FLINTSTONE — With visitors numbering in the hundreds of thousands each year, Rocky Gap State Park is one of the most popular recreation destinations in the state of Maryland. It was first opened in July 1974.
This year, the park is observing its 50th anniversary, and celebrated this important milestone throughout the month of July. Those events concluded Wednesday with a free paddle boarding lesson.
“Celebrating and recognizing the volunteers and staff that have made this such a special place over the last 50 years was the main takeaway,” said lead Park Ranger Cliff Puffenberger, who has worked at Rocky Gap since 2010. “Both volunteers and contractual employees have come through over the years to make it what it has become.”
Puffenberger said that this anniversary is the perfect time to look into a bright future for the park in the years to come.
“Our goals are to continue public outreach and environmental education.”
The park is also looking to continue improving its infrastructure while prioritizing the health of its surrounding environment, which like much of the country, is at risk due to climate change.
“Creating new trails and revamping and revitalizing a lot of the existing trails will keep us on that path,” Puffenberger said.
The park is celebrating the anniversary all summer, and is flying specially designed anniversary flags throughout the park.
Brian Grim, who grew up in the Cumberland area, has been a volunteer at Rocky Gap for 33 years, first starting when he was just 12 years old.
“In 1992, the responsibility of volunteering was instilled in me by my family,” he wrote in an email.
“I’ve seen generations of people enjoying what Rocky Gap has to offer,” he wrote. “It’s an open, inclusive, welcoming environment where people can safely enjoy time together.”
The 50th anniversary is a good opportunity to reintroduce people to the wonders of the park and celebrate all those who have visited over the years.
Over 25 million people have visited the park since it first opened.
Since it is such a critical part of the local community, particularly Allegany County, Grim says that investment and protection of the space is crucial to its longevity.
Since 1992, volunteers at Rocky Gap have served over 500,000 hours, with nearly 2,500 individual volunteers.
“Getting to know those people and volunteering with them has been tremendously rewarding,” Grim wrote.
Another one of those volunteers, Dennis Tipton, also started volunteering alongside Grim in 1992.
He previously served as president of Volunteer Team Inc., a nonprofit corporation that has served Rocky Gap since 1995.
The organization supports the park through volunteerism and donations.
“I remember, as a senior in high school in 1966, seeing the layout and announcement in the Times-News of the new park that would be built near Flintstone,” he wrote in an email.
Tipton and his family would travel to Pennsylvania’s state parks, but the opening of Rocky Gap made getting outdoors much easier.
“Rocky Gap is the one place I can go to relieve stress and enjoy the company of many other volunteers,” Tipton wrote.
Like Tipton, Grim will always remember his time volunteering at Rocky Gap.
“Being able to work to provide all of those things to the park and ultimately the community has made my service that much more meaningful.”
To support the Volunteer Team and the continuation of the park’s 50th anniversary through nonprofit donation, visit the website at RockyGapStore.com.