MASSENA - Several local state parks had increased attendance from Jan. 1 to late August over a similar period the year before, according to new figures from the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation.

The numbers match an increase in visitation figures across the state. The state reported 43.7 million visitors for Jan 1. to the last weekend of August 2012, up 2.3 million people, or 5.6 percent, from a similar period in 2011.

State Parks Commissioner Rose Harvey attributed the statewide increase to nice weather and the hosting of public events.

Some of the parks in the north country with the largest increases are:

■ Robert Moses State Park, Massena, which had 2,701,507 visitors in 2012, up from 2,610,337 the previous year.

■ Westcott Beach State Park, Henderson, whose 44,822 visitors in 2012 are an increase from 33,184 in 2011.

■ Southwick Beach State Park, Henderson, which had 107,189 visitors in 2012, up from 90,106 visitors the previous year.

■ Robert G. Wehle State Park, Henderson, which jumped from 33,184 visitors in 2011 to 44,822 in 2012.

A full list of attendance figures for state parks in the north country can be found at www.scribd.com/doc/104916944/Park-Attendance-NYS-Parks-in-the-North-Country.

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