South Kitsap Regional Park is a 209-acre public regional park located in Port Orchard, Washington. It is operated by Kitsap County Parks and offers athletic fields, forested hiking trails, a skatepark, a childrenâÂÂs nature trail, a playground, picnic areas, and a 7.5-inch-gauge miniature railroad operated by Kitsap Live Steamers.
The park includes a wide range of recreational facilities:
The park has two primary access points:
Restrooms near the skatepark are open year-round; the playground restrooms operate AprilâÂÂSeptember.
In 2007, ownership of South Kitsap Regional Park was transferred from the South Kitsap Parks and Recreation District to Kitsap County after years of limited funding and deteriorating facilities made continued district management unsustainable. County officials viewed the takeover as the only viable way to preserve and improve the park, and the agreement included a commitment for the county to invest more than $2 million in upgrades. The change also aligned the park with the countyâÂÂs broader recreation and open-space planning goals, leading to the adoption of a new master plan in 2008 and the development of modern amenities and conservation projects in the years that followed.
Planning for redevelopment began in 2007âÂÂ2008, with design contributions from BCRA, Valerian Landscape Architects, Norton-Arnold, Anchor Environmental, and New Line Skateparks.
The park was selected as a pilot project for the Sustainable Sites Initiative (SITES), focusing on:
Approximately two-thirds of the park remains preserved forestland. The redevelopment planning phase was subsidized on Monday, November 24, 2008.
On September 12, 2025, a brush fire burned approximately half an acre in a forested portion of South Kitsap Regional Park (near the Jackson-area forest). The fire was contained by emergency crews from South Kitsap Fire and Rescue (SKFR), and no injuries were reported. While the remainder of the park remained open, the northwest side was closed temporarily to allow crews to extinguish hot spots and monitor the area for safety. The countyâÂÂs fire-marshal office announced that they will investigate the fireâÂÂs cause.
Kitsap Live Steamers is a nonâÂÂprofit group of railroad enthusiasts that build and operate a scaled railroad track at South Kitsap Regional Park. Rides are âÂÂby donation,â wheelchairâÂÂaccessible, on 2nd and 4th Saturdays, and traverse about 4,000â¯feet of track including a bridge and a trestle. According to the nonprofit Kitsap Live Steamers (KLS), the group began constructing its 7.5-inch gauge railroad shortly after the land became available for recreational development.
As of 2025, the group offers public rides from April to October, typically on the 2nd and 4th Saturdays each month.
South Kitsap Regional Park is one of the primary recreation sites in southern Kitsap County, serving athletes, hikers, cyclists, skaters, families, and visitors. The diversity of facilities and large wooded areas make it popular for daily recreation, community gatherings, nature walks, and childrenâÂÂs play. In October, the Kitsap Live Steamers celebrate the month with a ride called the ghost train.