Family Trip: Explore the Filoli Gardens

Inside the Garden House. Photo by Frog Mom

Spring knocks early on Filoli's doors but then, what wouldn't spring do for one of the Bay Area's finest gardens? Spreading over hills and meadows in Woodside, Filoli is one of the last early 20th century estates still intact its full glory with a mansion, historic orchards and manicured gardens. Just minutes off Highway 280, it's another world where the word "gardens" doesn't quite capture the largest collection of heirloom fruit trees in America, the Greek mythology feel of the High Place or the Woodland Garden that seems right out of Alice in Wonderland with its shaded alleys. From the Daffodil Days in February to the fragrant roses in the summer, the garden is a wonder to explore with children.

The mansion, garden side. Photo by Frog Mom

I discovered Filoli thanks to a Sunset magazine article right after I arrived in the Bay Area 11 years ago. The holiday season at Filoli was unlike anything I'd ever seen. Since then I've taken my girls to most of the seasonal events, taken many visitors off season and make it a family tradition to go at least once a year, sometimes twice, and see what's blooming.

What's Blooming?
Last week when I dropped by for an afternoon, I was delighted to see that the narcissus were opening up, that the meadows were turning yellow with daffodils and that potted miniature violet irises were gracing the Garden House. Spring is here! Any other time of the year, there's an easy way to know what's blooming before you go.

Daffodil Dreams. Photo by Barbara Braun

There's a See what's blooming page on the website or if you want to see a particular flower - say, you've named your daughter Rose or you have a fondness for sweet peas - you can browse the Blooming Calendar and plan ahead.

I have a weakness for the summer when the scent of roses and lavender lingers on in the air but it's hard to pick a favorite time. Even the list of blooms feels like a familiar nursery rhyme: lilac, clematis, foxglove, columbine, sunflower. Would you favor one over the other? I guess the solution is to visit regularly and enjoy the passing of the seasons.

Sunken Garden. Photo by Frog Mom

What Kids Like
After you walk through the gate next to the garden shop, the first garden your eyes see is the Sunken Garden and this is one for kids to love. Follow the red brick road around the pond and get to the edge. Now kneel down and look for tiny fishes swimming in the water. You'll see them!

The next thing that catches your eyes is the Garden House, a sort of fairytale brick building with checkered floors, potted plants, tall French windows and two doves in a cage. When I was, girls and boys were taking turns pointing to the doves and trying to find the opening of the cage.

Now walk into the Walled Garden and make your way to the Knot Garden. This is totally one of my girls' favorite. Best seen in bloom around late spring and the summer, it's a garden of tricky geometrical patterns with a great history. Let me explain, quoting the Filoli Gardener's Reference.

Knot Garden. Photo by C.G.

The Knot Garden is a unique geometrical arrangement of plants commonly associated with European gardens of the Middle Ages and Elizabethan England, where lords enjoyed their colors and patterns from castle windows.

Knot gardens were commonly designed to display royal coats of arms, figures of plants or animals, or stitches of embroidery, and the interstices would be filled with colored sand and earth (open knot, as at Filoli) or with flowers (closed knot). At Filoli,  hedges are shorn and sculpted into three-dimensional under- and overlapping woven strands creating a beautiful, intricate, undulating effect. If your kids are too short to grasp the intricacy of the garden, no worries. You can find miniature reproductions of the gardens in a square wooden pot. Clever, hey?

Swimming Pool. Photo by Frog Mom

Another kid favorite is the High Place, a grassy yew theater looking down the succession of gardens and an alley of Iris yew trees - great spot for hide and seek or tumble time. Going down the garden, my girls like to sneak inside the Woodland Garden where bell-shaped flowers bend over gracefully next to the narrow path.

Just over the wall is the place that'll make you wish you owned the place: the swimming pool! It's no Hearst Castle pool but framed by these gorgeous gardens, I'll take it any day. Too bad you can only look at it.

Of course I couldn't put in words the rest of the gardens but last week I stayed 20 minutes looking at a blooming magnolia tree shedding its pretty pink leaves on the terrace facing the mountains. I say, it was very relaxing.

If you wonder why the gardens are so pristine and well maintained, imagine an army of 1,300 volunteers busy as bees and passionate about Filoli. These guys do most of the work!

Now, to spice up your next visit, here is a short list of upcoming events.

Upcoming Events
Seasonal events are very popular at Filoli and it's bet to get your tickets early.

• Friday February 22 - Sunday February 24, 2012: Opening celebration with Daffodil Dreams. See nearly a million bulbs burst into bloom in the meadows and around the mansion. Hours: Friday and Saturday, 10am to 3.30pm, Sunday 11am to 3.30pm. Free for kids age 4 and younger, fees apply for others. Read my Frog Mom post on Daffodil Dreams.
• Saturday March 31, 2012: Spring Fling. Family fun, floral displays, hands-on activities, live music and you can sample the Filoli garden products (honey, herb mixes, vinegars). 10am - 3.30pm. Free for kids age 4 and younger, fees apply for others. You can pre-order lunch boxes.
• Friday May 11 - Sunday May 13, 2012: Celebrate Mother's Day with the Filoli Flower Show. Details coming up.
• June 2012: Father's Day event, details coming up soon. 

Where to Eat?
Filoli offfers one of the rare dining options off of highway 280 and a cute little cafe where you can enjoy paninis, soups, salads and for kids a short selection of kid-friendly meals. Unfortunately picnicking is not allowed on Filoli grounds but if your child needs a snack right now, I've seen moms sit at the tables on the tennis court and whip out an emergency snack. Local picnic options in the area include Edgewood Park and Preserve, Wunderlich Park and Huddart Park.

Directions
Filoli is roughly 30 miles south of San Francisco. To get there, get on Highway 280 and exit at Edgewood Road. Turn towards the mountains on Edgewood Road until it ends at Cañada Road and turn right on Cañada Road. After 1.25 miles, turn left into Filoli entrance. There's free parking by the visitor center.

Guest post: How to Prepare for The San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade

Float at the Chinese New Year Parade in San Francisco.
Photo from Southwest Airlines Chinese New Year and Parade
Festival Facebook Page

It's one of the top 10 Chinese New Year parades in the world, the kids will love it! For my friend Ronnie Sharpe from Marinhood, the San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade is a yearly tradition she never misses with her daughter. She likes the floats, she plans a dim sum meal, she watches the dragon - I mean, she's pretty much an expert. When I asked her to write a guest post on the topic, she whipped it up so fast and so comprehensively that I was blown away. If you're joining the parade this year, make sure to read this - it's based on years of standing in Chinatown watching the floats go by with her daughter. Here's for your eyes, her words of advice.

Guest Post by Ronnie Sharpe: How To Prepare For The San Francisco Chinese New Year Parade

Experience the sights and sounds of Chinatown during the community's most exciting time of the year, the Chinese New Year Parade! Steeped in legends and stories, the parade has been an annual tradition for San Francisco since the days of the Gold Rush. The parade is a particularly fun event for children but to avoid being overwhelmed, here's what recommend.

Dragon Dance: A Chinese New Year
Lift the Flap Book. Cover art

Learn About The Traditions
The traditions, myths and superstitions that surround the celebration are fascinating and will enhance your experience of the events and parade. Susan Kunhardt, Children's Book Buyer at the Book Passage recommends "Dragon Dance: A Chinese New Year Lift-the-Flap" by Joan Holub, "Bringing in the New Year" by Grace Lin and "Celebrate Chinese New Year" by Carolyn Otto.

Getting There
I recommend arriving at lunchtime to eat, have time to enjoy the festivities and watch the parade. Chinatown has steep hills and alleys to navigate and temperatures fluctuate. Now you need to park. Chinatown can become extremely crowded and driving can be very frustrating on a good day - the parade makes this even more of a challenge.

Map location of the Chinese Culture Center

We park at the public lot for the Hilton on Washington St. which is under the Chinese Culture Center. We always sit near the Chinese Culture Center to watch the parade and when we are ready to leave, we can easily get to the car and not get tied up in crowds or traffic. A helpful parking website is sanfrancisco.bestparking.com but bear in mind the parade path and one-way streets - you do not want to get stuck and some garages may charge a different rate that day that may be not listed on this website.

Mastering the chopsticks! Photo by Ronnie Sharpe

Or if you prefer public transportation contact Golden Gate Transit or dial 511 or (415) 923-2000 or MUNI. Note that certain stops above ground on Market Street will not be operational during the parade so check the routes first. Underground is safer.

Plan A Chinese Lunch
Time to eat! One of my favorite dim sum places is  New Asia Restaurant on 772 Pacific near Stockton. Inexpensive, clean, delicious and easy seating. My daughter is always excited to see the bustling traffic of the dim sum carts race by.

The other place is House of Nanking on Kearny (close to Columbus) but it is so popular, there is almost always a line out the door and you will probably not find a place to sit.

Fortune Cookie Factory. Photo by Ronnie
Sharpe

Explore Chinatown
After lunch it's time to explore! Chinatown shuts the streets off early for the whole weekend to cars for the Community Street Fair. The block party area includes Grant Avenue from California to Pacific, Pacific Avenue from Kearny to Stockton, Washington and Jackson Streets from Kearny to Stockton and is a lot of fun.

We always visit Golden Gate Fortune Cookies (also known as the Fortune Cookie Factory) on Ross Alley just off Grant. On the opposite side of the alley, I discovered one year is the dressing rooms for the dragon and lion dancers in the parade (although that may have changed.) It was a chance to get up close to the main characters of the parade. My daughter was thrilled when one of the lion dancers put his mask on her.

Lion marionette. Photo by Ronnie Sharpe

There are a lot of tchotkes shops to explore and we love the moon cakes at the Eastern Bakery on Grant Ave. Check out some of the intriguing herb shops with exotic medicinal remedies, antique scales, calculations preformed by abacus and eastern doctors prescribing elaborate and unusual prescriptions. My favorite is The Great China Herb Company at 857 Washington Street which operates the same way it has since 1922.

I never miss getting a Chinese stamp hand carved in alabaster when I go. It is amazing to watch the artists at their trade. My favorite artist is an older gentleman, usually at a little outdoor make-shift stand, no name, and located on Grant Avenue, very unassuming, he only speaks Chinese and his wife is there to take your money. But he will hand you a book and you point to what you want and he will carve it for you with his tiny tools. The merchants in the area know him and I seek him out every year. It makes a great gift!

Curbside seats! Photo by Ronnie Sharpe

Enjoy the Parade!
The parade starts at 5:15 pm at Second and Market so we usually stand on the corner near the Chinese Culture Center about 5:30 p.m. I never get tickets for the bleachers and prefer sitting with the locals and tourists.

It is a great way to see the parade and we have met lots of people from all over the world. Once we met someone from China who was translating the stories, dances, and symbols which was a real treat. We experienced no problems sitting at the curb.

The Golden Dragon. Photo by Ronnie Sharpe

Watch for the crowd favorite - the spectacular 250' Golden Dragon ("Gum Lung"). Dragon and lion dances are common during Chinese New Year. It is believed that the loud beats of the drum and the deafening sounds of the cymbals together with the face of the dragon or lion dancing aggressively can evict bad or evil spirits.

Don't Forget The Annual Spring Festival Celebration!
On the weekend of the parade, the Chinese Culture Center throws a free event called Annual Spring Festival Celebration on the 3rd floor of its building on Kearny Street (11am – 3pm on February 11 and 12, 2012). There you can enjoy exhibitions, crafts, demonstrations, New Year food tastings, performances of lion dancers, martial arts, folk and classic dances and much more. Last but not least, register for the Chinese New Year Treasure Hunt from 4:30 p.m., a treasure that families with older children love.

Southwest Airlines Float 2011. Photo from Southwest Airlines
Chinese New Year and Parade Festival Facebook Page  

 These are just my recommendations; you may have your own favorites. Have fun exploring the streets and alleys of Chinatown. It’s a fascinating, authentic and historic neighborhood. Especially during this time of the year, don't miss one of San Francisco's most treasured celebration, the Chinese New Year Parade.

Enjoy the cultural events and vibrant history that Chinatown offers and welcome in the year of the dragon. Gung Hay Fat Choy! May prosperity be with you.......always. For more information visit the official parade website at www.chineseparade.com.

Discover Abbott's Lagoon, the Bird Sanctuary of Point Reyes

Abbott's Lagoon. Photo by Frog Mom

A stone's throw away from the quaint town of Point Reyes Station, Abbott's Lagoon is Point Reyes' bucolic answer to the Pescadero Marsh or the Richardson Bay Audubon: a bird sanctuary. This flat 1.5 mile walk combines a lagoon where fresh waters meet the sea, green pasture hills and more birds than you've seen in a while - especially if you drop in during the winter migrations. We spent a day around the Point Reyes peninsula and Abbott's Lagoon was a spur of the moment pick for a sunny afternoon. I'm glad we went as it was way more than I expected.

Getting there
In itself, the drive from Point Reyes Station along Tomales Bay was a scenic delight. We drove past the small town of Inverness, the renowned rustic and romantic Manka's Inverness Lodge, and past the junction to the Drakes Bay Oyster Farm. On our way, I pointed out to the kids the Russian "Lipnosky's" dacha, an elaborate Russian-style wooden house perched above Tomales Bay on stilts - they loved it. At the split on Sir Francis Drake Hwy where signs point to the lighthouse or Pierce Point and Tomales Bay, I had a moment's hesitation and made a right towards Pierce Point. Fortunately, it was a good choice. Since I only navigate with paper maps and by memory, I could have made a wrong turn. I continued on Pierce Point Road and it took a while but finally I saw the sign for Abbott's Lagoon and pulled over in the parking lot.

Trailhead. Photo by Frog Mom

The hike
At the parking lot, our girls were excited. I went with my friend Becky and she had borrowed another little girl along her daughter so we had four girls with us ages 6 and 8 years.

Coming out of a post-lunch ice cream, the young ones clearly needed to shake their sillies out. Looking out west, we could see all the way to the lagoon and if we squinted, the golden hues of the sandy beach. I decided to quit the squinting and start walking.

Bird guide 101. Photo by Frog Mom

Within a quarter mile, the wide path led us to an oval pond where we saw our first birds. We had brought with us our Local Birds of Marin County laminated guide and the girls unfolded it hastily to identify the birds. They weren't ring-necked ducks, the beak color didn't match. They weren't mallards, the head and neck were off. They weren't red-throated loons either and as tempting as the pointy beak shape suggested, they weren't western grebes either. What then?

Gracefully gliding along the reeds was a pair of American Coots, one of the most common waterbirds and yet we felt it was an accomplishment.

Roughing around on the trail. Photo by Frog Mom

When you go on a wildlife hike and the wildlife is actually there for you to see (as in "howdy!" - right on cue), I can't tell you how great it feels.

Eventually the coots shied away from us and moved to thicker shores where we couldn't see them. Semi sad face. We moved away too and walked towards the beach.

What wasn't our surprise when we heard the deep mooing of a cow coming from across the pasture. A cow? Why of course, we were on the Point Reyes peninsula after all and there's all these A, B, C and so forth ranches.

Mule deer at Abbotts Lagoon. Photo by Frog Mom

Abbotts Lagoon elbows  Ranch H so I'm guessing the mooing cow was a Ranch H mooing cow. However it's not the Ranch H mooing cow that got our girls' attention, it's a handful of mule deer.

Deer was not on our birding program and came as a complete surprise. What were they doing there during the day anyway? They must feel pretty safe from predators to hang out in the open like that and they felt so sage that we were able to get just a few feet away. Unevenly scattered on a hill, five or six deer grazed and chewed and grazed some more. What a life.

Boardwalk. Photo by Frog Mom

Past the herd, the packed dirt trail gave way to a curving boardwalk a few feet off a marshy area. When in season, I bet you the marsh is all flooded but with our dry winter, the ground and the cattails crackling dry. The girls couldn't have cared less, boardwalks seem to trigger an irresistible urge to fool around. Which they did.

After the boardwalk the ground was visibly more sandy until we gradually reached enough sand that we knew we were at the beach. A small bridge crossed over the lagoon, a snowy white egret waddled in the distance, and after that the trail disappeared underground.

Buried in sand. Swept by the sand. Quietly swallowed by the sand dunes. What a startling change of scenery.

Before we could object, the three oldest girls ran up the sand dunes and took off their shoes and socks. If they could, they would have stayed a whole day playing in the sand.

I tend to forget how much children like to play in sand, what pleasure they get  just out of digging their toes deep in the fine grains and wiggling them free. It didn't take long for the youngest one to join the unruly ranks of girls gone wild in the dunes.

Yellow sand verbena. Photo by Frog Mom

Becky and I explored the area where the bright flowers of sand verbena brought color to the dunes otherwise crisscrossed by the long stringy runners of beach strawberries with their bright waxy leaves.

Above us a flock of brown pelicans flew low to the ground, barely a few feet above the lagoon and probably scanning for fish.

All good things have an end and we had to drag the girls out of the dunes, shake their sandy socks and put the shoes back on. Though they were disappointed they showed signs of weariness.

Turkey vulture in flight. Photo by Frog Mom

On the way back we observed a couple of turkey vultures circling above the northern end of the lagoon and I took several photographs of the birds in flight so I could blow them up on my camera and show them to the girls.

After checking the bird's red head and looking at the silhouette with the slightly raised wings and long "fingers", we all agreed it was indeed a turkey vulture flying way up there. Turkey vultures may be ugly as hell up close but in the sky they are the most graceful gliders.

As the after shadows grew longer and longer, we watched the hills around the lagoon don the warm colours of a late winter afternoon. It would be dark before we got back to the city but we were glad we had stopped by Abbotts Lagoon, a unique blend of coastal prairie and lagoon.

Practical Details

• Hike: 2 miles round trip
• Elevation: negligible
• Trail map: you can download one here.
• Trailhead: 49 miles north of San Francisco. Driving directions here.

Where to Eat

• At Point Reyes Station, we enjoyed a scrumptious lunch of fried calamari, clam chowder and hamburger with farmstead blue cheese at the Station House Cafe. We all sat around a large communal table in the back room where the kids could move around without bothering other diners.
• For a more casual setting, the wood-fired pizza at Cafe Reyes looked and smelled fantastic - the chocolate chip cookies on the counter too.

Meet Ronnie of the Awesome List

Ronnie Sharpe and her dog Munro. Photo by Frog Mom

A year ago, Ronnie Sharpe and her friend Marjorie got together over a cup of joe and created Marinhood, a website that lists kid activities from infancy through early grade school years (Ronnie's Awesome List) and for the tween and teenage years (Things To Do with Tweens and Teens in Marin). Ronnie describes the lists as "get in, get out," a no-thrills but carefully selected list of activities for local families. To find out about the great list, I met up with Ronnie in Mill Valley where she lives and we went on a hike at Camino Alto Open Space Preserve with her dog Munro.

I first met Ronnie (online) when she was editor of the newsletter of the Southern Marin Mothers Club and I was managing editor at the Golden Gate Mothers Group. We exchanged emails, traded publications and that was it until a year ago. Ronnie's name re-appeared on my digital screen when Ronnie's Awesome List was born and she emailed the link to a Yahoo! group I'm part of. Ronnie, as in Ronnie Sharpe? Clearly it was the same Ronnie and I decided to find out what Ronnie was up to.

On Being Adaptable
"I was an Air Force brat and moved nine times as a kid from base to base," explained Ronnie who added that moving often to places to all looked alike made her a very adaptable child. Later in life, adaptability helped her in a down economy when she worked at a pet clinic after a sculpting and art degree -though she still used her art degree doing textbook illustrations. Today, her ability to move on has turned into a professional photographer, grant writer for non-profits and Bay Area blogger.

Ameliasaurus. Photo by Ronnie
Sharpe

On Dinosaurs
Some parents say "yeah, my kid is into sharks" or "my kid is into forts" but generally these phases are short-lived. Ronnie's daughter Amelia is not just into dinosaurs, she's obsessed by them. At age eight, her goal is to be the youngest person ever to discover a dinosaur bone.

Her passion has led her to visit the museum of the paleontology department at UC Berkeley, look up the clam fossils on Mount Tamalpais and learn Latin words, prefixes and suffixes to understand the meaning of dinosaur names. When she watched the movie Jurassic Park, she critiqued that "these dinosaurs weren't even in the Jurassic era!"  Of course she's read pretty much any dinosaur book for kids out there and graduated to the adult stuff. Is that an obsession or what?

Ronnie pitches in the dinosaur obsession as well, looking for paleontology digs that will take a 3rd grader or researching summer trips with dinosaur stops. On the Halloween front, what did Amelia dress as last year? Why, a Stegosaurus of course. However instead of buying a cheapo dino-suit with the wrong dino features, Amelia designed it, she and her mom cut the plates and sewed it with the tail, and Ronnie dyed the fabric.

Our daughters at the Muir Woods Earth Day. Photo by
Ronnie Sharpe

On volunteering and nature
"Volunteering has given me so much," said Ronnie reflecting on her years with the Southern Marin Mothers Club and on her experience rescuing animals at local animal shelters. Meeting people, sharing knowledge, giving back to the community - those are words Ronnie believes in.

This past weekend we joined her at the Muir Woods Earth Day celebration where she volunteered with her daughter. Together my family and hers pulled forget-me-nots and cleaned the boardwalks of Muir Woods. On her nature agenda, Ronnie also volunteers at Muir Beach in the summer and plans Earth Day like others plan Superbowl Sunday - with glee and anticipation.

On dead sharks

Dead shark. Photo by Ronnie Sharpe

Her experience at animal shelters has also sharpened a wild animal rescue fiber in her and she told me this anecdote. "A few years back, I found an 8 ft nurse shark that came up the bay at Bayfront Dog Park. The Marin Humane Society would not remove it saying it will go back in with the tides but it was there for weeks and getting really smelly. The MHS argued they could only pick up dead animals if they were on the road so some folks dragged the shark into the road. The MHS dragged it back to the waters edge. =)) Ah well….eventually they had to remove it."

Apart from the dead-shark fun factor, who would care about a dead shark in a creek? Ronnie did and after some research, she found out that leopard sharks swim up creeks around the San Francisco Bay to give birth to their babies in as safe place, get disoriented and die. That's how she's found three dead sharks so far. Now she always keeps an eye out for sharks in distress in creeks.

Amelia with a friend and Munro.
Photo by Ronnie Sharpe

On Ronnie's favorite places for kids in Marin
In no particular order:

• Check the time of the low tide on the NOAA tide tables and go out to the tidepools at Muir Beach or the Fitzgerald Marine Reserve
• Hike around Tomales Point and see herds of tule elk
• Enjoy the Chinese New Year parade in San Francisco

On Ronnie's Awesome List

Ronnie's list offers information for kids elementary age and under and features activities around the Bay Area. In her list this month (February 2012), you can find American hoop dancing at the San Anselmo library, a nature hike in the Presidio in San Francisco and a garden stroller meetup at the UC Botanical Gardens at Berkeley.

To read the list you can subscribe by email and to give Ronnie details of an upcoming event, you can email her.

What blogs does Ronnie read?
Besides Frog Mom of course:)

• Mill Valley Life - www.millvalleylife.com 
• James Gurney's blog - Amelia's favorite author/illustrator - www.gurneyjourney.blogspot.com 
• The Sharpes like tinkering and go to makezine.com for inspiration 
• Frisco Kids - www.friscokids.net 
• Skinny Scoop - www.skinnyscoop.com
• Fun food ideas: littlenummies.net, www.suburbanhomestead.typepad.com

On chocolate

The best way to end a profile, right? Ronnie raves about the artisan chocolates created by her friend Onie who was trained at Bernachon, one of the most prestigious chocolatiers in France. [I have his cookbook and it's chocolate and French cake overdose by reading.] However tempting that sounded, you don't need to fly to France to enjoy these chocolates. You can simply find them online at Alchemy Pastry. If you drool over the photos, it might be worth knowing that Ronnie took them (she does food as well as portrait photography). Now I'll dream of the chocolate fairy house or the Mexican chocolate and passion fruit marshmallow combo. They def look like they're worth a mile or two of swim in the bay:)

About the Meet Series: Know of a fab person you'd like to see featured on Frog Mom? Shoot me an email and tell me more.

Civil War Day at Fort Point

Civil War Days at Fort Point. Photo by Frog Mom

While the East Coast battlefields were raging war night and day, San Francisco fortified its army outposts at Angel Island, Alcatraz and Fort Point. Steamers were sent through the Golden Gate and around the Horn loaded with millions worth in gold to finance the Civil War. Public meetings were held each time a letter arrived by stage coach. Is it hard to picture today? For a time travel experience, take your family to the Fort Point Civil War Days where docents in costume and park rangers celebrate this era with music, infantry drills, canon presentations and history re-enactments.

Fort Point. Photo by Frog Mom

Walking through the big front gate of the brick fort at the foot of the Golden Gate Bridge, my girls and I felt giddy with excitement. From inside Fort Point we could hear the sound of drums resonating against the walls and walked in on an incredible scene.

Dressed in navy frock coats, gold buttons and felt hat caps, infantry soldiers in squad formation were practicing bayonet and musket drills in front of dozens of bystanders including us. It felt like entering a movie set!

Infantry drills. Photo by Frog Mom

My girls elbowed their way to the front steps and watched each different drill, mesmerized by the costumes, the shouting orders and the orderly parade. Despite the foggy crappy day, nothing would make them budge.

After half an hour I was the one getting fidgety and I suggested we walk out to the cannons on the other side of the court yard. "What for?" they whined. "To see how they were fired, what do you think?."

The docent on duty was passionate about the topic and we got a full-on lecture on the various types of projectiles and shells fired by cannons. My girls even got to lift a few shells in their hands and they both gasped. They couldn't believe how heavy they were! Even if they had not exploded on impact, I can only imagine the damage they would have done on a wall. let alone on people.

Pharmacy. Photo by Frog Mom

Next to the cannons stood a well-stocked pharmacy in a carrying case that looked so much like a cabinet of curiosities - oh the tiny glass vials and hand-written labels - that the girls started wondering if it was OK playing with it.

Of course it wasn't but we loved hearing about the various remedies that doctors used on the battlefield. Well, loved - best to say we were intrigued because there's nothing to love about a foot-long syringe.

Running on top of Fort Point. Photo by Frog Mom

Impatient to explore the upper levels, we left the courtyard and went up the steel staircases to the very top of the fort which is a level roof with a low wall. If you've never done it, it's worth getting there if only to be outside, dwarfed by the giant structure of the Golden Gate Bridge arching over the strait.

Officers in Civil War uniform were patrolling around making for an interesting anachronism below the 1937 steel structure. On a clear day, look for Angel Island directly to the north and Alcatraz Island east of you in the Bay. You can spot with its tiny lighthouse on top in the direction of the Bay Bridge.

Two ladies making rag dolls. Photo by Frog Mom

Chased by the wind chill or the fog chill, we went down a flight of stairs and started exploring the lower levels where the extra-thick stone and masonry walls keep the rooms warm.

You'll be pleasantly surprised to see that many of the rooms are furnished, presenting to young visitors snippets of life in the 1860s through the early 1900s when the fort was still garrisoned. Other exhibits cover the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge or women's suffrage.

Kids can telegraph their name. Photo by Frog Mom

In one room we stumbled upon two elegant elegant ladies making rag dolls that they sold for $10 a piece. With buttons for eyes, yarn for hair and long dresses with aprons, the dolls shouted "Take me home!" to my girls. And that's how we came back home with Geraldine and Molly, two young girls who won't mind hiking with us.

Down and down we continued our journey til we entered the room under the main entrance of the fort. There, an officer was showing kids how to telegraph their names. 'Do you want to try?" he asked my girls.

Musicians. Photo by Frog Mom

Before you know it, they stood in line, patiently waiting to use the Morse code to telegraph their first over to a mystery recipient who telegraphed something back. As a reward, the kids each got a paper reproduction of a Civil War era dollar. How cool!

As we got out of Fort Point, we enjoyed music by a quatuor of fifes and drums.

Feeling up for the adventure? Fort Point Civil War Days takes place this Saturday.

Details

• Day: Saturday January 28, 2012
• Hours: 10am to 5pm
• What: Join the American Civil War Association, as part of the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War 2011-2015 commemoration, as they bring Fort Point to life with music, marching and the colorful uniforms of Civil War soldiers.
• Cost: Free 
• Parking: by the Warming Hut or if you get lucky, in front of the fort.

Nike Missile Hike at Sweeney Ridge

A room with a view. Photo by Frog Mom

Talk about an adventure. With a mom friend, her two kids and my girls, we set out to find a historical marker on Sweeney Ridge in Pacifica, which I thought was pretty cool. In my mind, historical marker + Spanish expedition, armed soldiers and missionaries with horses and mules + year 1769 set the stage for a nice storytime after a steep hike. But lo and behold we found a Nike Missile site on the way and that became the hit adventure for all of us. A vandalized and dilapidated remnant of Cold War days stole the show on a sunny winter day and had our kids going all crazy in and out of the buildings. Would you believe me when I say that the hills around San Francisco never cease to surprise me?

Trailhead by the Orchid Nursery. Photo by Frog Mom 

On a gorgeous afternoon, we looked for the trailhead around CA-1 in Pacifica. For the record, there's no big signage on the freeway so looking is part of the fun. I had already hiked Sweeney Ridge and the Gaspar de Portola Expedition marker from Sneath Lane off of Skyline - it's easier.

However I knew there was a trail coming in from the Pacific and it happened to be the exact route Father Crespi and the Gaspar de Portola Expedition had followed to find the San Francisco Bay on a crisp autumn day in 1769 when grizzly bears still roamed California and wetlands ringed the Bay . All in all, more fun.

Getting started. Photo by Frog Mom

I also knew that approach would be fairly steep (1,000 feet elevation gain over 2.4 miles) but the kids didn't need to know that ahead of time. They would figure it out soon enough.

We finally found the entrance. From CA-1 going north from Rockaway Beach, we made a sharp right in the driveway of the Shelldance Orchid Nursery and found a big dirt lot at the top where we parked. Everybody disembarked and grabbed their backpacks.

Mori Ridge Trail. Photo by Frog Mom

The first slope set the tone - man that was steep! It was going to be all up until the ridge so I told the kids to pace themselves, which of course they didn't. Why walk when you can run uphill? I mean really (rolling eyes). Crazy as it sounds it's our pair of 6-year old girls who played a little running game while the 8-year old puffed behind.

I thought I was going to have time to chat with my friend on the trail but when the young explorers disappeared over the ridge and wouldn't stop when we called them, I had no choice but to take off. What if they met the big bad wolf? I scolded them sternly but thanks to them, reached the top much faster than I anticipated so that was good.

Ambush in plain sight. Photo by Frog Mom

I caught up with them on Sweeney Ridge Trail and seconds later, we stumbled upon the Nike missile site #SF-51C. As they wanted to spook out their older siblings, I suggested they hide behind me on the cement top of a former tank - a request I didn't need to repeat. Not-so-stealthily they lied down and waited. "Booh!" they went. A commendable try  but they were all too visible to allow any element of surprise.

Once our group was re-united, we started exploring our discovery with stupendous views both on the Bay and the ocean.

Passage of time. Photo by Frog Mom

Now, when you look at dilapidated buildings you don't immediately think "nuclear warheads." Right? Maybe you think "junkie hideout" or "creepy shelter" but nothing too Dr. Strangelove. However the signs on the use of Nike Missile Site SF-51 quickly put things into perspective and then you reconsider the views on the Pacific Ocean. Short range, long range - views with a definite military advantage.

As a matter of fact, Nike Site SF-51 included a control station and was only 2 miles away from a missile launching site at nearby Milagra Ridge (that's if you want a side trip). First I thought the buildings were entirely boarded off but then we realized some doors were open. The kids went in first and we heard "wow!"

Peek-a-who? Photo by Frog Mom

Besides the roofs ripped open and the walls sprayed with colorful graffiti, the buildings have a mad scientist feel to them with dangling wires, big fuse boxes and metal chutes.

We had to refrain the kids from crawling under more wall openings than necessary and stopped them before they tried sliding down a rusty metal pipe. I can't really blame them, the place is fun. Discarded glow sticks told silent stories of night excursions and I actually thought it would be a cool thing to do - later.

Sweeney Ridge Trail. Photo by Frog Mom

I looked at my watch and thought we must go on with our hike if we wanted to make it back to the car before dark. Not that hiking in the dark isn't a good idea, but we only had 2 flashlights for 6 and the way down would be steep and slippery.

Glad that we found a surprise "treasure" on the trail, we continued south on Sweeney Ridge Trail and walked another half-mile until the Portola Discovery Site. Since we were following a "flattish" ridge, that was swiftly done and we found the marker right after the restrooms (junction with Sneath Lane Trail) over the hill.

Portola Discovery Site. Photo by Frog Mom

As far as markers go, this one could be more grandiose. It is after all, the marker for the discovery of the San Francisco Bay on foot by a European expedition. Without Gaspar de Portola, the bay would have remained hidden from the western world for a few more years.

On the hill, the marker is a simple stone with a text engraved that says "From this ridge the Portola Expedition discovered the San Francisco Bay. November 4, 1769." A bit dry don't you think? Though a stone is a step up from the plaque, an orientation table with major peaks and waypoints would have been nice and a more detailed text as well. If there is an NPS sign, I must have missed it.

Hold on to your pants! Photo by Frog Mom

After a snack of ginger snaps, Fat Witch brownies and apples, we retraced our steps and hiked back to the car. This time it's the 8-year olds who darted off like bees and left the 6-year olds in the dirt. Again we moms separated and I tagged along with the junior crew.

Both were trying to be quiet to see bunnies emerging from bushes at twilight but 6-year olds have a hard time staying quiet so they opted to run down the hills instead. I couldn't help but burst out laughing when I noticed they were both holding their pants - because they were falling down!

Late afternoon fog. Photo by Frog Mom

By the time we made it back, a characteristic ocean fog had rolled in and shrouded the hills in a glorious late afternoon mist. The kids were surprised when I tallied up the mileage: 4.8 miles! That was quite a performance given they hadn't been ready for a long steep hike. Guess the surprise worked to our advantage!

Practical details:

• Trail length: 4.8 miles, roughly 3 hours of hiking (4 hours if you linger on the ridge)
• Elevation gain: 1,000 feet
• Trail head: Shelldance Nursery in Pacifica
• Map: download the Sweeney Ridge brochure with map here.
• Snack & drinks: Chit Chat Cafe at The Pier, 2100 Beach Blvd, Pacifica. Yelp reviews here.