Portola Redwoods State Park to Remain Open

Portola Redwoods State Park is home to some of the tallest, most majestic redwoods in the Santa Cruz Mountains.

PORTOLA REDWOODS STATE PARK TO REMAIN OPEN
–Peninsula Open Space Trust, Portola and Castle Rock Foundation and Save the Redwoods League Join Forces to Keep Coveted Redwood Park Open for a Year

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SAN FRANCISCO, CA (June 22, 2012) – With park closures looming, three leading bay area conservation organizations – Peninsula Open Space Trust, Portola and Castle Rock Foundation and Save the Redwoods League — have joined forces to help keep Portola Redwoods State Park open. This temporary reprieve will allow the park to remain open for the next 12 months while the nonprofits will work with California State Parks to develop a long-term solution and plan that would set Portola Redwoods on a path towards sustainability and excellence. The ultimate goal of the partnership is to protect some of the tallest, most majestic redwoods in the Santa Cruz Mountains for all park enthusiasts to experience and enjoy.

“This partnership agreement reflects a lot of hard work and creativity on the part of state park staff and our nonprofit partners,” said Ruth Coleman, Director of California State Parks. “On behalf of California State Parks, I want to thank our partners for stepping up and filling the budget gaps.”

Just 5 miles north of Big Basin Redwoods State Park, Portola Redwoods State Park welcomes visitors with tranquility and solitude. It features rugged terrain with a natural basin covered by coast redwoods, Douglas-firs and live oaks. Portola Redwoods boasts 18 miles of hiking trails, 53 camping sites and two beautiful creeks that meander through the park.

“We are thrilled to help keep Portola Redwoods State Park open for the public’s enjoyment,” said Ruskin K. Hartley, executive director of Save the Redwoods League. “We encourage everyone to visit this park and other redwood parks along the north coast of California and the sierras.”

Combined, the three organizations are contributing $100,000 to eliminate the budget gap and to fund some much-needed repairs. “Portola Redwoods is an ethereal retreat on the doorstep of Silicon Valley,” said POST President Walter T. Moore. “It deserves all of our collective efforts not just to keep it off the park closure list for another year, but to assure its long-term financial sustainability. There is no reason that the intellectual capital and generous spirit of Silicon Valley can’t figure out how to make this happen. And with the support of the community, we will make it happen.”

“We want to improve the experience for visitors to Portola Redwoods State Park. In addition to upgrading physical facilities we are soliciting volunteers to help us at the park,” said Andrew Vought, Board Member of the Portola and Castle Rock Foundation.

Editors please note: To schedule an interview, please call Jennifer Benito at (415) 820-5814 or e-mail jbenito@SaveTheRedwoods.org.

About California State Parks

California State Parks is composed of 279 units on nearly 1.5 million acres of land. State Parks is responsible for nearly one-third of the coastline of California, with more than 3,000 miles of hiking, biking and equestrian trails. The State Park System provides for nearly 15,000 individual campsites and 230 group camp sites in 115 parks across California. The State Park System contains 98 percent of the state’s wilderness and 60 percent of its old growth coastal redwoods. Within the system, there are 50 State Historic Parks that encompass some of the state’s most valuable historic and cultural resources. State Parks receives more than 65 million visitors yearly, making it the single largest visitor destination in the state and second only to the National Park system for the nation.

Contact: Roy Stearns, Deputy Director of Communications
Tel: (916) 654-7538 | Email: rstea@parks.ca.gov | Parks.ca.gov

About Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST)
POST is a leading private, nonprofit land trust dedicated to preserving the beauty, character and diversity of the San Francisco Peninsula and Santa Cruz Mountain range. Since its founding in 1977, POST has been responsible for saving more than 70,000 acres as permanent open space and parkland in San Mateo, Santa Clara and Santa Cruz counties. On the Web at www.openspacetrust.org.

Contact: Nina Nowak, Director of Communications
Tel: (650) 854-7696, x306 | Email: nnowak@openspacetrust.org | openspacetrust.org

About Portola and Castle Rock Foundation
The Portola and Castle Rock Foundation has supported Portola Redwoods State Park and Castle Rock State Park since 1991 and is the official cooperating association for these parks. It is also a 501( c )3 charitable organization. Find them at www.portolaandcastlerockfound.org and on Facebook at Save Portola Redwoods and Castle Rock State Parks.

Contact: Andrew M. Vought, Program Director
Tel: (650) 283-1283 | Email: avought@yahoo.com | PortolaandCastlerockFound.org

About Save the Redwoods League
Since 1918, Save the Redwoods League has protected and restored redwood forests and connected people with their peace and beauty so these wonders of the natural world flourish. Unfortunately, some ancient redwoods remain unprotected, and forests that are protected face threats from a changing environment, disease and devastating government budget cuts. Donations help us save these special places, allowing us to purchase redwood land, restore logged forests, research how to best protect them and teach children and adults about these magical expressions of life. To date the League has completed the purchase of more than 189,000 acres of redwood forest and associated land. For more information, please visit SaveTheRedwoods.org, or to receive monthly email updates, sign up at SaveTheRedwoods.org/signup.