Tarklin Bayou Preserve State Park, located just outside Pensacola, is the perfect nature getaway for a family hike.  This park has trails for those who enjoy a leisurely stroll and some trails for those who like a longer hike. The Tarklin Bayou trail is about 1 mile down and back on a paved sidewalk and boardwalk leading to a pier on the bayou. It offers a nice and easy trail which is handicap accessible. Another trail which branches out from the Tarklin trail is the Perdido Bay trail. It is a 7.2 mile loop.  The Perdido Baytrail is not paved and makes a great hike.

Arcadia Mill Discovery Center

Arcadia Mill is located in Milton, Florida. The Arcadia Mill trail is a nice historical hike which takes you on an elevated boardwalk with a view of the wetland ecosystem and the remains of the mills. Arcadia Mills is free to the Public. The site has a museum, however, it is not open on holidays. There is also a covered area with an old saw mill and waterwheel which is fun for the kids.

Big Lagoon State Park ,located near Perdido Key, is a nice place to spend the day or a few hours. This park has a kayak launch and many trails to hike on. I always enjoy the boardwalks over the lagoon and the observation tower which over looks beautiful Big Lagoon. This is always a fun place to take the kids.

Naval Live Oaks Park is located in Gulf Breeze and has around 7 miles of trails. It also has a beach swimming area and covered picnic tables. If you enjoy the beautiful scenery of Santa Rosa Sound and large live oaks, this may be the choice for you. This park is free to the public.

Chain of Lakes Nature Trail is located in Blackwater River State Park near Milton Florida. This hike is a one mile loop through the Longleaf pine forests. A section of the loop winds along the Blackwater River as well as through many small lakes known as the Chain of Lakes.

Bay Bluffs Park is located in Pensacola. It is a nice scenic area to take a walk. It is a 32-acre park along Escambia Bay located off Scenic Highway near Summit Blvd. The park has many boardwalks leading through the oak and pine forest along the bay.

On Thanksgiving take the opportunity to enjoy some of the many great trails in the Pensacola area. Have a blessed Thanksgiving with your family.

For more hiking areas visit our hiking page.

Have any favorite hiking spots? Let us know in the comment section.

Take your kids fishing at Weeks Bay Reserve. The kids will have fun fishing in a fully stocked pond called the Safe Harbor Pond. The event will be held May 7, 2011 from 8:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. This is a free event and is a joint project of the Foundation, the Reserve and ADCNR State Lands Division, Coastal Section and Wildlife and Freshwater Fisheries Division.

Safe Harbor pond is located across U.S. Highway 98 from the Reserve Visitor Center. For more information, contact Walter Ernest at (251) 990-5004.
www.weeksbay.org.

Download the registration form here

View Fish River Bridge in a larger map

The winter is over here on the Gulf Coast, but my children and I still get chapped lips. My son doesn’t want to wear any of mommy’s tinted Burt’s Bees and he loves science experiments, so when I found this recipe, I knew we’d have to make it. I’m always looking for ways to teach stewardship and since Earth Day is coming up on April 22nd, this was one of our Earth Day projects. It’s all the little things added up that can make a big difference.

To make four 2-ounce tins of lip balm at home, melt and whisk continuously in a heat-safe bowl set over a pot of simmering water (or the top of a double boiler):

• 1 tablespoon beeswax pearls (also called pellets or pastilles)
• 1 tablespoon of pure shea butter
• 2 tablespoons almond oil

Once the ingredients are liquefied, remove them from heat. Whisk in 10-15 drops of essential oils such as:

• for Peppermint-Eucalyptus Lip Balm – 6 peppermint/4 drops eucalyptus
• for Vanilla-Rose Lip Balm – 10 rose oil / 5 vanilla oil (vanilla absolute)
• for Lavender Lip Balm- 10 lavender
• for Citrus Lip Balm- 10 sweet orange (This is our favorite.)

Quickly transfer liquid to 1/2-ounce lip balm tins. Most of us have small containers we can reuse. Just make sure they are sterilized first. Let cool for about 20 minutes until solid.

All of these ingredients are safe and natural, unlike many of the craft lip balm kits, and can be purchased from your local natural health store. Last I checked, Ever’man Natural Foods has all of these ingredients.

Share with me your favorite scents!

Recipe courtesy of www.realmama.org

Come have a great time with the family!

Saturday, May 14, 10:00 a.m.– 5:00 p.m.

Henderson Beach State Park, Destin

Events will include performances by local artists and family fun activities. A silent auction and booths with fine arts, crafts and food will also be set up throughout the day.

The Festival and Park are free and open to the public all day, with parking available in the Park.

2.  Ignore your preteen daughter’s pleas to not go.  Remind her how little quality time we get together.

3.  Proper footwear is no big deal.  After all,  the Appalachian Trail is just a soft footpath.

4.  Keep going when the rain starts.  There is no way it will rain the entire two days.

5.  Around sundown is when the bears and snakes begin to use the same trail we’re on now.  Oh my, did I just say that out loud?

6.  Disregard the Backpacker magazine article saying that one mile per hour is the best speed anyone can do in dry weather and good boots.  5 o’clock, kids, and only 6 miles to go.

7.  Point out loudly the obvious nature fact that there’s NO WAY just one or two wild boars could have done this much damage to the grass next to the trail.  Say this near nightfall.

8.  Leave parachute cord for suspending the pack from the shelter eaves in the trunk. The little ones will be highly entertained by the mice chewing through the fabric of your new $270 Kelty pack.

9.  Give in to your 10 year old son taking his preschool Star Wars sleeping bag.  How cold can it get at the summit of Rocky Top?

10. Promise lots of animal sightings and panoramic mountain-top views.  Did I mention there’s no way it could rain for two  full days?

Do all of the above and 20 years later your family will still be telling stories about the, “Hike from Hell with Dad.”

Photo by thru the night

About the Author: Steve Fifer

Steve has been married to his wife, Melody, for 35 years and they have 3 grown children, Amy, John, and Carrie, and 1.333 grandchildren.  A local State Farm agent, Steve started hiking with his children 20 years ago on the Appalachian Trail in Smokey Mountain NP. He has added two sons-in-law to this family hiking group. They have hiked for up to 17 days in 4 National Parks to date: Yellowstone, Yosemite, Mt. Ranier, and Glacier National Parks. Steve started a hiking club at Gulf Breeze United Methodist Church 4 years ago and helps hiking newbies get started with one night beginner hikes. He also enjoys centering prayer, birding, rowing, and painting.

Cindi Bonner and Courtney Fell- Owners of Fitness Onboard

Fitness Onboard is the only business in our area to offer workouts on paddleboards. They offer both yoga and bootcamp classes for any fitness level. The only requirement is that you can swim.

Courtney Fell, certified Vinyasa Flow yoga instructor and co-owner of Fitness Onboard, says this business is special to her because of the way it came about. The inspiration to teach yoga from a paddleboard came to her as she and her husband, Sean, were taking a sunrise paddleboard trip near Grayton Beach.

“We were camping on Grayton Beach for our anniversary and we got up one morning to paddleboard out on the water at sunrise. It was so peaceful. I thought, I should be teaching yoga from a paddleboard.”

Courtney posted the idea on Facebook and her friend Cindi Bonner, whom already had a M.A. in Exercise Physiology and years of experience as a fitness instructor, loved the idea of teaching workouts on paddleboards. And, in less than two short months, Fitness Onboard opened for business.

Classes will take place in Little Sabine across from Margaritaville. For yoga, you will enter behind the dive center and then paddle to Hoffman’s Bayou. Cindi teaches an intense bootcamp workout while Courtney teaches Vinyasa Flow yoga. Both workouts will help tone and strengthen your core muscles.

Some of you may already be doing these workouts in a gym, so I asked the owners some questions to see what benefits we can receive from doing Fitness Onboard.

Q: We hear how important it is to work our core muscles. How does fitness from a paddleboard help?

A: Fitness Onboard helps strengthen the core in two ways. The simple act of keeping your balance works nearly every muscle down to your toes. And then, of course, the paddling works your low and mid back, as well as your abdominals. It really targets the core.

Q: What benefits can we receive from exercising outdoors?

A: To me, there is nothing worse than breathing in stagnant, recirculated air (like you would find in gym). Exercising outdoors, especially on the water, allows you to breathe fresh salt air. Also, when getting your “Fitness Onboard,” there is the added bonus of enjoying the natural elements. We regularly see dolphins and pelicans. And the water feels wonderful when you are building heat through your workout.

Q: What would be an ideal paddleboard yoga session?

A: My ideal yoga session would begin with a 10 minute paddle warm-up to our destination. Then, we would nestle into a serene, tucked away cove for a Vinyasa flow class. Vinyasa flow is a type of yoga which involves breath-syncronized movement, wherein the poses flow smoothly from one to the next, becoming almost dance-like. The flow class finishes in a heavenly Savasana, (2-3 full minutes of rest while lying very still) floating in the board. Class would wrap up with a leisurely paddle back at each person’s own pace.

Fitness Onboard offers great workouts out in the fresh air from paddleboards. Don’t have a paddleboard? Fitness Onboard will provide a paddleboard for you!

Geocaching (pronounced- geocashing) is an outdoor treasure hunting game using your GPS device

Geocaching is a community-wide game that is gaining in popularity across the world. I was recently introduced to it through Twitter tweets by other outdoor adventurers. I looked up exactly how to play and found that it is really easier than it sounds. There are geocache searches made specifically for children and others that are easy enough for them. Many geocaches are hid in local parks. After finding our first cache, the children and I were hooked. I loved watching the excitement in their faces and experiencing us working together towards a common goal. They loved the challenge and the great trade items inside. It’s a great way to add interest to your  hikes while promoting family bonding.

As children get older, it is easy to just let the family grow apart. It takes time and work to keep a family close. I believe a family should be a place of love and security for children. I learn so much about my children as well as learn about myself as we spend time outdoors together. There is something relaxing about the fresh air, allergies or not, that can help change a person’s whole attitude. Stress seems to evaporate with the morning dew or afternoon sun. There is peace within us and peace with one another as we look outside of ourselves. It’s a time where simplicity and technology merge. I hope you will take time to explore the possibilities of what geocaching can mean for your family. Here are a few tips on how to get started using your iphone. You can also use a Garmin.

• Go to www.geocaching.com and watch the introduction video.
• Decide which geocaching app is best for you and download it.
• Choose a geocache that is medium to large sized for your first hunt and a one star difficulty level. You want to make sure you find something the first try.
• Wear appropriate shoes and clothing for the terrain and temperature. Caches are often hid in bushes, trees or tall grasses.
• Look for other “treasures” along the way. My son is ecstatic to find simple bolts or wires. You may want to name plants and animals you see and take photos.
• Bring items to trade like silly bands, coins. . .
• Sign the log book- you may need to use your own pen.
• Place the cache back where you found it.
• Have a picnic and spend time talking as a family. It may be a great afterschool activity for your kids before they get started with homework or something fun to do when homework is finished.
• Hide your own cache in your neighborhood.

Blueberry photo by Jeff Kubina

This is a three part series on water safety. Having over ten years of experience as a lifeguard and swim/water safety instructor, I’d like to share some simple ways to be safe around water. Since we live with bodies of water all around us and many of us have pools, we want to make sure our families aren’t afraid of water, but rather can comfortably and safely enjoy it.  Spring is time to clean out that pool and get the family swimming. But, first it’s time to start learning or reviewing water safety.

Role playing emergencies together as a family is a great, fun way to learn water safety. One person will be the swimmer in distress (above water, but cannot make forward progress) or drowning victim (struggling to keep above water or are under water) while another person performs the rescue. Many different scenarios could be tried. If these are practiced throughout the season, everyone should feel confident about their skills and be less likely to panic in an emergency. Some equipment for rescues that could be available in the pool area are:

1. Shepherd’s crook- those long poles with a big hook at the end. They come in 8 foot and 16 foot lengths and are used to reach out and scoop around a  swimmer in distress and bring them safely back to the side of the pool. They are probably too heavy for young children to use, but they would work well for use by an adult or teenager.

2. Rescue tube- this is a thick foam tube you’ve probably seen lifeguards holding. These hang around one shoulder to opposite side waist and are crucial for rescuing bigger victims who may be going under water or are at the bottom of the pool. Rescue tubes should only be used by someone trained to use them. Lifeguard training starts at age 15, however, some American Red Cross facilities offer Guard Start training for younger individuals.

3. Noodles and kick-boards- these are not just toys and exercise equipment; they make great rescue tools as well. These are light enough for children to use. Kids love to practice helping each other by using the noodles to reach out to a “swimmer in distress”. Kick-boards that are used for exercise may also be tossed out to a tired swimmer.

4. Yourself- children should never jump in the water after a friend, however, they can throw equipment to them. If the friend is close enough, they could enter the water at the side ladder and hold onto it while stretching out their feet for grabbing hold of.  One important rule for children is “Reach or Throw, Don’t Go!”

5. Heaving Jug- a fun project to do with your kids is to make your own piece of rescue equipment out of a milk jug and rope. You just take a gallon milk jug with a screw on cap and fill it half full with water. Next, glue on the lid. Then, tie a lightweight rope of 30 or so feet onto the jug. You may also want to create a safety post out of wood or pvc next to your pool. This is the place to hang your jug and other equipment as well as a place to keep a first aid kit. You  may also want this to be a place to hang the pool rules such as “no diving”, “no running”, “swim with a buddy”, “reach or throw, don’t go”.

Everyone in the family should learn water safety when you have a family pool in your yard. While it is good to have rescue equipment, pool alarms and life jackets available, those aren’t all we need. Emergencies can arise with the best of swimmers, so it’s really important to know the signs of a swimmer in need of help and also how to respond. The only time not to move a victim with rescue equipment is if they get a head, neck or back injury. This is when you immediately call 911.

Parents or family members can help teach young children how to feel comfortable around water and even teach them how to float and swim by getting in the water with them. There are also several facilities in the area that offer structured swim lessons by trained professionals. YMCAs and many community centers offer swim lessons all summer, if not all year. The first basic skill learned is how to float. Also, check out infant swimming rescue for children ages 6 months and up.

Be prepared this year and have fun in your pool!

Part 2 comes out next week and will cover water safety at the beaches. Our family loves beach recreation, so please come on back for this one!