By all accounts, the decade rang in with great hiking weather and thousands headed to a Virginia State Park to start 2020 with a First Day Hike.

Ranger John leads First Day Hikers at York River State Park

We offered 73 ranger-led hikes across our 38 Virginia State Parks (plus one shy of its grand opening) and nearly 4,000 people participated in them for a total of 6,720 miles hiked. This was just the tip of the iceberg with many thousands more choosing to come out and plot their own adventure. York River State Park reached parking capacity and had to close for a while.

First Day Hikers pose for a group shot at Belle Isle State Park

We heard from so many folks on social media and in emails about their experiences and stories. Many family traditions, often multi-generational, now involve the First Day Hikes. With the exception of Grayson Highlands (hoar frost left the park with a winter wonderland effect and it was certainly cold there), weather was fairly warm and the sky was so clear the photos were amazing. There were some amazing sunrise photos this year.

The "703 Hikers" chose Leesylvania State Park for their First Day Hike this year

Well, I know what we are all waiting for, here are the winners.

New Year Challenge

For this contest, hikers had to sign up before New Year's Day and commit to hiking in one of our Virginia State Parks. After their hike, they had to go back in the database and certify they had completed their challenge. 1,005 hikers successfully completed the challenge. Here are the winners:

• Grand Prize  Thomas Blankenship
• 1st Place       John Barrows
• 2nd Place      Elizabeth Rumford
• 3rd Place       Ricki Bennett
• 3rd Place       Jessica Darago
• 3rd Place       Michele Kahle
• 3rd Place       Wesley Kwedar
• 3rd Place       Miles Mitchell
• 3rd Place       Erin Opperman
• 3rd Place       Brent Ries

Some parks provide refreshments. James River State Park laid out quite a spread.

2020 First Day Hike Photo Contest

We had 1,351 photo entries and as usual it was really hard deciding on the winners (you can see all of the entries here). A slide show of the winning photos will follow but many have asked for an easy to read list so here are the winners of the 2020 First Day Hikes Photo Contest:

We added a special prize for the best 3 photos entered by an individual. Cathryn Hart took advantage of some amazing early light at Sky Meadows State Park and entered her three photos Barn in Early Morning Glow, Grazing into 2020, and Sunrise 2020. The prize will be a $500 gift certificate.

Grand Prize

Nancy Altizer  *  Looking Out Over the Lake  *  Claytor Lake State Park
Diana Fulton  *  Sun on the Porch   *  Sky Meadows State Park
Haley Hartzog  *  Jack Frost's Playground  *  Grayson Highlands State Park
Justin Lintecum  *  Foster Falls  *  New River Trail State Park
Peter Olson  *  First Footprints  *  Westmoreland State Park

First Place

Sarah Bechtel  *  Peaceful Ponies   *  Grayson Highlands State Park
Ricki Bennett  *  LOVE Seven bends  *  Seven Bends State Park
Brandy Burke  *  Unfiltered  *  Claytor Lake State Park
Bob Diller  *  It Catches!  *  Caledon State Park
Kevin Divins  *  Jones Pond Reflections   *  Caledon State Park
Casey Duff  *  Natural Bridge Wonder   *  Natural Bridge State Park
Juan Limtiaco  *  Sunset Sisters  *  Chippokes State Park
Chris Peek *   Golden Hour   *  York River State Park
Shrinivasan Ravanan Raghu *   Stunning Piedmont Overlook  *  Sky Meadows State Park
Lori Shirey  *  Kitchen Reflection  *  Chippokes State Park

Second Place

Jennifer Jeffers  *  Barbour Hill   * False Cape State Park
Amanda Lentz-Ronning  *  Orienteering   *  Pocahontas State Park
Sierra Lowder  *  Hike and Kites  *  Natural Bridge State Park
Shannon Macaulay  *  Sibling Love  *  Hungry Mother State Park
Kevin Orlosky  *  Discovering Running Cedar  *  Bear Creek Lake State Park
Kelli Parris  *  Enjoying the View  *  Shenandoah River State Park
Alister Perkinson  *  Chippokes Donkeys  *  Chippokes State Park
Alex Shipherd  *  Red-bellied Woodpecker  *  Shenandoah River State Park
Kali Slaydon  *  Reflections  *  Fairy Stone State Park
Jessica Zarudzki  *  A Hike Via Horseback  *  Sky Meadows State Park

Third Place

Beverley Bowers  *  Mountain views  *  Douthat State Park
Barry Bowling  *  Calypso helps us keep healthy habits  *  Claytor Lake State Park
Mark Bowyer  *  Hiking where the Basswood grows   * James River State Park
Erica Broad bent  *  Rest stop at the Overlook  *  Douthat State Park
Jared Dart  *  Natural Joy   * Sky Meadows State Park
Dana Footsie   * VA LOVE  *  Pocahontas State Park
Mark Hertzog   * Frozen Beauty  *  Grayson Highlands State Park
John Hoffman  *  Our First First Day Hike   *  Seven Bends State Park
Julie Limtiaco  *  Sunset on the Creek  *  Chippokes State Park
Colleen Montgomery  *  Holding Hands, Holding Hearts  *  Fairy Stone State Park
Ana Weaver  *  Going on a Bear Hunt  *  Pocahontas State Park
Judith Witt  *  First Day Blue Day  *  Westmoreland State Park

And now, please enjoy these breath-taking contest winners.

We'll be featuring many of these winning photos on our Instagram account and be sure to look for your photos, winners or not, in our blogs and marketing. Winners, you will be receiving an email from me with your gift certificate within the next week.

Thank you so much for everyone who entered the contests and came out to a First Day Hike this year. Hope to see you next year and many times this year since we have 366 days in 2020!