If you don't have enough money for a "destination" vacation, don't despair. Our area state parks have plenty of activities for summer fun on a shoestring. Or boot lace.

Let's start with Locust Lake.You can imagine their surprise. The Marchalonis brothers (sometimes spelled Marshalonis, but their first names are never mentioned) have purchased a huge tract of shrubby land, heavily timbered before their purchase and prone to seasonal floods and forest fires. It's the seasonal flooding that gives them a gleam of hope, and they start to dig a lake.Under at least seven feet of leaves, silt and wood debris, they find that they weren't the first people to have that idea. They find the remnants of a dam, boards from an old lumber mill and the hub of a waterwheel.It hadn't been feasible to mine coal in the area, but lumber mills had been needed to provide tool handles, wood shingles and other wood products. The chestnuts and oaks had been burned into charcoal.And yet, in that over-used, flooding, fire-prone area, the Marchalonis brothers envisioned a lake. So, they kept digging. Under their management, the area became a hugely-popular picnic grove and fishing spot. The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania purchased the 1,772-acre park with its 52-acre lake in 1966; and officially opened it as Locust Lake State Park in 1972.It remains extremely popular for water recreation. Jacob Tarconish of Barnesville, a soon-to-be Penn State University grad, works at the Locust Lake park concession and boat rental area."There have been some times this year when I thought we should be renting arks, because of the heavy rains," he joked. "But getting out on the water, even if it's just one trip during the summer, is something people should try."Sometimes people come here and they're nervous because they have no or very little boating experience. We have lots of choices for them, from kayaks to rowboats. And then once they're out on the water, everything changes - they're not nervous and they're smiling and laughing."Boats can be rented for a nominal fee throughout the day, as long as the boats and gear are returned before 7 p.m.Tarconish said it's common for people who have rented a boat for a half hour to paddle by and ask if it's okay if they stay out for a longer time.The park is open sunrise to sunset; the sand beach is open from 8 a.m. to sunset (swim at your own risk). The power boat use is restricted to electric motors only. The lake is stocked several times a year with brown trout and brook trout, and it also contains bass and panfish.There are about seven miles of hiking trails and also a paved trail around the lake which is about 1.3 miles long (great for strollers and young bicyclists). There are 282 campsites and some allow pets - Locust Lake was park of a state park pilot program for allowing pets.Check out this gem of a park - 220 Locust Lake Road, Barnesville 18214.