June 6, 2009
This next week (June 6-14) is National Fishing and Boating Week. It is every year for the first full week of June. It coincides with Free Fishing Days in most of the States. Free Fishing Day means Grandpa can take the grandkids fishing and not need a license to do so! Check out the details at www.takemefishing.com. You can select your state to see if and when your state’s Free Fishing Day is.
The Reno Gazette Journal article identified June 13 to be Free Fishing Day at Nevada’s Division of State Parks parks. According to Dave Morrow, administrator of the Nevada Division of State Parks, “all of our water-based parks are participating by giving free entrance to visitors who show fishing poles at the park entrance.” Some of the participating parks are Washoe Lake, Sand Harbor, Dayton, Rye Patch State Recreation Area and Fort Churchill State Historic Park.
From the Nevada Department of Wildlife site, the Sparks Marina will have Rotary members from Sparks and Reno and staff from the Nevada Department of Wildlife on hand to assist those with little or no fishing experience. Fishing equipment will be available for children to use if they don’t have their own. Parents must accompany their children to the event.
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Nature Activities, Places to Explore, Sport Activity | Tagged: boating, child, children, Dayton, family, fishing, Fort Churchill State Historic Park, Free Fishing Days, fun, grandchild, grandchildren, grandma, grandpa, grandparent, Green Hour, kids, National Fishing and Boating Week, nature, Places to Go, Rye Patch State Recreation Area, Sand Harbor, Washoe Lake | 
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Posted by mygrandmasue
June 5, 2009
The Grandparents.com website is logging the number of hours grandparents spend outside with their grandchildren this summer. For every hour logged Grandparents.com will donate to KaBOOM! to bringing play into the lives of children. Remember my blog about KABOOM!, finding Playspaces and Julianne Hough earlier? This effort to log outside activity is a fun one for grandparents to get involved in!
2 Comments | Places to Explore, Routine Activity | Tagged: child, children, family, fun, grandchild, grandchildren, grandma, grandpa, grandparent, Green Hour, KaBOOM, kids, playspaces, Routine Activity | Permalink
Posted by mygrandmasue
May 28, 2009
Stroll gardens and hiking trails in 30 acres of beautiful trees, shrubs and flowering plants at Big Springs Gardens on Highway 49 between Bassetts Station and Sierra City, CA. They serve buffets: Thursday evening BBQ ($37.00 per person), Friday Buffet Luncheon ($35.00 per person), Saturday Early Afternoon BBQ Buffet ($37.00 per person) and Sunday Buffet Brunch (2 seatings ($37.00 per person)) in a lovely open air garden overlooking a tranquil trout pond. Reduced prices for children. Reservations Required (530-862-1333). Cash or Check Only. No Credit Cards.
Open Friday, June 5 – Sunday, September 27, 2009.
Package prices include admission fees to the gardens, the complete meal (minus alcoholic beverages), sales tax and service charge. See the website for details.
Leave a Comment » | Places to Explore | Tagged: Big Springs Gardens, buffet, child, children, family, garden, grandchild, grandpa, Green Hour, hiking, kids, mountain garden, nature, Places to Go | Permalink
Posted by mygrandmasue
May 27, 2009
Austin and Bella had fun watching the fish going up the fish ladder at Bonneville Dam in Cascade Locks, Oregon near the Columbia River Gorge. In May, a huge ball of sturgeon was discovered at the base of the dam by fisheries biologists, who at first thought it was debris. Sturgeon are one of the Columbia’s largest and most ancient fish. We have enjoyed feeding the fish and strolling the grounds at Bonneville Dam on several ocassions.
Leave a Comment » | Nature Activities, Places to Explore | Tagged: Bonneville Dam, Cascade Locks, child, children, Columbia River, family, fishery, fun, grandchild, grandchildren, grandma, grandpa, Green Hour, kids, nature, Places to Go, Sturgeon | Permalink
Posted by mygrandmasue
May 25, 2009
A great place to fish or birdwatch with Grandpa is Horseshoe Lake in Southern Illinois near Cairo. It has lots of large-mouth bass and catfish. The whole lake is 4 feet deep (3 ft average). It used to be part of the Mississippi River. There are 15 bald eagles in the Horseshoe Lake area in winter – they like the over 150,000 Canadian Geese that show up too! There is another Horseshoe Lake closer to St. Louis that has Cahokian significance and also the same kind of outdoor experiences available: fishing, boating, hiking, camping, birding and picnic areas.
Leave a Comment » | Nature Activities, Places to Explore | Tagged: birding, boating, child, children, family, fishing, fun, grandchild, grandchildren, grandma, grandpa, Green Hour, hiking, Horseshoe Lake, kids, nature, picnic area, Places to Go, Southern Illinois | Permalink
Posted by mygrandmasue
May 21, 2009
Lots of activities for little ones are on the calendar at the Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis, Missouri. Then there’s the Butterfly House in Faust Park, 15193 Olive Blvd. in Chesterfield, EarthWays Center at 3617 Grandel Square – St. Louis, and the Shaw Nature Reserve at Hwy. 100 & I-44 in Gray Summit. Family classes and activities are offered at the Shaw Nature Reserve. The mbgnet is a wonderful, interactive learning and information tool that is a lot of fun to use. Virtual tours are also available!
Leave a Comment » | Nature Activities, Places to Explore | Tagged: butterflies, Butterfly House, child, children, Earthways Center, family, fun, garden, grandchildren, grandma, grandpa, Gray Summit, Green Hour, hiking, kids, Missouri Botanical Garden, nature, nature education, nature study, Places to Go, Shaw Nature Center, St. Louis | Permalink
Posted by mygrandmasue
May 20, 2009
One of our favorite drives is the Avenue of the Giants. It is a section of Highway 101 in Northern California. By chance I popped in the CD “Music to Disappear In” into the player. Grandpa Ron and I had one of our most spiritual experiences driving through the redwoods with the god-like music playing. It was just so totally awesome! I even got a photo of fairies dancing in the sunlight in a small clearing in the trees. I’ll have to get that photo posted so you can see for yourself!
Roadside America has its own take of the tourist attractions to probably stay away from! 😉
Leave a Comment » | Nature Activities, Places to Explore | Tagged: Avenue of the Giants, car day trip, car tour, car trip, child, children, family, fun, grandchildren, grandma, grandpa, grandparent, Green Hour, hiking, Redwood Highway, redwoods | Permalink
Posted by mygrandmasue
May 17, 2009
A friend wanted suggestions for a romantic getaway to celebrate a 1 year milestone and I thought but a minute before coming up with Snoqualmie Falls and Salish Lodge, located about 30 miles from Seattle, Washington. Grandpa Ron and I enjoyed a weekend there many years ago and we still talk about it! It is where we adopted Bear, our first of now very many bears. He was sitting in the middle of the pillows on our bed when we arrived. We paid his adoption fee in the Gift Shop and he has gone on almost every trip we’ve taken anywhere ever since!
Salish Lodge has many scheduled activities that you can participate in. Even if the lodge is too high end for yur budget, Snoqualmie has other hotels and there are other nearby cities to stay. There is hiking, biking, horseback riding, kayaking, whitewater rapids, fishing and golfing galore – and a Railroad Museum!! We loved the train ride and the informative interpretive tour.
Leave a Comment » | Nature Activities, Places to Explore | Tagged: biking, child, children, family, fishing, fun, golf, golfing, grandchild, grandchildren, grandma, grandpa, Green Hour, hiking, hiking trails, horseback riding, kayaking, kids, nature, Northwest Railway Museum, Places to Go, Salish Lodge, Snoqualmie Falls, train, train ride, waterfall, whitewater rapids | Permalink
Posted by mygrandmasue
May 16, 2009
Check out the Kid’s Gardening website for ideas to make gardening moments to share with your kids or grandkids. The Parents’ Primer is the Family Resource Room feature for this month. From the site: “find out how to engage your children in outdoor explorations that cultivate their love of plants, gardening, and the environment.” The first resource of the Parent’s Primer is age expectations for what kids get out of ‘gardening’ depending on their age group. Just as Michelle Obama created the White House Garden with school children, you could have your own special garden to share with your favorite kids. Interesting aside: Two bee hives will be part of the organic White House Garden plan!
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Posted by mygrandmasue
May 12, 2009
The Great Smoky Mountains National Park is celebrating its 75th anniversary of its opening in 1934 with all kinds of special events. Of course there is the normal hiking, horseback riding and bicycle riding and other outdoor activities as well! It is the most visited of all the national parks. Jerry Shriver had an awesome article Power to the people’s park in the May 8, 2009 USA Today paper.
Leave a Comment » | Nature Activities, Places to Explore | Tagged: biking, child, children, family, fun, grandchild, grandchildren, grandma, grandpa, grandparent, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Green Hour, hiking, hiking trails, horseback riding, horseback riding trails, kids, nature, Places to Go | Permalink
Posted by mygrandmasue
MyGrandmaSue 