Visits to NY state parks up by nearly 10 percent this summer

PHOTOGRAPHER: Peter R. Barber

A bicyclist uses the new section of the bike path in Saratoga Spa State Park on Friday, July 24, 2015.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo says attendance at state parks, historic sites and campgrounds increased by nearly 10 percent this summer.

Cuomo announced Wednesday that nearly 38.6 million estimated visits were recorded from Memorial Day weekend through last Monday, Labor Day, a 9.6-percent increase from the same summer period in 2014.

State officials credit the attendance boost in part to good weather throughout the summer, a late Labor Day, improvements to the new Buffalo Harbor State Park and the return of fireworks to Long Island’s Jones Beach after a five-year absence.

New York in the midst of a multi-year initiative to invest $900 million into improving the nation’s oldest state park system, which includes 180 parks and 35 historic sites.