outdoor – Page 10 – Mommy Hiker

Learning Life Lessons From the Alpacas at Windy Hills

Posted on October 14, 2013April 26, 2016 by Jennifer Fontaine

As you can probably imagine, living in LA offers a enormous mixed bag of events, activities and experiences to explore with kids. Having been a mom for a few years now, my Go-To list of things to do on any given day is pretty long, but at least a handful of times a month, I get stuck in a rut and need to find something new and interesting to do with V. Enter Red Tricycle.

RedTri.com is a portal that I have tapped into more than once, when trying to look for cool, new things to do with my toddler. Their mission is simple, to help parents have more fun with their kids. They offer ideas for cool things to see, eat, make and do with your kids in your neighborhood. Each weekday, they deliver must-have recommendations for hip people who happen to be parents too, whether it’s a kid-friendly food truck crush, a street festival that accommodates strollers, or a christmas tree farm that offers free hot chocolate and crafts. And that is how we found our way to this quirky, off-the-beaten path nugget of heaven called Windy Hills Alpaca Ranch.

Windy Hills is not a petting zoo. They are a real, working ranch and as luck would have it, on the second saturday of every month, the have an Open Ranch Day! The largest Alpaca ranch in California, they are just about an hour north of LA, situated on 25 acres surrounded by the gorgeous rolling hills of Ventura County, a perfect day trip!

The drive winds through picturesque country byways, passed roadside fruit stands and stunning agricultural landscapes. Once on the farm, we were greeted by Kate, a gracious and knowledgeable hostess, one of their many docents, who led us on a brief, but very informative tour of the grounds, then we were set free to wander and discover to our hearts content.

And wander we did, right over to the newest member of the family who had been born just hours before we arrived! In fact, there were 12 babies who had been born in the week prior, so we made a beeline to the newborn pen to watch the babies interact with their mothers. It was fascinating to watch how each mother really stuck to her own baby. There wasn’t much of a “village” attitude about caring for the young, but there was definitely a sense of curiosity.

We found the Alpacas to be quite curious little beings and seemingly gentle, quiet creatures. All we needed to do was to walk in the direction of one and they would immediately start walking towards us to get a good sniff.

We got to use all 5 of our senses on this outing and one of the coolest was to feel their coats. Alpacas are classified in two different breeds, the Huacaya and the rarer and more treasured Suri. The coat of the Suri is incredibly soft, more like human hair and tends to fall down in ringlets or locks, whereas the Huacaya’s coat looks more like a teddy bear, fuzzy and coarse. Be it silky coat or fuzzy, one thing is for sure, alpacas are undeniably cute!

We fed them…

Then, we fed ourselves…

We fell in love with a Ranch Hand…

And just as we were making our way out, we got news that one of the Alpacas was delivering! We all ran over just in time to watch her nuzzle her daughter for the first time.

The electricity in the air was remarkable. As we watched the mother deliver the placenta, my daughter’s hand in mine, I delicately explained to her what was happening and my heart was filled with gratitude to have shared that incredible experience. We stood there mesmerized, three generations of Fontaines (my mom was also with us), captivated by the strength of the little one, only minutes old, trying to stand on its own two feet, the inherent need for nourishment and a fundamental yearning for her mother’s unconditional love. What a delightful reminder that life lessons can be taught in the most unexpected circumstances.

[Guest Blogger Series] The Grand Hiking Views at Grand View Park San Francisco by Melissa Avery

Posted on October 7, 2013February 24, 2016 by Jennifer Fontaine

This week’s Guest Blogger Series welcomes fellow California Mommy Hiker, Melissa Avery of Chasqui Mom! Like me, she is fairly new to the blogging world, but she is surely carving out a niche for herself in the Outdoor world and her kids are reaping the rewards!

Living in the suburbs of the San Francisco Bay Area, I always try to find an excuse to go into the city of San Francisco. Whether to visit family, friends or just a to visit my husband on his lunch break, I’m always willing to visit the “City by the Bay.” A part of me desires to live in “The City”, another part of me loves the suburb life, and another part loves the solitude of “The Outdoors”. I’ve been able to find a happy medium with our “Urban Hikes” in and out of San Francisco area.

My family and I decided to start our Labor Day weekend with a hike up to Grand View Park, which is in the Sunset District of San Francisco, the west side of the city and south of Golden Gate Park. It’s a 1-acre park that has fantastic 360 degree views of San Francisco and beyond, if there’s no fog! We lucked out and arrived on a perfect clear afternoon.

There are two park entrances (no fees), the back steps on 14th Avenue and the famous steps called “The Moraga Steps”. Most of the hike is all up hill on either entrance with The Moraga Steps being the longer hike uphill. My original plan was to hike up The Moraga Steps and watch the sunset but we got a little turned around and found the backs steps on 14th Avenue first. We later visited The Moraga Steps and I was just blown away with the detailing on the steps. I think if we would have hiked up The Moraga Steps it would have taken us twice as long because our toddlers would have wanted to touch each tile.

The kids were itching to get out of the car and “climb the mountain” so we parked, packed our sweaters and jackets and started up the stairs on 14th Avenue. My two year old daughter was determined to walk up the stairs herself so my husband patiently walked up 100 ft of stairs with her, while my son and I raced to the top of the stairs.

My son found enjoyment playing in the little sandy dirt trail that wrapped around the top of Grand View park, while we waited for the rest of the family to make it to the top of the stairs. My daughter was coaxed to make it to the top after my son yelled, “Hurry up there’s sand up here!”. She scrambled to the last step and happily started playing in the sand with her brother, while us parents enjoyed the grand views. My kids don’t like to hike up a hill but if there are a set of stairs in front of them they will surely go up every step themselves!

We still had not made it to the top but we could see almost all of San Francisco’s iconic landmarks: The Golden Gate Bridge, Golden Gate Park, de Young Museum, Academy of Sciences, Twin Peaks, Downtown and the Marin Headlands. After our little break we circled around on the trail to the top, which in my opinion had better views of the Pacific Ocean then the very top of Grand View Park.

My kids were very excited that they had “climbed the mountain” and they could see the ocean and huge cargo ships going under the Golden Gate Bridge. When we reached the top of the hill, the wind was so strong we knew we weren’t going to be able to stay for another hour and a half to see the sunset. We let our boy climb on the rocks and our daughter happily played in the dirt before we headed down the stairs to find The Moraga Steps.

Our hike up the hill was a little less than half a mile and even if we had gone up The Moraga Steps, this is a very family-friendly 1-mile round trip hike, enjoyable for all. San Francisco is only 47 square miles but you can find lots of family friendly hikes along the Pacific Coast, The Presidio, Golden Gate Park and up the hills. Grand View Park sure does live up to its name and is a great little hike for the family in San Francisco!
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About the Author

Melissa Avery is a San Francisco Bay Area wife, stay at home mom and lover of the outdoors. Her blog, Chasqui Mom is about her family adventures loving nature through hiking, backpacking, and anything outdoors.

Setting Sail on a Channel Islands’ Wildlife Cruise – Playful Pelicans & A Delightful Dolphin Escort

Posted on September 23, 2013June 8, 2016 by Jennifer Fontaine

The Channel Islands are a 160 mile-long archipelago sprinkled amidst the sprawling Pacific Ocean. In 1938, five of the 8 islands, positioned just off the Southern California coastal city of Oxnard, were established as a National Monument, then later in 1980 were designated as the Channel Islands National Park. They are a sight to behold and part of one of the richest marine biospheres in the world. From Los Angeles, an easy hour’s drive north will deliver you to a picturesque and thriving land that took Mother Nature thousands of years to engineer.

If you’re looking for a special outing that will create long-lasting memories for the entire family, a Channel Island’s Wildlife Cruise is one to add to your list. After 17 years of Southern California living and countless visits to national parks all over the world, I found it astounding that we had never made it to this National Park. A few months ago, as luck would have it, an invitation to do a wildlife cruise fell into our laps and excitedly, the whole family piled in to the car and up the coast we went!

On that Sunday, we arrived at the Channel Islands Harbor early, which was our luck because there was a quaint little Farmer’s Market steps from our cruise’s launching dock. We decided that would be the perfect place to buy some snacks and lunch to bring with us! The vendors offered a great variety of perfectly ripe, organic fruits and veggies and we snagged some to-die-for homemade hummus and pita chips, too!

The cruise out to the Channel Islands National Park is a half day affair spent skating across the wide open ocean, meandering about the islands and witnessing awe-inspiring beauty at its best; a day full of exploring, discovering and learning that was fascinating, not only for our 2 1/2 year old, but for the adults as well.

About half way out to the islands we were greeted by a pod of dolphins. Even the crew and captain of the boat commented that it was one of the largest pods they had ever seen in their 20 plus years doing charters. We watched them as they surfed our wake, swam sideways to get a better look at us and jumped for joy at the chance to play with us.

The entire boat was so enthralled that when the captain killed the engines to allow us to float with them for a while, no one on board even seemed to notice. The perfect escort for the beginning of a perfect day.

As we approached the island of Anacapa, we were welcomed by Arch Rock, its arresting natural trademark looming 40 feet above the ocean.

The islands are full of breathtaking natural features such as rock bridges, plunging cliffs, sea caves and tide pools. On this particular cruise, we weren’t allowed to disembark, but next time we go we are getting off the boat and you can bet that we will give ourselves even more time to explore the islands from land.

There certainly was no shortage of California sea lions and harbor seals and we had the best time mimicking their raucous manifestos and counting them perched out on the rugged cliffs sunbathing.

Due to the remoteness of the islands, its many secluded beaches and the abundant food of the surrounding waters, you have the opportunity to witness one of the world’s largest congregations of pinnipeds anywhere, representing more species than any other single place on Earth. In the winter months, you may even have the opportunity to spot the occasional Pacific Grey Whale as they migrate between summer feeding grounds in Alaska to their breeding areas in Baja, California.

These protected islands also provide a much-needed sanctuary; vital feeding and breeding grounds for 99 percent of Southern California’s sea birds. 99 percent!

More importantly they are the sole breeding ground for the California Brown Pelican which was only recently taken off of the endangered species list. We watched a brown pelican do laps around our boat for a good 20 minutes. He (or she) was having the time of his life, gliding past the side of the boat, then circling back around. To say it was a joy to watch would be an understatement. Needless to say, we too, were having the time of our lives.

Given its isolated and hard-to-reach location, The Channel Islands are one of the least visited National Parks in the Nation and that’s what makes it even more special to visit. Offering a wide array of exciting activities at your fingertips, the Islands boast world class kayaking, snorkeling, diving, hiking and camping or you can simply enjoy a little well-deserved peace and solitude. I can’t wait to adventure back, hiking boots on and ready to discover the Channel Island’s secret treasures hidden deep in the recesses of the islands coves, beaches and trails!