Mancos State Park Director Scott Elder expects another busy summer at the park, which surrounds the 217-acre Jackson Gulch Reservoir north of Mancos.

Visitation at the park has been up over the past few years, and Elder said he expects that to continue in 2016. The park had a 20 percent increase in visitors in 2015 compared with 2014, he said.

The park experienced a busier-than-normal April this year, and many people have made camping reservations this year, he said. Two yurts at the park are popular camping alternatives for tents or RVs, he said.

“It’s a great time to be up there,” Elder said. “Spring is a nice transition as the water in the reservoir is coming up.”

The park’s summer season begins May 23, the week before Memorial Day. During that week, park staff will start manning the entrance station, Elder said.

The park’s summer programming calendar offers a “wide variety” of events including nature walks and music events, he said. An evening program will be held every Friday at 7 p.m. in the park amphitheater. A park naturalist will lead butterfly walks every Saturday at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. At 4 p.m. on Saturdays, children and adults are invited to play games about the wildlife and habitat of the park. A 10 a.m. nature walk will take place on Sundays. Mid-week programs usually take place, too, Elder said.

Special events include a night of cowboy songs with Dove Creek singer-songwriter Tim Krebs, which will take place July 11 at 7 p.m. On July 25 at 7 p.m., cowboy poet Slim McWilliams will visit the park.

A “star party” also will take place at the park July 18, in which members of the Four Corners Stargazer Astronomy Club will bring high-powered telescopes for viewing the night sky, Elder said.

“We’ll have a lot going on again this summer,” he said.

There isn’t a high fire danger this year at the park or significant hazard, Elder said. He reminds park visitors to keep dogs on a leash so they don’t interfere with wildlife in the park such as deer and turkeys.

Elder said he’s glad to see locals and out-of-state visitors using Mancos State Park. Since the park is at an elevation right on the edge of where the ponderosa pine forests begin, many people from New Mexico and Arizona come to the park during the summer to escape the heat, he said.

“It’s fun to see folks appreciating having that park,” Elder said.

For more information, call 970-533-7065 or visit the Mancos State Park website at cpw.state.co.us/placestogo/parks/Mancos/