“It’s great here. We’ve got the reservoir on one side, the mountains on the other, and we’re kind of nestled right into this little area,” Lory State Park Visitor Center volunteer Ron Johnson said.
“We are primarily a day-use park, which means that we typically have hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding and picnicking. But we also have a few backcountry campsites,” Lory State Park Interpreter Maddy Walinchus said. “Our volunteers are what our structure is laid on. They’re the ones that are out there checking the trails. They’re the ones that are in here talking to our visitors. They’re the ones talking to kids about the amazing educational opportunities we have here at the park,” Walinchus said. “They are really the cornerstone of what we do here at Lory.”
“I think I always wanted to be a ranger, but you know, you’re raising a family and everything,” Johnson said. “You have other priorities, so I think this is more of a childhood dream to just be out here in nature.”