Over the last year, Fairfield Lake State Park has been extremely busy with visitors, new construction in the camping loops, as well as planning events and programs in the park.
“We have had so many new visitors over the last year that say they have found a hidden gem amongst tall oak and pine trees just a few minutes off of I-45,” says Office Manager Kris Simmons.
The park hosted several bass tournaments and has seen an influx of anglers that are here before sunrise to try and hook a prized fish.
This year, they collaborated with the local Game Wardens to introduce the Survival Basics Classes, which were well received, according to Simmons.
Gaining a new State Park Police Officer, a position based from an Assistant Superintendent spot. “We welcomed Kyle Ware to the Fairfield Lake Family,” says Simmons. “He came to us from Cedar Hill State Park and has hit the ground running.”
Fairfield Lake State Park also gained a friendly new face, Daniel Stauffer, who came from Mother Neff State Park. “He has been a great asset in his new role as Assistant Office Manager,” says Simmons.
Construction in the Springfield and Post Oak camping loops began and park staffers can’t wait to open them back for campers to enjoy.
The park had another successful Kid Fish Derby in June and the largest turnout for the Annual Christmas in the Park with 692 visitors.
They have also introduced, with donations and support of the Fairfield Public library and its members, The Little Lake Library. “This is a free book exchange location that houses novels, children’s books, coloring books and many other reading materials that help with our mission of ‘Outdoor Education,’” says Simmons. “It gives children and adults alike an opportunity to unplug and unwind when camping or visiting the park. They can dive into a book which might give them a new perspective to explore the world around them.”
According to Simmons, the park has made several wonderful working relationships with community members, and are extremely thankful for all of the support they receive from the wonderful residents of this community.
So, what are their goals for the New Year?
“We are excited and ready to make 2018 our best year yet,” says Simmons. “We are always looking to expand ourselves into more community programs and help in any way we can.”
Fairfield Lake State Park is gearing up for the Grand Opening of the remodeled camping loops in a few months. They have several goals of revamping and working on their trail system and making them even more beautiful.
The Friends of Fairfield Lake State Park will be hosting the Kid Fish Derby in the spring.
“The Friends Group has many wonderful ideas of projects and events, which they are looking forward to doing this next year,” says Simmons. The group plans to hold a community meeting that will allow anyone interested in being a voice for Fairfield Lake and seeing exciting new things for the park. Anyone interested is encouraged to join as a member of the Friends Group.
And, if that wasn’t enough, here is some more exciting news for the park:
“We will be introducing a new vendor to our park called Paddle Ez,” shares Simmons. This is a brand new rental service that is all done from a location in the Day Use area at the fishing point.
Visitors to Fairfield Lake State Park will be able to rent, via their smartphone, a paddle board or kayak with all the needed accessories.
“We are excited to be able to provide our visitors with a way to have paddle sports more accessible,” says Simmons.
This service is set to be ready to use in February.
According to Simmons, the park will be introducing more programs over this next year with more hands on opportunities, that they hope will peak the interest of avid hikers, anglers of all ages, birders, Boy and Girl Scout Groups, as well as anyone that wants to take in and enjoy the great outdoors.
“We are going to focus our News Year’s resolution of providing outdoor educational opportunities of becoming stewards of our great lands of Texas,” says Simmons. “We look forward to a fun filled year that will build new friendships and interest those to enjoy our beautiful state park.”
