teaching us how to go with the flow.
👃 Oh, and don’t forget to smell the Ceanothus along the way!
#BackToBigBasin #SaveTheRedwoods #SempervirensFund #VisitSantaCruz #BigBasin #ThatsMyPark #MountainParksFoundation #SantaCruzMountains #ReimaginingBigBasin #CZULightningComplexFire #hilltromper
📷Image: Fernald’s Iris (Iris fernaldii) - Yellowish/white flower with alternating three large and small petals striped with yellow and dark purple.
📷Image: Western Starflower (Lysimachia latifolia) - tiny pinkish and light purple star shaped flowers with 6-7 petals against large bright green leaves against Redwood forest floor.
📷Image: Blueblossom Ceanothus (Ceanothus thyrsiflorus) - Clusters of light purple flowers on bush-like plant with elongated and veiny leaves.
📍Cotoni and Quiroste Land
Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park has two distinct environments: the redwood forest and the sandhills. Book one of the 113 campground sites for a weekend trip and explore what the park has to offer.
@santacruzmountainsstateparks
#Thatsmypark #Trails #Forest #Environment #RedwoodTrees #StatePark #Sandhills #Explore
👩❤️👨 Tribute tables are a wonderful way to celebrate loved ones and your love of local state parks! Mark a significant moment such as a birthday or first date, or memorialize a loved one’s passing, by dedicating a picnic table at your favorite park or beach. (Graduations, Mother's Day and Father's Day are all coming up too! Hint, hint.)
🎉 Learn how Alex Conway of Ben Lomond wanted to surprise her partner Gilbert with a gift that he wasn't expecting for his birthday — something that celebrated the couple, their time together and the spirit of their relationship.
🎁 Discover all the gifts of Tribute Tables: https://hilltromper.com/article/tribute-tables-celebrate-milestones-and-love-state-parks
friendsofscstateparks santacruzmountainsstateparks santacruzstatebeaches
#Hilltromper #TributeTables #ThatsMyPark #ThatsMyBeach #SantaCruz