Admission to Maine’s state parks and historic sites will be free Saturday, Sept. 25, in honor of the second annual Maine Residents Day.

Gov. John Baldacci announced the special event this week, calling Mainers “the real owners of our state parks.”

“Some of the best foliage vistas in Maine can be seen from state park land,” said Dave Soucy, director of the Bureau of Parks and Lands. Soucy says the fall is a great time to visit Maine’s state parks.

Although some parks and historic sites already have officially closed for the season, the state will provide open gates and working facilities throughout the park system for Maine Residents Day. Other state parks will remain open through mid-October.

For information, log on to www.maine.gov/doc/parks.