Visiting The Free Flight Exotic Bird Sanctuary
3 Day Trip: San Diego to Palm Springs {Day 3}
3 Day Trip: San Diego to Palm Springs {Day 2}
3 Day Trip: San Diego to Palm Springs {Day 1}
Make This DIY Outdoor Explorer Kit for Kids
Cabrillo National Monument
Last week the kids and I headed to Cabrillo National Monument to meet up with friends for a day of hiking and exploring.
Before heading to Point Loma we checked the low tide times because there is supposed to be a great spot for tidepooling. Unfortunately though the high and low tide chart we checked was not accurate, so I recommend calling ahead to see what the low tide times are, which on this particular day were 6pm (one hour after the park was closing). We still managed to have a great day, we must have seeing as we arrived at around 10am and didn't leave until nearly 5pm.
Our first stop was the Visitor Center, where the helpful staff gave us directions to the lighthouse and the hiking trail. There is also an exhibit of wildlife you may come across during your visit, a screening room, and a great selection of books and nature themed activities to purchase.
And you really cannot beat this view.
Orange County Great Park
I've blogged very briefly before (or should I say, shared photos) of the Great Park in Orange County. I attended an Instameet - you know an Instagram meet-up, where you spend hours snapping Instagram pics of cool things, with even cooler people.
Anyway, after attending that my kids had been wanting to go there and ride in the big orange helium balloon. So after scouring their website and choosing the perfect date, watching weather forecasts and wind speeds for two weeks, we settled on going last weekend.
The weather report was wrong, it rained all the way there, and it was too windy for the balloon. Thankfully though I'd chosen a date where there were loads of other activities going on so that there would be plenty to keep the kids busy.
We started our day going on the carousel a couple of times, ventured over to the park where there is free sports equipment to use in the grass area, and then wandered to the Terrace Lawn where the Bark in the Great Park was just gearing up. There were dog safety talks for kids, a Disc Dogs demonstration, a doggy fashion show, and lots of dogs attempting to make their way through obstacle courses. Of course there were crafts too. From there we headed to the Farm and Food Lab where they were telling the Three Sisters Garden story. The kids then made little seed packets and brought home corn, squash and bean seeds to plant.
Lastly, we headed to the Farmer's Market for some fresh fruit and veggies, shaved ice and kettle corn. I love food trucks and I tried the yummiest Chicken Bacon Fries for lunch. They were so good. Really!
Anza-Borrego Desert State Park
On my bucket list this year (and last) was to take the kids out to Anza-Borrego Desert State Park during wildflower season, which is generally between April and May. Unfortunately I missed it last year, it's tough trying to co-ordinate schedules with wildflowers, they don't tend to tell you when they are going to bloom, especially in the quantities that one sees in photographs from that area, which is really quite annoying. So, we decided to just try our luck during Archaeology Weekend.
Unfortunately there hasn't been a lot of rain this season so there weren't masses of flowers just begging to be photographed, but we did manage to come across a few wildflowers, particularly on our 3 mile hike.
There are a number of hikes you can take throughout Anza-Borrego Desert State Park, and the visitor's center is a wealth of information. We were supposed to take a guided hike to Bailey Cabin in the Hawi-Vallecito Cultural Preserve, however it was cancelled due to the guide being ill. So, while the kids made paddle and anvil pottery outside, I popped into the visitor center to chat to a volunteer who gave me information and maps for a couple of great hikes that kids would love.
The hike we settled on was the Borrego Palm Canyon Nature Trail which is approximately a 3 mile round trip.
Before I share photographs and more information about the hike, I want to share a few photographs of the pottery, which was a special hands-on project for Archaeology Weekend.
San Diego Zoo Safari Park’s Butterfly Jungle
You might remember that we took the kids to see the Butterfly Jungle last year too, and this year, the butterflies are just as spectacular.
