Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park

State park in Washington State, United States

47°35′41″N 119°21′55″W / 47.59472°N 119.36528°W / 47.59472; -119.36528^[1]Area3,774 acres (15.27 km²)Elevation1,270 ft (390 m)^[1]Established1933OperatorWashington State Parks and Recreation CommissionWebsiteSun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park

Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park (formerly, Sun Lakes State Park) is a public recreation area located at the foot of Dry Falls, three miles (4.8 km) west of Coulee City in Grant County, Washington. The state park covers 3,774 acres (1,527 ha) along Route 17 at the head of the Lower Grand Coulee.^[2]

Park history

The state purchased land to create the state park from 1933 through 1972. Fifteen parcels were purchased from the Bureau of Land Management, the Department of Natural Resources, and private interests. The Civilian Conservation Corps built rock walls and a lookout at Dry Falls called Vista House in 1938. The CCC workers also constructed a residence and water pump house.

The Camp Delany group retreat facility^[3] was added to the park in 1956, the buildings at Sun Lakes Park Resort were constructed in 1959, and the interpretive center overlooking Dry Falls was built in 1965.^[4]

Features

Dry Falls is a stark cliff measuring 400 feet (120 m) high and 3.5 miles (5.6 km) wide. It was the site of a waterfall formed during the Missoula Floods which was ten times the size of Niagara Falls. The cliff overlooks a desert oasis filled with lakes and abundant wildlife.^[2] It is a prime example of shrub-steppe habitat.

Umatilla Rock is a large basalt rock which resisted being eroded by the Great Floods.^[5] Its location is downstream of the falls and upstream of the main park and resort. Nearby lakes include Dry Falls, Perch, Red Alkali, Green Alkali, and Meadow.^[6]

Activities and amenities

The park has 73,640 feet (22,450 m) of lake shoreline and offers fishing, swimming, boating, hiking, and golf. The park's interpretive center offers exhibits on area geology.^[2]

The Umatilla Rock Trail is accessible via a dirt road from the main portion of the park. The trailhead is located near the southwest portion of the rock. The five-mile round-trip trail navigates the outer circumference of the rock. An alternate section cuts up and over a notch on the northeast portion of the rock.^[7]

Sun Lakes Park Resort

The Sun Lakes Park Resort, a privately operated recreational area leased from the state, is located within the park along Park Lake. It includes an RV park, rental cabins, a golf course, concessions, and rentals for boats and other watersports equipment.^[8]^[9]

References

^ ^a ^b "Sun Lakes State Park". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park". Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
^ "Camp Delany at Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park". Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
^ Brae, Heron J. (January 21, 2011). "A Floristic Study of Sun Lakes State Park in Eastern Washington" (PDF). Evergreen State College. p. 7. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
^ Peters, E. Kirsten; Davis, Larry E. (2001). Geology from Experience: Hands-on Labs and Problems in Physical Geology. New York: W.H. Freeman and Co. p. 241. ISBN 0716731452. OCLC 44683589.
^ "Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park Map". Retrieved September 9, 2018.
^ "Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park—Umatilla Rock via Monument Coulee". Washington Trails Association. Retrieved September 9, 2018.
^ Cantwell, Brian J. (July 27, 2013). "Water, warmth and wonders at Sun Lakes/Dry Falls State Park". The Seattle Times. Retrieved July 19, 2020.
^ Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park (Map). Washington State Parks. August 4, 2016. Retrieved July 19, 2020.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sun Lakes — Dry Falls State Park.

Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park.

Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission
Sun Lakes-Dry Falls State Park Map Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission

Protected areas of Washington

Federal

National Parks	Mount Rainier North Cascades Olympic
National Monuments	Hanford Reach (USFWS) Mount St. Helens Volcanic (USFS) San Juan Islands (BLM)
National Historical Parks and Sites	Fort Vancouver NHS Klondike Gold Rush NHP Lewis and Clark NHP Manhattan Project NHP Nez Perce NHP San Juan Island NHP Whitman Mission NHS
National Historical Reserves	Ebey's Landing
National Trails	Ice Age Floods National Geologic Trail Lewis and Clark National Historic Trail Pacific Crest Trail Pacific Northwest Trail
NPS National Recreation Areas	Lake Chelan Lake Roosevelt Ross Lake
National Wildlife Refuges	Billy Frank Jr. Nisqually Columbia Conboy Lake Copalis Dungeness Flattery Rocks Franz Lake Grays Harbor Julia Butler Hansen Refuge for the Columbian White-Tailed Deer Little Pend Oreille McNary Pierce Protection Island Quillayute Needles Ridgefield Saddle Mountain San Juan Islands Steigerwald Lake Toppenish Turnbull Umatilla Willapa
National Forests	Colville Gifford Pinchot Idaho Panhandle Kaniksu Mount Baker–Snoqualmie Okanogan–Wenatchee Olympic Umatilla Wenatchee
USFS National Recreation Areas	Mount Baker
National Wilderness	Alpine Lakes Boulder River The Brothers Buckhorn Clearwater Colonel Bob Daniel J. Evans Glacier Peak Glacier View Goat Rocks Henry M. Jackson Indian Heaven Juniper Dunes Lake Chelan-Sawtooth Ridge Mount Adams Mount Baker Mount Rainier Mount Skokomish Noisy-Diobsud Norse Peak Pasayten Salmo-Priest San Juan Stephen Mather Tatoosh Trapper Creek Washington Islands Wenaha–Tucannon Wild Sky William O. Douglas Wonder Mountain
National Marine Sanctuary and National Estuarine Research Reserve	Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary Padilla Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve
National Wild and Scenic Rivers	Illabot Klickitat Pratt Skagit Snoqualmie White Salmon

State

State Parks	Alta Lake Anderson Lake Battle Ground Lake Bay View Beacon Rock Belfair Birch Bay Blake Island Blind Island Bogachiel Bottle Beach Bridgeport Bridle Trails Brooks Memorial Cama Beach Camano Island Camp Wooten Retreat Center Cape Disappointment Clark Island Columbia Hills Columbia Plateau Trail Conconully Crawford Curlew Lake Cutts Island Daroga Dash Point Deception Pass Doe Island Dosewallips Doug's Beach Eagle Island Federation Forest Fields Spring Flaming Geyser Forks of the Sky Fort Casey Fort Columbia Fort Ebey Fort Flagler Fort Simcoe Fort Townsend Fort Worden Ginkgo Petrified Forest Goldendale Observatory Grayland Beach Griffiths-Priday Harstine Island Hope Island (Mason County) Hope Island (Skagit County) Ike Kinswa Illahee Iron Horse Jackson House James Island Jarrell Cove Joemma Beach Jones Island Joseph Whidbey Kanaskat-Palmer Kinney Point Kitsap Memorial Klickitat Trail Kopachuck Lake Chelan Lake Easton Lake Lenore Caves Lake Sammamish Lake Sylvia Lake Wenatchee Larrabee Leadbetter Point Lewis and Clark Lewis and Clark Trail Lime Kiln Point Lincoln Rock Lyons Ferry Manchester Maryhill Matia Island Matilda Jackson McMicken Island Millersylvania Moran Mount Pilchuck Mount Spokane Mystery Bay Nolte Obstruction Pass Ocean City Olallie Olmstead Place Pacific Beach Pacific Pines Palouse Falls Palouse to Cascades Paradise Point Patos Island Peace Arch Pearrygin Lake Penrose Point Peshastin Pinnacles Pleasant Harbor Posey Island Potholes Potlatch Rainbow Falls Rasar Reed Island Riverside Rockport Sacajawea Saddlebag Island Saint Edward Saltwater Scenic Beach Schafer Seaquest Sequim Bay Shine Tidelands Skagit Island South Whidbey Spencer Spit Spokane River Centennial Trail Spring Creek Hatchery Squak Mountain Squilchuck Steamboat Rock Steptoe Battlefield Steptoe Butte Stretch Point Stuart Island Sucia Island Sun Lakes-Dry Falls Tolmie Triton Cove Turn Island Twanoh Twenty-Five Mile Creek Twin Harbors Wallace Falls Wanapum Recreational Area Wenatchee Confluence Westport Light Willapa Hills Trail Willie Keil's Grave Yakima Sportsman
State Forests	Ahtanum Capitol Elbe Hills Green Mountain Loomis Loup Loup Tahuya Teanaway Tiger Mountain Yacolt Burn
Natural Area Preserves	Admiralty Inlet Badger Gulch Bald Hill Barker Mountain Bone River Camas Meadows Carlisle Bog Castle Rock Charley Creek Chehalis River Surge Plain Chopaka Mountain Clearwater Bogs Cleveland Shrub Steppe Columbia Falls Columbia Hills Crowberry Bog Cypress Highlands Dabob Bay Dailey Prairie Davis Canyon Entiat Slopes Goose Island Gunpowder Island Hamma Hamma Balds Ink Blot Kahlotus Ridgetop Kennedy Creek Kings Lake Bog Kitsap Forest Lacamas Prairie Little Pend Oreille River Marcellus Shrub Steppe Methow Rapids Mima Mounds Monte Cristo Niawiakum River North Bay Oak Patch Olivine Bridge Pinecroft Point Doughty Riverside Breaks Rocky Prairie Sand Island Schumacher Creek Selah Cliffs Skagit Bald Eagle Skookum Inlet Snoqualmie Bog Spring Creek Canyon Trombetta Canyon Trout Lake The Two-Steppe Upper Dry Gulch Washougal Oaks Whitcomb Flats Willapa Divide
Natural Resources Conservation Areas	Ashford Cattle Point Clearwater Corridor Cypress Island Devils Lake Dishman Hills Elk River Ellsworth Creek Granite Lakes Hat Island Hendrickson Canyon Klickitat Canyon Lake Louise Loomis Lummi Island Merrill Lake Middle Fork Snoqualmie Morning Star Mount Si Naselle Highlands Queets River Rattlesnake Mountain Scenic Area Shipwreck Point Skamokawa Creek South Nemah South Nolan Stavis Stevenson Ridge Table Mountain Tahoma Forest Teal Slough Washougal Oaks West Tiger Mountain White Salmon Oak Woodard Bay
Aquatic Reserves	Cherry Point Cypress Island Fidalgo Bay Maury Island Nisqually Reach Protection Island Smith and Minor Islands

Other

Former state parks	Damon Point Fay Bainbridge Fort Okanogan Fort Ward Park Griffin Bay Mukilteo Lighthouse Park Osoyoos Lake Veteran's Memorial Park Skull Island Upright Channel Wenberg Westhaven