Attendance at North Carolina’s state parks jumped significantly during 2009, with a third of the state parks and state recreation areas reporting visitation up at least 20 percent, according to the N.C. Division of Parks and Recreation. Through August – the latest reporting period – the state parks recorded 10.6 million visitors, up 14 percent from a year ago and surpassing visitation during the same eight-month period of 2007, which was a record year for state parks visitation. The report includes 35 state parks and state recreation areas along with Weymouth Woods State Nature Preserve.

North Carolina State Parks: A Niche Guide, offers a helpful guide for the growing number of park visitors. Published by Niche Publishing LLC, the full-color publication is the first guidebook to North Carolina state parks to be published in almost 20 years. The guide builds on the work of the comprehensive State Parks of North Carolina by Walter C. Biggs Jr. and James F. Parnell, which was published by John F. Blair, Publisher in 1989.

The Niche guide features photographs and key information about all of North Carolina's state parks, recreation and natural areas, as well as chapters covering "Parks in Progress," which highlight soon-to-be opened parks and natural areas.

Organized geographically from the mountains to the coastal plain, each chapter includes a general description of the site and detailed information about the park's location, amenities, and unique features. The book provides GPS coordinates for each park, as well as safety tips, a list of nearby natural areas, and links to related websites.

The authors included 185 full-color photographs in the book that capture a sense of the parks' unique character and natural features.

Donated by Niche Publishing LLC, a partnership between Ida Phillips and Bill Pendergraft.  Visit www.nichepress.com.