Park passes + best playground lists
A tiny hike in a big open space with lots of wildlife to spot
I can’t believe it! It’s 2024 already. Thank you for being here and sharing one little playful corner of your life with me. I feel incredibly humbled that you decided to subscribe (whenever that was!) and that you stick around for these play trips.
I’ve been feeling the need to reinforce what I’m all about lately in the face of modern family life. It’s fairly simple. I want to make sure the children in your life get to play. That only happens when parents and caregivers make an effort to prioritize play. Even if it’s only for a few minutes a day, that’s better than nothing! It’s an important part of child development (especially in those 0-5 years) that is often lost at the expense of busy schedules and other priorities.
I’m here to cheer you on and remind you how simple it can be to just let them play. You will enjoy your time with them and not feel so much pressure to do ALL the things — and they will benefit with time to imagine, create, pretend, learn, and grow!
And I’m also here to listen, so please let me know if I get something wrong or you are struggling with something when it comes to parks and play and finding nature connections. I can try my best to help!
Cheat Sheet
I’m sharing my Cheat Sheet to Parks and Beach Passes for OC Families to kick off the start of 2024 because:
During the holidays, a reader (Laura) reminded me of this one when she wanted to make sure I had all the options for passes in one of my holiday posts.
I posted about the Cheat Sheet on Instagram last year and still get requests for it.
Another reader asked me to remind her about “why” it’s better to get CA state parks pass at the beginning of the month (after she bought one at the beginning of the month!). It’s because if you buy a pass at the beginning of January, for example, it won’t expire until January 31st, 2025 - so it’s almost like getting a free month.
I think Magic Key passes to Disneyland are coming out again next week? When you look at the prices, remember that CA State Parks Pass ($195) + an OC Parks Pass ($55) will cost you $250 for the whole family for a whole year. And you’ll be even more motivated to get outdoors because you invested in it.
New Playgrounds of 2023 - Part 2
Heather at OCParentGuide shared the Part 2 of our Instagram series of “Best New Playgrounds of 2023.” I wanted to make sure I included the list here as I promised last week.
I don’t have blog posts for all of these parks because I wait for reader recommendations. Parents and families and caregivers need to like it and tell me about it for me to post!
Adventure Playground Yorba Linda (this is a link to the official website because I don’t have it on the blog for the reason that the hours are often changing to the point where I can’t keep up with the edits - and it’s a bit more exclusive to Yorba Linda residents who get priority reservations). Always, always check the official website on the day you plan to go and see if you need to make reservations ahead of time!
Remember, these are NOT the best parks in Orange County — just the best out of all the new ones that opened up in 2023. None of them knocked any parks off my “best of” list.
This 10 Best Orange County Playgrounds (by Feature) blog post has more than 10! It has one for each playground feature, PLUS a runner-up for each category (best slides, best climbers, etc.) so it’s more like 20+. It also has links to some of my playground favorites lists. If you are into a going to a list of playgrounds, there’s a PRINTABLE Checklist at the end of the blog post, so you can make it a year of visiting these parks if you go to a couple per month.
King Tides 2024
The first King Tides of this new year are happening January 11th and 12th. I wrote a lot about tidepools in Trail Guide #12 for OC Tiny Hikes paid subscribers. Just beware that there is another high surf advisory coming so conditions may not be safe for tidepooling.
Here is another really easy-to-understand resource about King Tides by CA Sea Grant at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego. (Just note that the times listed in the article are for La Jolla and you will want to look up exact times for Newport Bay or San Clemente or Huntington Harbour depending on where you are located).
Tiny Hikes Teaser: I scouted out this tiny hike Wednesday on a beautiful afternoon as the storm blew out. I’ve done different portions of this hike MANY times before, but never made it to one particular section which completed my explorations and made it a loop! It’s completely paved, so no worries about rainy day closures this winter.
For access to the trail guide behind the paywall below, I hope you consider investing in the subscription for $5/month or $39/year (a 35% savings on a year since it would normally cost $60 at $5/month). It’s like nothing else you’ll find anywhere out there. Consider subscribing now to see Trail Guide #14! And thanks to those who are already supporters!
What New Paid Subscribers Are Saying at Sign-Up:
"I have found exciting things for my kids to do when we have free time. Cool parks, events and all kinds of different stuff. Things I wouldn't have learned about anywhere else. THANK YOU!"
"Thank you for all you do to help connect our kids to more nature and play! We appreciate all you do."
"Children are meant to explore and play in the early years! Not be confined to four walls day after day. This is amazing!"