First Day Hike gets people onto hiking trails in winter

Tennessee State Parks will sponsor free, guided hikes at all 56 parks beginning on December 31, and going throughout the day on January 1. At Carolina Beach State Park, Edwards said about 30 people hiked on New Year’s Day last year.

So what better way to start your new year then with a little exercise and a serving of good luck? This is the program’s fifth year and it is sponsored by America’s State Parks.

For Jan. 1, 2016, over 1,000 guided hikes are organized in 50 states.

Along the way, hikers walked through the woods of the Sinking Stream Trail.

“It is my strongly held belief that if people get out there and meet the Eno and spend some time with her they will want to protect it, they will want to come back and do more and make sure it stays this way for generations to come”, said Stabenow.

Red Fleet State Park: If starting off 2016 walking along a trail featuring over 200 dinosaur tracks sounds appealing than the Dinosaur Track Hike is for you.

Missouri State Parks have more than 230 trails in 58 parks and historic sites. Indiana Dunes State Park is located at 1600 N. County Road 25E in Chesterton, at the northern terminus of Indiana 49.

Some hikers have their own tradition ringing in the new year: spending the first day of the year outside.

State park staff and volunteers will lead the hikes, which average one to two miles or longer depending on the state park.

Hayes adds the Delaware State Parks hikes will be of varying difficulty, lengths and speeds. “I like to have the opportunity to connect with nature”. For more information about hikes across the country, visit: www.naspd.org/initiatives-special-programs/first-day-hikes/.

If you’ve declared war on your bad health habits with a New Year’s resolution or two, you’re not alone. For more information on this hike, the park can be reached at 435-648-2800.

Day-use parking at OR state parks is normally $5 per vehicle. Meet at 10 a.m.at the Paddy’s Creek Area bathhouse breezeway. Admission to the park is $7; free for ages 12 and younger. Meet at 8 a.m.in front of the Old Rock Café, adjacent to the park entrance. Leasburg Dam State Park – Radium Springs – 10 a.m. 9.

Time: 1 p.m. – 2 p.m. Location: Pyramid Mountain, intersection of Mars Court and Boonton Ave in Montville N.J.