EUROPE: PAN PARKS

Europe’s wild network of Pan Parks

2011 California Federal Junior Duck Stamp Art Contest

W H A T :    2011 California Federal Junior Duck Stamp Art Contest
W H E N :    March 25 (judging 10am – 5 pm), March 26 (celebration)
W H E R E : CornerStone Gardens, Sonoma

This event is free to the public.

M O R E : Free Spring Nature Festival

Expert judges to announce State of California’s “best of show” Federal Junior Duck Stamp on Friday afternoon approx. 3:00-4:00PM. Four student age groups (K-12) will be judged all day Friday. The public is welcomed to observe. Nearly 2,000 CA. entries are expected. The United States winners will be announced on April 15th in Washington DC. A free Spring Nature Festival with live raptors, the 2010 & 2011 student JDS winners, optics, decoy carvers, pollinator pals, beavers, burrowing owls and the California’s National Wildlife Refuges is slated for Saturday 3/26 in Sonoma. “Connecting Kids with Nature” is the 2011 event theme sponsored by – the U.S. Dept. of Interior and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. – The celebration is hosted by Sonoma Birding & Cornerstone Gardens located at 23570 Arnold Drive in Sonoma. Directions. Phone 707-939-8007 for information. The current Federal & Junior Duck Stamps can be purchased at the event and through the U.S.Post Office.

SAFARI WEST OPEN HOUSE

W H A T : SAFARI WEST: Fall Open House

W H E N : Sunday, November 7th, 14th and 21st
9am; 11am, 1pm and 3:00pm

W H E R E : Safari West Wildlife Preserve and African Tent Camp,
Santa Rosa, CA

MOUNT DIABLO TARANTULA TREKS

W H A T : TarantulaTrek
W H E N : HIKE and EVENT SCHEDULE

• Sunday– Sept. 12 – 5:00 pm – Mitchell Canyon
• Sunday– Sept. 19 – 8:45am – 11:00am
• Sunday– Sept. 19 – 4:00pm – 7:00pm
• Saturday – Sept. 25 – 8:45am – 11:00am
• Saturday – Oct. 2 – 11:00am – 1:00pm
• Sunday – Oct. 3 – 8:45am – 11:00am
• Sunday – Oct. 3 – 4:00pm – 7:00pm

W H E R E : Mount Diablo State Park

M O R E : Mount Diablo Interpretive Association
Tarantula Treks at Mt Diablo: Time For That Fuzzy Hairy Feeling

FREE WILDLIFE DAY

W H A T : Free day at the Lindsay Wildlife Museum
W H E N : March 7, 10:00am to 5:00pm
W H E R E : Lindsay Wildlife Museum, Walnut Creek

M O R E :
Daily activities
What’s happening?
In the neighborhood

Labor Day at Bodega Bay

A long weekend, a short trip, and a big wish to come back on this itinerary, CA North Coast is SO beautiful! The highlight was the seals and pelicans show at the The Tides Wharf, absolutely amazing. And the Hog Island Kumamoto Oysters and mussels yum!

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Many more points of interest:

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• Bodega Bay Beaches
• Bodega Bay Life
• Bodega Bay Travel
• The Bell Memorial in Bodega Bay
• Point Reyes National Seashore
• WikiTravelGuide
• Beaches of Point Reyes
• Viewing the Tule Elk
• Sebastopol is for Kids
• Shifting Sands at Tomales Bay
• Tomales Bay
• TOMALES BAY: Northwest Marin on the move
• CHOW: A West Sonoma Road Trip

Tasting rooms and dining rooms in our favorite slice of Northern California wine country

• Wine Spectator: Land of Plenty

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• Farms, Ranches & Factory Tours

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• Clover Stornetta Farms
• Marin Sun Farms
• Twin Hill Ranch
• Cheese Map
• Cheese Tasting:
• Vella Cheese
  315 2nd St E, Sonoma, CA 95476, USA
• Andante Dairy
  Petaluma, CA, USA
• Marin French Cheese
  7500 Red Hill Rd, Petaluma, CA 94952, USA
• Spring Hill Cheese
  4235 Spring Hill Rd, Petaluma, CA 94952, USA
• Bellwether Farms
  9999 Valley Ford Rd, Petaluma, CA 94952, USA
• Matos Cheese Factory
  3669 Llano Rd, Santa Rosa, CA 95407, USA
• Achadinha Goat Cheese Company
  750 Chileno Valley Rd, Petaluma, CA 94952, USA
• Point Reyes Farmstead Cheese Co.
  Point Reyes Station, CA 94956, USA
• Redwood Hill Farm
  5480 Thomas Rd, Sebastopol, CA 95472, USA
• Yerba Santa Goat Dairy
  6850 Scotts Valley Rd, Lakeport, CA 95453, USA
• Laura Chenel’s Chevre
  4310 Fremont Dr, Sonoma, CA 95476, USA
• Green String Farm, Petaluma
• SFGate : Weekend Getaways : MARINE LAB: a spectacular spot
• Weekend Sherpa: Point Break

Cool day in Monterey, WAVE!

After a hot Saturday we decided to cool down in Monterey. Well, I’ve just heard about Dennis the Menace Playground from baby Dani Shovevani, so we couldn’t wait to give it a try. The weather was way cooler on Sunday and Monterey was hidden in a thick patch of fog at times, but the playground and all Monterey day itinerary were cool too!

Another reason to go to Monterey before Labor Day was to rent a surrey. Somehow I remembered that you can rent it only until Labor Day, but today I found that there is a WAVE trolley during the summer that offers fun and free transportation until Labor Day… So we took the trolley, rented a 4-Wheel Family Bike Surrey from Adventures by the Sea and it seems that we can do the surrey all year round including Xmas, yay!

After the trolley and surrey ride, we went to a long time favorite that’s a sure hit with a climbing kid: Lovers Point Park. It was almost dinner time and we decided to not try LaTTiTudes again, our last dinner there, even if a long time ago, was not worth the beautiful view. We took a scenic drive to Fishwife, wishing it were a sunny day to enjoy the Asilomar State Beach. Marking it on the wish list for the butterfly season!

Fishwife was an absolute delight for all family, it warmed up a cool day with delicious flavor! From the friendly and welcoming service to the yummy menu, colorful and inviting for kids too, it won us for future visits in Monterey!

On the way back to highway 1 we saw 2 deers and that topped off a fun full day!

More from our Monterey wish list:

• Vision Quest Ranch, Wild Animal Sanctuary
• Earthbound Farms
• Monterey Youth (MY) Museum
• Monterey Bay Aquarium of course, the best FUN & LEARNING place!
• Path of History, Art Walk, Old Monterey
• Family Fun Itinerary, Family Adventures

…to…be…continued…