State Parks You Must Road Trip To

One good way to bond with your family is to spend time in nature. Getting outdoors lets you enjoy the fresh air and get away from the stresses and demands that ordinarily keep you apart. Consider the following family-friendly parks near Morgan Hill the next time you want to enjoy outdoor activities. Calero County Park Head to Calero County Park to enjoy 4,471 acres of land nestled along the Santa Cruz Mountains and the California Oak backcountry. There's also a large reservoir, which offers a number of great recreational water activities, including power boating, kayaking, jet skiing, and sailing. If you've come for fishing, just keep in mind that the reservoir is catch and release. more Once you've cooled off on the lake, head to the backcountry to enjoy 18.9 miles of trails for hiking, horse riding, or walking your dog. You can even take the Serpentine Loop Trail to get to the nearby Cañada del Oro Open Space Preserve. End the day with a nice meal at one of the many picnic and barbecue sites that are located in the park. Uvas Reservoir County Park For a quieter experience, the Uvas Reservoir County Park makes a nice stop. This park, which is located in the shadows of the Santa Cruz Mountains, offers you 1,017 acres to explore. Because the reservoir is used for underground aquifers, no boating or swimming is allowed. This results in a peaceful atmosphere that's great for family relaxation, fun, and unwinding. Spend the day fishing, enjoying a nice picnic, or walking your dog around the lake. Public facilities are limited at this park, so plan on using your imagination to entertain yourself. Bring a football or Frisbee to toss around, as well as a camera to capture some amazing nature shots. Anderson Lake County Park Anderson Lake County Park includes Santa Clara County's largest reservoir, which offers nearly limitless opportunities for a fun day on the water. This 4,275-acre park and 953-acre lake provide a mix of land- and water-based activities, including fishing, boating, hiking, horse riding, picnicking, and more. One of the most popular things to do is cruise along the lake, as power boats are permitted. Keep in mind that water levels vary and are sometimes too low for boats, so check with the Santa Clara County Parks website before you head out with your speedboat in tow. In the meantime, why not try your hand at fishing? Just keep in mind that, like Calero Park, it's a catch and release lake. Anderson Lake also provides numerous hiking trails, most notably a 15-mile paved trail that runs along Coyote Creek and connects to Coyote Hellyer County Park. The trail is mostly flat, making it great for smaller members of the family to ride their bikes, run, and play. These are just a few of the parks in the area. Spend some time going to each to find your favorite spot, and make it a tradition to visit it whenever your family is in need of an outing. Photo by donjd2 | Licensed under cc BY 2.0

Santa Clara County may be known for its high-tech Silicon Valley, but this California county also offers 28 pristine regional parks and recreation areas. If you are into bird-watching, these parks and preserves represent a veritable birder's paradise, as they host not only huge residential populations but also migratory birds. Here are some places where you can go birding to your heart's content. Baylands Nature Preserve This 1,940-acre preserve is one of the largest tracks of undisturbed marshland in the San Francisco Bay area. Over 15 miles of trails give you access to a large variety of wildlife and a unique mixture of tidal and freshwater habitats. Baylands is regarded as one of the best bird-watching areas on the West Coast and is not only home to a substantial residential population, but also an important stopover during the Pacific Flyway migration. more Birds that you can view here include the endangered California clapper rail, wintering ducks such as mallards and pintails, migratory shorebird species, cliff and barn swallows, nesting black-necked stilts, American avocets, black-crowned night herons, and snowy egrets. Baylands Nature Reserve is located at 2500 Embarcadero Road, Palo Alto, and is open from 8 a.m. to sunset. Coyote Lake Harvey Bear Ranch County Park This park, nestled in the hills east of Gilroy, is a 6,695-acre recreation area, offering 33 miles of trails that wind along breezy mountain ridges, clear streams, and through oak forests. This park is home to all kinds of species, such as reptiles, amphibians, insects, and mammals. If you are lucky, you can spot the rare western pond turtle or the California tiger salamander. It is also a great place for birding. Over 219 bird species have been noticed in this area, including the national bird, the bald eagle. Common species that you might spot are the American wigeon, mallard, bufflehead, ruddy duck, California quail, wild turkey, acorn woodpecker, and the California scrub-jay. Notable species that have been seen include the bald eagle, golden eagle, cackling goose, Clark's grebe, American pipit, Rufous-crowned sparrow, and the rock wren. This park is located at 10840 Coyote Reservoir Road, Gilroy, and is open from 8 a.m. to sunset. Ed R. Levin County Park This 1,500-acre park is one of Santa Clara County's most unique regional parks and recreations areas, as it offers a combination of constructed parklands, natural bush, and hillsides. Expansive lawn areas are ideal picnic spots for the family, whereas the rolling grasslands and oak woodlands offer lovely trails that are great for bird-watching. Over 64 bird species have been spotted here, including migratory birds, shorebirds, raptors, flycatchers, and corvids. Common species that you can see here are the great blue heron, acorn woodpecker, mallard, turkey vulture, red-tailed hawk, and the white-tailed kite. If you are lucky, though, you might also spot a ring-necked duck, American wigeon, bald eagle, golden eagle, yellow-billed magpie, belted kingfisher, or a rufous-crowned sparrow. Ed R. Levin County Park is located at 3100 Calaveras Road, Milpitas, and they are open from 8 a.m. until sunset. If you love bird-watching, then you will be spoiled for places to go to in Santa Clara County. So, grab your binoculars and head out to the beautiful parks and preserves of this county. Photo by roseannadana cc BY-ND 2.0 | Licensed under

Board games like Monopoly and chess are classics that still retain modern-day charm and popularity, especially in the Bay area where these games can be found in epic proportions. With giant game pieces and playing fields included, we're sure you're dying to try these big attractions out for yourself. Here are three Bay area spots where you can find your next mega-sized gaming adventure. Monopoly in the Park Monopoly is perhaps the most popular board game played across the globe. Its rules are simple: attempt to own as much property as you can and collect free money along the way. And what better way to play than with giant wearable game tokens and dice all on a 930-square-foot custom granite game board. There are also game referees on-site to oversee the game from start to finish. more Monopoly in the Park first debuted at the 1992 San Francisco Garden and Landscape Show but made its way to San Jose in 2002. Its current home is near the Children's Discovery Museum and is the perfect backdrop for family and friend get-togethers. You can also bring your own folding chairs and tables to enjoy a picnic or simply lounge about. Furthermore, this attraction holds the sole title for officially licensed monopoly game board of its kind in the world and even landed in the Guinness Book of World Records for its impressive size. It also received an Excellence Award for Best Attraction in 2015 by the Silicon Valley Concierge Association. Santana Row Chess Plaza San Jose's Santana Row is a quaint and charming square lined with high-end retail shops, boutiques, and eateries. It's also home to a colossal chess board and matching white and black pieces within the 300 block. You'll also notice adjacent tabletop chess boards and chairs for those who prefer a classic-sized game. Either way, we're sure you'll agree the flowering pot arrangements hanging from nearby street lights and calming ambiance make this Santana Row attraction all the more inviting. The Playroom at Hotel Zetta San Francisco We head out of San Jose for our final entry on the list: the Playroom at Hotel Zetta San Francisco. This modern gaming space is located on the hotel's second floor and offers a chic and comfortable play space for guests. Here you'll find normal-sized amenities like a pool table, ping pong, shuffleboard, Connect Four, and several gaming consoles. These are, however, overshadowed by the Playroom's larger attractions, which include a 30-foot Plinko game wall and giant Jenga setup. As you lounge atop low-seated sofas or near classic tables and chairs, you'll find the hotel's Playroom an ideal indoor retreat for Bay area gamers. Furthermore, Hotel Zetta offers a special Borrow Bar program where guests can rent equipment like laptops, tablets, gaming consoles, or virtual reality hardware to enjoy in the lounge or in the comfort of their room. If you're looking to enjoy a classic board game with a giant-sized upgrade, these top three Bay area locations can guarantee an experience like never before! Photo by HarshLight | Licensed under cc BY 2.0