Attendance up at Oklahoma state parks

(Oklahoma City-AP) -- With tourists opting to stay closer to homes, attendance at Oklahoma state parks is on the rise. <br><br>Attendance at Oklahoma's 50 state parks was up by 500,000 visitors last

Wednesday, March 10th 2004, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

(Oklahoma City-AP) -- With tourists opting to stay closer to homes, attendance at Oklahoma state parks is on the rise.

Attendance at Oklahoma's 50 state parks was up by 500,000 visitors last year. That's an increase of 39%.

The rise comes at a time when attendance at National Park Service parks across the country fell by 11.5-million visitors.

Attendance at Oklahoma's two national parks held steady last year.

State parks spokesman Ron Stahl says the numbers' reflect tourists' desire to vacation closer to home following the September 11th terrorist attacks.

Stahl says attendance numbers for early 2004 are also looking good.