WASHINGTON, Washington County — Early projections were that Sand Hollow Reservoir and State Park would, one day, become one of Utah's most popular parks.

It came onto the state-park scene four years ago with all the necessary features — water, sand and sun.

The park has become popular. In fact: "We're seven years ahead of projections," said Laura Melling, park manager. "We are now among the top three parks in annual visitation. But we have an advantage. We have boating in the summer, OHV riding in the winter and both boats and OHVs in the spring and fall. There's never a quiet moment.

It's hard to get some things done because we get so many people."

The park, located directly south of Quail Creek Reservoir and State Park and 15 miles southeast of St. George, was officially dedicated in April of 2003.

When it opened, recalled Melling, "We had a parking lot, a ramp that barely made it to the water, and we worked out of a portable trailer and a cash box. It got so hot that summer the cash box melted. I keep it to remind me of our humble beginning."

On site now is a new entrance station with offices and large open area being used as an all-purpose room. There is also a paved parking area, paved roads and a concrete launch ramp with docks.

Inside the park there is a 50-unit campsite with full service hook-ups, two restrooms, with hot showers and some primitive campsites around the reservoir.

Construction will begin soon on a maintenance building and an education and multimedia center with classrooms. Grant money is also available to improve camping at the sandy area along the shoreline, put in restrooms and down the road add more campsite along the eastern shoreline.

There is also money available to put in some pavilions, picnic tables and barbecue grills along the beach.

Plans for the park go back more than a decade. Its location was carefully researched.

The reservoir sits in the middle of a natural bowl filled with sand. Feeding into the reservoir, which covers 1,500 surface acres, is 16,000 acres of fine, granulated sand, perfectly suited for off-highway vehicle riding.

Positive magazine coverage of the park and its sand has brought in riders from all over the world, said Melling.

"We get a lot of visitors from Las Vegas, California and Salt Lake, and from the Rocky Mountain area. But we also get a lot of people from out of the country. One man, from France, brought his own OHVs. He wanted to ride his own machines," she noted.

"One thing riders find is the sand here is so fine that it changes from day to day. It also makes things dangerous because people think they know the dunes ... and they don't. The sand has been here for a long time, but it seemed that people really didn't know about it. Few locals came here before the reservoir."