I'm working on a story about nature centers for Red Tricycle, and I had to hit one more to hit my number, so yesterday we went to historic
Franklin Canyon Park in the Santa Monica Mountains above Beverly Hills. I've never been there before (although there was a long-ago school field trip to Tree People, which is located across the street). In short, it's a very nice space with some authentic California oak woodland, some latter-day planted redwood groves and a very nice nature center and helpful staff of (federal employees, I think) park rangers. The one downside is that too many of the trails are actually just
the road and that's scary when navigating with a toddler, despite the signs every 10 feet advising of a 15 MPH speed limit. Just the same, there are some actual sylvan glades here, and we had a lovely time. I'd be there constantly if we lived in north Beverly Hills (or the Valley), and we'll definitely go back in the future.
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| Jackson was irate because I wouldn't let him take a "Drink! Drink! Drink water!" from this sundial. (We eventually found a real drinking fountain.) |
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| Jackson checks out the Native American artifacts in the nature center. They also had a taxidermied mountain lion, a donkey skull and a pretty clever environmental-protection/water-conservation exhibit. |
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| If you peer into this brush you will see an actual real live California quail. I have never seen a California quail in SoCal in all my days here, so I almost fainted when I saw this guy and his girlfriend (and two more later). |
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| I just like this cockeyed shot of Jackson saying "CHEESE!" |
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| Franklin Canyon Lake (the dam is below the road behind the trees on the right); IRL it's not quite as perfectly alpine as it appears in this shot, but it's pretty darn nice. |
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| Simultaneously suspicious and cute. Note that I actually got a jacket on him because it was cold. :) |
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| Turtles on a log. |
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| Signs for Sooky Goldman Nature Center & William O. Douglas Outdoor Classroom |
Jackson says "Hug hug!" so I gotta go now. See you later, dear readers. :)
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