Arkansas State Parks Trip Ideas

Greetings from Crater of Diamonds State Park! Last year, visitors from 34 states and one foreign country found 354 diamonds in Arkansas, weighing a total of more than 62 carats. Arkansans found 108 gems, while travelers from outside of the state registered 246. Guests found 28 diamonds on top of the ground in the park’s diamond search area; most of the others were found by...

2021 largest diamond found at Crater of Diamonds State Park. It's a 4.38 carat yellow diamond sitting on top of a quarter for scale

Hike the Crater of Diamonds on New Year’s Day 2022

Dec 2021

Greetings from Crater of Diamonds State Park! With a new year just ahead, we are looking forward to exciting opportunities that often come with the changing of the calendar. 2022 will be a special year for the Crater of Diamonds, as we celebrate 50 years as an Arkansas State Park! On Saturday, January 1, be among the first to visit the Crater on its golden anniversary year...

Crater of Diamonds State Park Search Field

Winter To-Do List

Arkansas State Parks Staff

If you’re looking for ways to come out of hibernation this winter, we have plenty of fun things to do. Here are 10 ideas we rounded up from our Arkansas State Parks team.

Winter Forecast for the Crater of Diamonds

Greetings from Crater of Diamonds State Park! Colder temperatures will have many of us wishing for warmer weather in the months to come, but winter can be a great season to search for diamonds! Winter this year will begin on Tuesday, December 21, and continue until Sunday, March 20, 2022. What kind of winter will we have this year? Looking back at historical records and...

Snow on the search field at Crater of Diamonds State Park

Arkansas State Parks Celebrate the New Year with First Day Hikes

Monika Rued

Make a healthy New Year’s resolution by kicking off 2022 with an invigorating First Day Hike at an Arkansas state park near you.

The Right Tools for Wet Sifting

Greetings from Crater of Diamonds State Park! Wet sifting is one of the most effective ways of searching for diamonds. It helps you go through more dirt in less time, and you can wet sift just about any time of year! The more dirt you wet sift, the better your chances are of finding a diamond. But having the right type and amount of tools is important! If you plan to wet...

shovel, blue bucket and screen for searching for diamonds at Crater of Diamonds State Park

Spend Green Friday Outside

Oct 2021

Green Friday is a day to choose to be outside. Let us know how you spent Green Friday on social media — tag us and use the hashtags #ARStateParks, #GreenFriday, and #OptOutside.

Family hiking at Hobbs State Park-Conservation Area in the fall. Mom has baby in front carrying backpack and the dad is carrying another small child.

Colorful Minerals Found at the Crater of Diamonds

Oct 2021

Greetings from Crater of Diamonds State Park! Each fall, changing leaves enhance the colors and natural beauty of our surroundings. For visitors to Crater of Diamonds State Park, colorful minerals can also add bursts of excitement for anyone exploring the park! Mineral colors are caused by certain elements, chemicals, defects, and processes. Though some come in a wide...

Visitor Finds 4.38-Carat Diamond at Crater of Diamonds State Park

Sep 2021

Noreen Wredberg of Granite Bay, Calif., found the 4.38-carat yellow diamond sitting on top of the ground within an hour of searching. It’s the largest diamond found so far this year at Crater of Diamonds State Park.

Noreen Wredberg's yellow diamond sitting next to a marble for scale

Find Mesmerizing Mimetoliths at Crater of Diamonds

Sep 2021