San Francisco is known for its beautiful parks, and many areas in the Bay Area are filled with large, sweeping parks and reserves open for the public to enjoy. Now, San Franciscans can look forward to a new state park that will open next month.
The park, nestled in the San Joaquin Valley is just two hours from San Francisco. The new state park will open on June 12, making it California’s first new state park in almost a decade.
“ …The Golden State’s natural beauty is unmatched and we’re laser-focused on ensuring every Californian can enjoy these spaces,” said Governor Gavin Newsom in a press release. “And the benefits don’t just stop at recreation – this park is a key asset to fighting the climate crisis, home to the state’s largest floodplain restoration project. We’re not just protecting these spaces, we’re restoring them for future generations.”
The 1,600-acre park is part of a large-scale floodplain restoration project. The project was led by the nonprofit River Partners, which embarked on a 10-year project to protect the floodplain’s natural wildlife. The Dos Rios Ranch Preserve, which has now become the Dos Rios State Park, is at the intersection of the San Joaquin and Tuolumne rivers. The project has benefited from $40 million in funding to help the floodplains, resulting in over 2,000 acres restored and planting 280,000 trees.
“Opening Dos Rios is a game changer,” said California Natural Resources Secretary Wade Crowfoot. “It provides a beautiful riverfront destination for San Joaquin Valley residents to get outside and recreate, in a part of the state with few such places. It also provides a new model of a multi-benefit park that also reduces flood risk for local communities, provides a refuge for local residents during worsening heat waves, and restores the natural environment of the Central Valley to benefit local wildlife.”
The new park has hiking available along with picnic tables. Recreational activities including swimming, biking and boating have yet to be implicated.