Central Coast State Parks Association | CCSPA Central Coast State Parks Association | CCSPA Central Coast State Parks Association | CCSPA Central Coast State Parks Association | CCSPA
  • Who we Are
    • Mission and Vision
    • Board & Staff
    • Join Our Team
      • Job Opportunities
      • Board Service
      • Internships
      • Volunteering
    • Transparency
    • Partnerships
    • Sponsor Recognition
    • Contact Us
  • What We Do
    • Our Impact
    • Programs
      • School Groups
      • Traveling Museum Exhibits
    • Press & Publications
      • Podcast
      • Blog
      • In The News
    • Nature Notes Newsletter
    • Awards
  • Events
    • Event Calendar
    • Adventures With Nature
    • CCSPA Movie Night
    • Mind Walks Lectures
    • Butterfly Ball
  • Visit
    • Parks We Support
      • Cayucos State Beach
      • Harmony Headlands State Park
      • Hearst San Simeon State Park
      • Estero Bluffs State Park
      • Los Osos Oaks State Natural Reserve
      • Montaña de Oro & Spooner Ranch
      • Morro Bay State Park & Museum of Natural History
      • Morro Strand State Beach
      • Oceano Dunes & Oso Flaco Lake
      • Pismo State Beach
    • Nature Stores
    • Local Resources
  • Support
    • Become a Friend of CCSPA
    • Business & Corporate Giving
    • More Ways To Give
  • Store
  • Donate
Central Coast State Parks Association | CCSPA Central Coast State Parks Association | CCSPA
  • Who we Are
    • Mission and Vision
    • Board & Staff
    • Join Our Team
      • Job Opportunities
      • Board Service
      • Internships
      • Volunteering
    • Transparency
    • Partnerships
    • Sponsor Recognition
    • Contact Us
  • What We Do
    • Our Impact
    • Programs
      • School Groups
      • Traveling Museum Exhibits
    • Press & Publications
      • Podcast
      • Blog
      • In The News
    • Nature Notes Newsletter
    • Awards
  • Events
    • Event Calendar
    • Adventures With Nature
    • CCSPA Movie Night
    • Mind Walks Lectures
    • Butterfly Ball
  • Visit
    • Parks We Support
      • Cayucos State Beach
      • Harmony Headlands State Park
      • Hearst San Simeon State Park
      • Estero Bluffs State Park
      • Los Osos Oaks State Natural Reserve
      • Montaña de Oro & Spooner Ranch
      • Morro Bay State Park & Museum of Natural History
      • Morro Strand State Beach
      • Oceano Dunes & Oso Flaco Lake
      • Pismo State Beach
    • Nature Stores
    • Local Resources
  • Support
    • Become a Friend of CCSPA
    • Business & Corporate Giving
    • More Ways To Give
  • Store
  • Donate

CCSPA Blog

Central Coast State Parks Association | CCSPA / CCSPA Blog

In-Person Mind Walks Returning in 2023

We know you've been looking forward to attending in-person Mind Walks--the wait is now over! In 2023, the Central Coast State Parks Association (CCSPA) and California State Parks will be... read more →
  • January 5, 2023
  • Monica Rutherford
  • No Comments
  • Education, Environment, Lifestyle, News, Outdoor Recreation

Harmony Headlands State Park

The turnoff into the parking lot is barely noticeable. A quick turn off Highway One north of Cayucos built for an earlier time. A time of horse-drawn wagons, fewer and... read more →
  • August 30, 2022
  • Renne Gardner
  • No Comments
  • Beach, Botany, Environment, Flora and Fauna, Habitat, Health, Lifestyle, Outdoor Recreation, Travel

Group Hikes: Are They For You?

Solo or group hiking is a frequently debated argument within the hiking community. Both hiking styles have benefits and downsides to be explored. Over the years I have heard the... read more →
  • June 29, 2022
  • Lisa Langley
  • No Comments
  • Environment, Health, Lifestyle, Outdoor Recreation, Travel

What’s Blooming in Holloway Garden

Holloway Garden is in Montaña de Oro State Park, just to the south of the Spooner Ranch House. In 1993, State Park Docent Betty Holloway asked if she could develop... read more →
  • April 6, 2022
  • Faylla Chapman
  • No Comments
  • Botany, Environment, Flora and Fauna, Habitat, Outdoor Recreation, Species Identification, Travel

Trilliums Greet Hikers on Coon Creek Trail

Looking for a trail to see spring flowers? If so, Coon Creek trail in Montaña de Oro State Park is for you.Trillium flowers (Trillium angustipetalum), also called wakerobin, are blooming... read more →
  • February 7, 2022
  • Norma Wightman
  • No Comments
  • Botany, Environment, Flora and Fauna, Habitat, Outdoor Recreation, Species Identification, Travel

Mud Stories: Californiconus (Conus) californicus, a mighty predator

If you happen to be going out to the mud flats below the Natural History Museum, go on a low enough tide that the eelgrass beds are really exposed, maybe... read more →
  • June 24, 2021
  • Faylla Chapman
  • No Comments
  • Beach, Environment, Flora and Fauna, Invertebrates, Marine Biology, Outdoor Recreation, Species Identification

Look at This Rock!

Home to thousands of marine organisms, this rock is at North Point in Morro Bay.  It is often hard to get close to the rock as it is in the... read more →
  • June 9, 2021
  • Faylla Chapman
  • No Comments
  • Beach, Botany, Environment, Flora and Fauna, Habitat, Invertebrates, Marine Biology, Outdoor Recreation, Species Identification

Backpacking Sea to Sky: The Big Sur Wilderness

They don't call it "The Greatest Meeting of Land and Sea" for nothing. Stretching 90 miles from San Simeon to Carmel, the Big Sur coastline is a winding wilderness populated... read more →
  • May 12, 2021
  • Katie Raffaini
  • No Comments
  • Environment, Lifestyle, Outdoor Recreation, Travel

The Forest Bath

Whether it be a mountain hike, a national park camping trip or simply sitting on a log in the middle of a meadow, we gain a sense of calm, perhaps... read more →
  • May 6, 2021
  • Renne Gardner
  • No Comments
  • Botany, Environment, Flora and Fauna, Habitat, Health, Lifestyle, Outdoor Recreation, Travel

Nature Nooks: Morro Bay

https://soundcloud.com/user-210939374-242894923/nature-nooks-morro-bay Most days the beach is blanketed in fog in Morro Bay. It's this gloomy atmosphere that keeps the crowds down and the beach calm. For others like experienced surfer... read more →
  • April 28, 2021
  • Marcus Cocova
  • No Comments
  • Beach, Environment, Lifestyle, Outdoor Recreation, Photography
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3
  • 4
  • 5
  • ...
  • 9

« Previous Page — Next Page »

Recent Posts

  • Moonlit Wings and Wild Things: Nocturnal Life in SLO’s State Parks June 27, 2025
  • Dog Rules on the Central Coast: Where Your Furry Friend Is Welcome in State Parks June 20, 2025
  • Cerro Cabrillo: A Climber’s Perspective May 29, 2025
  • Musings along Montaña de Oro’s Coon Creek Trail April 24, 2025
  • The Butterfly Effect January 7, 2025

Contact Us

202 Tank Farm Road (Suite H2) San Luis Obispo, CA 93401 Phone: 805.548.0390 E-Mail: info@centralcoastparks.org Web: centralcoastparks.org

Stay Connected

Enter your email address to receive our weekly newsletter and 20 percent off any item in our online store!

Support CCSPA When You Shop on Amazon!

Select Central Coast State Parks Association as your preferred charity, and start shopping!

Please Support Our Partners

State Parks Seal State Parks Seal
© 2023 CCSPA (Tax ID #: 51-0198869). All Rights Reserved. Photos by Mike Baird and Highway 1 Road Trip