What makes a park great to me?

Obviously this has different answers for different people. It is entirely my intend to have an opinionated blog, so I should explain what it is that I base my options on. To me the scenic beauty, available camping and hiking, as well as the general upkeep of the park are important. I do little fishing or bird watching, but I understand that might be the most important variable for other people. Over crowding is generally a big negative for me.

When I rate parks I will try to give an explanation of why I rate them in a particular way. I will also try to provide an overview of aspects to parks that may interest other people, but not me. One observation that should hold true, is that if a park does not offer great hiking, I probably won't rate it too highly.

It is also my intent to have conversations with volunteers and employees at different parks and discuss those conservations here. I believe that currently there are 72 or 73 state parks and I have been to about 60. I will be visiting the rest, and revisiting many more.