Sobrante Ridge Regional Preserve is the best little hiking spot you’ve never heard of. If you’re not a) obsessed with visiting all the East Bay Regional Parks, b) trying to complete the Bay Area Ridge Trail or c) a neighbor of the preserve, it’s unlikely it was on your radar. And yet, I would argue…
We had grand visions of a post with several options for Spring Break fun. Then all of a sudden, Spring Break is upon us. So that post didn’t happen. Now that some of the local schools are in the midst of Spring Break, the one strong suggestion we are going to make for your Spring Break…
It’s a little silly that we have been writing posts on this blog for four months now and not addressed Wildcat Canyon. We’ve mentioned before that this is our “go-to” trail, the place we spend the MOST time outside, the place our daughter has had two of her three birthday parties, the place that we…
This past weekend, the youngest hiker and I partook in an “Animal tracking for families” workshop at Lake Merritt, put on by the California Center for Natural History and Oakland City Parks and Recreation. Participants met at Lake Merritt and spent two hours learning how to look carefully at the world around us to begin…
One of the many benefits that living in the Bay Area has to offer (no, low housing prices is not one of them), is that there is a plethora of organized groups that offer structured ways to get out and explore the world. Having this resource at our fingertips is a great way to derive…
If you have been out on the trails lately, you might have noticed that certain of them are flanked by fungi. I do not claim to be a mushroom expert, but I do encourage you to get out soon and look for some of these fantastic growths. (Let me be clear– I am not encouraging you…
One of the treats this year’s abundant winter rains have brought is the revitalization of the Bay Area creeks. As we mentioned in earlier posts, there is something powerful and invigorating about watching your local creek come back to life. Beyond that, getting out and exploring the local watercourses during the winter is a tangible…
It was wet on Saturday. Very wet, in fact. All this glorious rain did not dampen our newfound enthusiasm for Rush Ranch’s once-a-month FREE family day (called “Get the Rush!”). Rush Ranch is part of the Solano Land Trust, which has several other guided hike options to check out as well. To find out which…
So you want to go hiking. And you want (with your kids) to learn something about the Bay Area’s flora and fauna, but your level of nature knowledge amounts to discriminating between trees, flowers & animals. In other words, you are not a born naturalist but you want to support such activities with your kids. Fortunately,…
My Bay Area families! It’s raining! For the first time in, well, YEARS. This means our creeks are changing, and it’s a perfect time to get outside and find your local creek. In the next few weeks, the creeks will be swelling and shrinking– almost on a daily basis. This is the time to find…
Bay Area Families Outside 