Hike 3 - Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park

I only get to Coon Rapids one time a year - to do my taxes. Every year, we drive home over the river and I think "we should check out the Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park". Yet, we never do... and it's not like it's that far from us. 

This year, our kid was at her grandparents on tax day and I was trying to think of something Jesse and I could do without our kid that day, besides our taxes, of course. It was pretty easy to convince Jesse to explore this trail as we were both itching to get outside after a long winter (and a winter that wouldn't end for another month). 

We usually prefer a dirt path over paved, but this trail was a little rough to walk on as it had a lot of ice/snow pack. I'm surprised I didn't fall, actually, and we were both glad to take a paved trail for part of the way. I'd like to go back in the future when there isn't any snow to give it another chance. My rating below reflects the ice pack and could certainly change if it was a different season.

Hike #: 3

Trail: Coon Rapids Dam Regional Park

Location: Coon Rapids, MN

Trail surface: paved, and dirt? It was icy snow when we were there. 

Date: 3/17/18

Jo: ★★★

Jesse: ★★★

Riley: was at the grandparent's house

Hike 2 - Westwood Hills Nature Center

We explore Westwood Hills Nature Center on a fairly regular basis since it's close to home, but this was the first time we'd been there this year. There are a variety of trail surfaces that include paved, wood chips, crushed concrete and boardwalk. The main trail loops around Westwood lake, but there are other trails that wind through the woods.

Hike #: 2

Trail: Westwood Hills Nature Center

Location: St Louis Park, MN

Trail surface: pavement, boardwalk, crushed concrete, wood chips

Date: 3/11/18

While I love the boardwalk, my favorite trail is through the pines (behind the nature center building). There you can find nature art made by Chelsea Bahe. Chelsea gathers leaves, bark, acorns, pine needles and so forth to create pictures of people and animals on random tree stumps. We even got to see her in action one weekend and she shared that she comes out weekly to create new art.

We love this trail for it's proximity to our house, that it feels like you are far out in nature (when you are in the city), that we see turkeys almost every time we are here, the focus on nature (they have a lot of kid's nature programs throughout the year), nature art (of course) and because there is a playground. 

Jo: ★★★★

Jesse: ★★★★

Riley: ★★★★★

Hike 1 - Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve Park

Before I set my 50 hikes by 50 goal, I already had hiking on my brain. My husband, daughter and I were vacationing in San Diego over my 46th birthday and while we did a ton of walking when visiting the zoo, Seaworld, Old Town, Balboa Park, the seals in La Jolla, beaches, and so forth, I wanted to go on a good ol' hike. I gathered suggestions from friends and pretty much everyone suggested Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve Park in La Jolla. 

Hike #: 1

Trail: Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve Park

Location: La Jolla, CA

Trail surface: dirt, and rock and shells on the beach

Date: 1/27/18

Torrey Pines has a number of shorter trails which seems like a good idea when hiking with a kid. We are still testing our limits with her and understand this can change from day to day as well. We started out at the beach near the south beach parking lot - mostly I'll admit, because the light was amazing and I wanted to get some photos. Plus, my kid could spend all day running from waves and throwing rocks into the ocean.

From the beach we headed up the trail along Torrey Pines Park Rd. It was a hotter than usual southern California January day and we felt it along this stretch of little shade and constant incline. I was tempted to turn around at some point, not really knowing what we'd find at the top, but mostly because I thought my kid was having a hard time. There was whining, but in the end she was fine and it was worth trudging forward. 

We explored a couple of the shorter trails, the information booth (Riley liked taking the different animal prints they had and marking them in the dirt), and then found a map and determined we'd take a trail that brought us back down the beach (with a little detour in the middle) and eventually loop us back to the other end of the beach where we started.

I liked this hike and would go back to explore it in more detail. We mostly had the beach to ourselves when we started out, but the trails thickened up fast and there were a few annoying people who decided to play music on their phones for all to hear. This is not good trail etiquette, people! It was a little urban for Jesse and I would have liked more tree cover, but still a great place to hike. It was especially nice to explore a terrain that is so different than what we are used to in Minnesota.

On a 1 - 5 scale...

Jo: ★★★★

Jesse: ★★★★

Riley: ★★★★★