Fresh Air Family Time: San Diego

At happyly, it is our goal to support your family's innate desire to remain healthy and happy, while still having fun. In this period of social distancing, there are ways to safely supplement your creative time at home with fresh air activities. They should be deliberate outdoor plans that respect and honor our community initiative to eliminate the threat of this virus through our united efforts.

Every family has to make their own choice when it comes to entering public spaces, so following an honest assessment of previous personal exposure and potential signs of questionable health, we feel that hiking in nature is an ideal way to keep an active family moving.

Obviously, taking precautions and paying careful attention to maintaining a respectful distance has never been more important. We have put together a list of some of our favorite hikes, and we highly suggest using alltrails.com as your secondary source for additional walks off the beaten path.

Please explore some of our recent blogs COVID-19 daily schedule for pre-school and grade school and Keeping kids active while protecting them, yourself and the community from the Coronavirus (COVID-19) for more information and creative ways to stay positive during this very anxious time. There will be much more to come, so keep an eye out for new content, stay healthy and honor our elders through respectful caution.

Annie's Canyon Trail

Distance: 1.5 miles, Level: Easy

One of many hiking options along the San Elijo Lagoon, Annie's Canyon is a short but sweet trail in Solana Beach with a fun twist - slot canyons! A stroller or baby carrier will be helpful. The trail is lined with local California trees, bushes and budding spring flowers, perfect for your children to explore. For more details, check out our website.

Los Penasquitos Canyon Hike

Distance: 6.4 miles, Level: moderate

This long looping trail system allows you to make your adventure as long - or short- as you'd like! This flat 6.4-mile trail will lead you through Oak and Sycamore tree groves as you wrap around to a scenic waterfall, the ultimate snack spot. For more information on parking and side trails, check out the full writeup at happy.ly.

Torrey Pines Hikes

Distance: 3.3 miles, Level: easy

Hiking through Torrey Pines is a special treat. You'll experience sweeping ocean views of the pacific and see the namesake tree, the Torrey Pine, which is the rarest pine tree in the United States seen only here and on the Channel Islands. For this hike, normal workout gear and running shoes are appropriate.

The route ends at the beach so pack a bathing suit if you want to make a splash afterward or simply dip your toes in as you take in the beautiful beachside bluffs. A hiking backpack or baby carrier is recommended for this trail, a stroller won't make it on the second part of the trail down to the beach.

Mount Laguna Campground Trail

Distance: 10 miles, Level: easy

If you’re looking for an all-day adventure, make your way to the Cleveland National Forest mountains for a beautiful day of exploring. About an hour drive northeast of San Diego, you will find many kid-friendly trail options laid amongst these mountains and trees. This trail begins at the Mount Laguna Campground and links to the Big Laguna Trail and Pacific Crest trail if you’re looking to complete the full mileage, otherwise turning around at any point allows you to make it much shorter. 

When you begin this hike in the campground you will soon come upon a small lake filled with ducks and boulders surrounding one side that makes a perfect climbing playground. Other hiking areas to check out in the Cleveland National Forest are nearby Descanso and Lake Cuyamaca.

Hike The Beautiful San Diego Beaches

She sells seashells by the seashore... keep your kids busy with that tongue twister as you all sweep the beaches looking for beautiful shells and soft sea glass! After, bring out your beach toys and hold sandcastle building competitions - the winner gets to choose what type of homemade cookies to make later. Hold onto your beach treasures for art projects at home or start a treasure jar to store these and future finds in!

A few local favorite beaches are La Jolla Shores, Moonlight Beach, Mission Beach and Pacific Beach.

For more information about coping with the necessary school closures and maintaining a spirit of community during this period of social distancing, we encourage you to check out the following articles.

Yes, You Actually Can Do Something About the Coronavirus

By Anne Helen Petersen

This Can Be Our Finest Hour -- But We Need All Of You.

By Gretchen Schmelzer

Schools Are Closing for Coronavirus. Now What?

By Marisa Porges

Please check out the blog for more inspiration from a list of March Weeknight Meals, or join us as we Disconnect to Reconnect with more time at home as a result of necessary social distancing. If you are looking for family team-building at home, we recommend 100 Things: A Rewarding and Fun Family Activity.

Take a moment to explore suggestions from the happyly team aboutKeeping Kids Active while Protecting Them, Yourself and the Community from the Coronavirus as well as our Daily Schedule For Pre-School and Grade School. As always, we welcome your family's highlights! Tag us on Instagram @gethappyly!

If you are enjoying our active lifestyle content, please take a moment to download the happyly app for fast access to all of our weekend roundups, frequent blog content, and favorite activities, both locally and in many communities and travel destinations across the country. 

Parents can now get more time back in their days with the country’s only mobile-first family activity planning app. Happyly provides scores of carefully-reviewed activities for parents, grandparents, and caregivers who are looking to spend less time planning and more time happily exploring with their kiddos.