Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Director Mary Mertz highlighted the state parks recently earning the 2025 National Gold Medal Award for Excellence in Park and Recreation Management from the American Academy for Park and Recreation Administration, something she said is a result of parks staff’s work.
“We think of our parks as the gateway to the great outdoors and we hope this center will be a gateway to Buck Creek State Park, where you can learn a little bit [and] get inspired to get out there and hit the trails or hit the water and just have a great time,” Mertz said.
Credit: Jessica Orozco
Credit: Jessica Orozco
The nature center includes furs from a beaver, coyote and a deer to teach visitors how they protect animals in different ways, Mertz said. The center also has pleasant nature smells and different frog calls.
Visitors can also learn about the aquatic life in the reservoir and take a picture with a large cardboard muskie, Mertz said.
“We hope this facility will make visitors feel welcome,” Mertz said. “We hope it will ... set them up for a successful experience so they have a great time and they come again and again and share that great experience with others.”
The new marina and nature center stand where the original marina store stood. It was demolished last year.
Ohio is one of the few states that offers free entry into its national parks. It just added Great Council State Park between Xenia and Yellow Springs to its list of 76 total state parks.
People use state parks more than ever before, DeWine said, with many being reintroduced during the COVID-19 pandemic.
In 2024, there were more than 1.1 million overnight stays in state parks, said ODNR division of Parks and Watercraft Deputy Chief Brady Johnson.
“That’s families and cabins, that’s friends sitting around campfires,” Johnsons aid. “That’s going out adventuring in tents, exploring every corner of the state that we have here.”
Credit: Jessica Orozco
Credit: Jessica Orozco
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