Sunday, December 2, 2007

Santa Rosa: Spring Lake Park



One of the things that we love about Sonoma County is that while we have an urban center, you are never far away from nature. Spring Lake is about ten minutes from downtown. Most of the leaves have fallen off the trees at this time of year, but I think you still get a feeling for its beauty. Here is a picture we took today:



There are many paths to explore.



And here is how to get there from downtown:



Spring Lake is one of our favorite parks for many reasons. First, it's pretty big - at 330 acres, there is plenty of room for hiking, biking and horse trails. On the lake, you can rent kayaks, paddle boats, even sailboats at certain times of the year. There is a swimming lagoon with lifeguards in the summertime, lots of camping and picnicking spots. Spring Lake Regional Park is sandwiched in between two other amazing parks. Howarth Park is a Santa Rosa city park that has a giant playground, a petting zoo, a merry go round, and even a steam train! On the otherside of Spring Lake is Annadel State Park, which is a 5000 acre preserve where you have over 35 miles of hiking, biking and horseback trails. We have 43 regional county parks that have everything from redwood tree forests to beaches on the Pacific Ocean. Here is a map of Annadel that might be helpful as well as the state park website:

http://www.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=480ww.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=480

We recently purchased a pass to the Sonoma County Regional Parks for $57.00 and it lasts all year long. We enjoy jogging around the paths at Spring Lake, and in the summertime, we love using the pass to swim in the lagoon, or even to go out to Bodega Bay and jump in the ocean at Doran Beach. You can find out more about the Sonoma County Regional Parks at their website here: www.sonoma-county.org/parks/

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