Tilden Park!

As a Bay Area native, I have been to Tilden Park many times as a child. I recall going there for the pony corral, the carousel, and the little steam train. This past weekend, we decided to go to Tilden Park and introduce our eldest granddaughter to more of the memories I have from when I was her age.

We started off making our way to the carousel, to find out when we arrived that Tilden is celebrating the 100th anniversary of it. After purchasing tickets for all 3 of us ($7 total), and I can’t tell you how long its been since I was on a carousel, we were in line and waiting our turn with a very excited little girl. While we were waiting we watched around us as booths were setting up. By the time we were off the ride, there were face painters, temporary tattoo artists, and more were setting up as were were departing. Our little one opted for face painting (price depending on choice) with a butterfly Mardi Gras mask; in pink of course. From the carousel we moved on to the Tilden Little Farm. Unfortunately we didn’t know it was a bring your own lettuce and celery for the animals thing. So we walked around and the little one was scratching noses of goats, and cows, when one very nice woman handed her a few celery sticks. At this point we were near a heifer and her newborn bull-calf whose name is BillyBob. They are at this time in a private pen. BillyBob is still a bit wobbly, but very sweet looking. Well Mama cow took a liking to our granddaughter. She kept trying to lick her face, kept lowering head so she could be scratched, and when celery was finally presented, she got so excited, after finishing her treat she leaned her head down in a thank you nuzzle, and knocked our unsuspecting little one over. I never saw it coming, and it was sweet really with the exception of a crying startled child. The heifer whom was really trying to do a loving thank, just didn’t realize how small this human really was. So as will all crying children, off to the restroom we went to wash of the scrapes, and settle her down. A very kind ranger had a stock of band-aids at the exhibit room counter and handed some over without question. Once we got past the drama of now being mad at the cow (go figure a ticked off 5 year old), we moved on to our next stop.

The Steam Train! ($9 total) It’s a nice little train reminiscent of the one in Train Town in Napa. There are open seat cars as well as very tiny cargo cars. These old knees weren’t getting into the cargo car. Go ahead and laugh, I laugh at myself all of the time. We had our tickets and were waiting for the last round of riders to un-board. One of the conductors took time to ask the little one about her time at the carousel, the telling marker of the face paint cluing him in to where we had been already. He was told the ride was fun, the woman who painted her face very nice and the Mama cow who knocked her down, all in about a 3 minute span. I give the guy credit, he smiled the whole time as if interested, tutted over the cow and then shook her hand and led her to an open train car where he picked her up and got her seated. (We were not the only ones with a kid here). So we are now boarded, and taking the leisurely pace through the hills, when the kiddo tightened up against my side, that was when I realized we had open space on that side looking down into a gorge, while this train has been running for my 44 years there has never been an accident of any sort in the news. However she was already tired after all the other ventures, and maybe just a bit afraid of heights. So we distracted her with the miniatures that are set up along the tour, like the 4 foot tall water tower, the small mining office; you get the gist. Before she knew it we were back at the station and the ride was over. Going through the little tunnel seemed to fascinate her the most.

All in all, we had a great time, didn’t have to spend a fortune; and will be going back for hiking minus the kid!

Winter Play in Tahoe for the young

As a child I spent quite a bit of time in South Lake Tahoe at my grandparents cabin in the Tahoe Meadows. Now granted we are talking the 1970’s to 1980’s. Winter in Tahoe was always so much fun, almost kind of magical. My cousin and I when the adults were to busy would make our own snow hills to disc and toboggan down. Nothing like a couple of maybe 10 year olds with snow shovels and time.

My memory says that hill we made out in front of the house was 12 feet high. More than likely is 4 or 5 feet. We hit with a blast of water from the hose so it would freeze nicely over night, chopped in some steps on the backside so we could climb up….and then drove my Grandma crazy for the evening wanting it to freeze faster than it actually was.

In the morning as we squirmed at the breakfast table, the adults finally kicked us out so we could go play. I remember laughing a lot, crashing into a few of the cars in our driveway (yea we didn’t consider how we would stop), and being to tired from play to eat dinner. I also remember the “grown-ups” coming out to try out our personal snow hill…….

Now really, any kid with a snow shovel in a cold enough region can do this. Those of you who vacation in a winterland may not have access to such tools. In the South Lake Tahoe region, there are specific discing and tobogganing areas such as Black Bart Hill. Or any non marked “private” property that offers a good sliding slope.

            So here’s to great memories, and memories yet to be forged! Feel free to give a shout of one your favorite childhood vacation memories, I hope to hear from you.

Til next time!