Big Break Regional Shoreline

Recently we've been getting out and about exploring "new to us" Bay Area parks on weekends.

We're really lucky to have so many amazing and varied parks within such a short distance of our home. Beaches, rivers, mountains, cliffs, redwood forests... there's a little bit of everything. With so much shoreline along the San Francisco Bay and its tributaries, there is no shortage of picturesque water front parks to visit. What could be better than visiting a waterfront park on a Summer's day?

This past weekend we visited Big Break Regional Shoreline in Oakley. Big Break is located in the California Delta, a 1,150 square mile area where fresh water from the Sacramento and San Joaquin Rivers meets saltwater from the ocean. The Delta is the largest estuary on the west coast and is home to a large variety of fish, birds and mammals including beavers, river otters, muskrats and mink. It's also home to cool Delta breezes which were much appreciated on this hot day!

Despite the size of the Delta, the shoreline park is relatively small and makes for a great afternoon destination. There is an informative visitor center filled with interactive displays, picnic areas, an amphitheater, a kayak launch, a shaded sand play area, a small hiking trail and an observation pier perfect for fishing or taking in the views. 

52 Weeks: Week 48

Week 48: Sunsets

This week's installment of my 52 Week Project is a little different. Instead of sharing what the kids have been up to I'm sharing sunsets. And oh boy, are they beautiful.

We're lucky enough to live in an apartment building with a roof deck that overlooks the San Francisco Bay. On evenings when we're not busy with swim classes, the girls and I head up to the roof to watch the sunset. It's always pretty, but lately the sunsets have been just spectacular.

Over the past week (plus a little bit as I just had to share one from the previous week) we've been blessed with a variety of amazing sunsets. Some evenings have been foggy diffusing the sun's glow across the sky. Some evenings have been perfectly clear with not a cloud in the sky resulting in a perfect ombre from blue to orange. Other evenings have ended with the sky full of cotton candy pink clouds. The one thing in common is that they've all been stunning.

Albany Bulb

The Bay Area is home to plenty of waterfront parks with stunning views. It's also home to a lot of quirky street art. Every now and then these two things combine and we end up with truly original places like Albany Bulb, here in the East Bay.

Albany Bulb is a peculiar place. A former landfill site created in the first half of the 20th Century, this small peninsula was, until recently, most notably known as a homeless encampment. From the early nineties through until 2014, Albany Bulb was home to a small community of residents who were otherwise homeless. More than just a tent city, Albany Bulb was filled with semi-permanent structures created out of scrap wood, discarded building materials and hard waste. We never went to Albany Bulb during this time but from what I've seen online some of the structures were pretty amazing, although not the most sturdy looking. You can see one of the biggest structures here.

San Francisco Bay Cruise

One of my favourite things that we did with my parents on their recent visit from Australia was a San Francisco Bay cruise. We actually went on two boat rides in the bay with my parents. The first was a Ride the Ducks ride which took us in the water close to AT&T Park (and which you can see here) and the second was a Red & White Fleet cruise which took us under the Golden Gate Bridge and past Alcatraz.