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A willow forest reclaimed from agriculture for the purpose of catching sediment on its way to Morro Bay. The flats offer a nice break from the heat as the canopy and creek cool the air significantly. It's a great spot for tracking and birding, but inaccessible during the rainy season.

The most substantial river flow in the area, the Salinas fluctuates from a trickle to uncrossable. Though its only twenty minutes from the center, the plant communities of this area are distinct, representing the more extreme climate of north San Luis Obispo County. A good place to sit by a fire and practice our plant identification, the Salinas is above all our favorite place to get wet.

Extending out from the parking lot beneath the Morro Bay Natural History Museum is a small spit of sand and brush. This is one of the best places for studying bird language available. An amazing diversity of life is in constant interaction at the estuary and the viewpoints offered here provide limitless possibilities to gain understanding.

This state park is a jewel of the central coast offering a wide variety of habitat including lush riparian zones, oak chaparral and scrub, beaches, bluffs and tide pools. More often than not our journeys out there are graced by visits from coyotes, bobcats, dolphins and/or whales.

Sifting through the ancient middens scattered among the oak of this amazing preserve, its easy to imagine what life may have been like for the Chumash who traditionally inhabited this place. In spring, with the Ceanothus in bloom, the oaks are a buzz with such activity among its residents as to be, at times, overwhelming.

For a tracking student, a large open stretch of sand can be an amazing teacher and is sorely missed in the many regions of the country that don't provide such terrain. If you would like to learn how to track, go to Oceano Dunes, and follow the tracks of the coyote. Coyote and sand are the best tracking mentors we have. But if you go, be careful not to jump off any of the sand dunes as this has been known to raise adrenalin and to invite sand into every facet of your life.

Another nice place to explore dunes, Shark Inlet provides a wanderer several different natural communities from which to choose. The Eucalyptus grove right on the bay is an extremely relaxing place to visit and seems to invite the kids to play "village" games.

San Luis Creek meets the pacific on the shores of Avilla Beach and on occasion we like to visit and see how the salt and fresh water are mixing. We almost always fit a visit with the sea lions which frequent the fishery near by. Do you think they ever get tired of people mimicking them?

Sometimes, the very best thing to do is to go to the beach. Backed by small dunes and corresponding plant communities, Morro Strand is a magnificently expansive beach with a gentle slope and mellow waves. Exploring the beach for washed up mysteries, hiding from one another in the dunes, or playing in the waves are some of the activities which the kids recall as their favorites at the end of the day.

Across from Questa College, this park is home for the Botanical Gardens, a campground, an artificial rock climbing park, and Dairy Creek in its descent to join Chorro Creek at the base of the morros.

An extensive trail network stretches out from Perfumo Canyon up into the Live Oak woodlands, up above San Luis Obispo, known as the Irish Hills.

A boardwalk winds through the dwarf Live Oak in the hills overlooking Morro Bay. Though much of the reserve is fenced off for restoration, the magic of the Elfin Forest is ever enticing. This is another location that is spectacular for teaching us the language of the birds.

A rushing creek flows through the pines around this campground accessible by highway 41. Listening to sounds of the wind through the trees, creek flowing over it's bed, and the Stellar's Jays calling out one to another, while circled around a fire having a good discussion is a typical snapshot from a day on the side of Cerro San Luis. From the peak, we can see the topography of the county stretching from the north county plateau down to the Guadalupe dunes, and back up to Ragged Point and the beginnings of Big Sur.