JULY 2021 NEWSLETTER
Reach the Beach on Our New River Shuttle

Happy summer! The weather is warm and clear, and beaches are bustling. To help visitors avoid the summer parking crunch at two of the most popular Russian River beaches, a convenient new service starts Saturday: the Regional Parks River Shuttle.

The River Shuttle is a low-cost transportation option for weekend beachgoers. Each $5 ticket provides all-day shuttle access between Tom Schopflin Fields in Santa Rosa and both Steelhead Beach Regional Park and Sunset Beach River Park. Shuttles run every 30 minutes from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays through Labor Day Weekend. Hop on and enjoy the ride!
Spring Lake Swimming Lagoon Is Now Open

After a long hiatus due to the pandemic, the Spring Lake swimming lagoon is open. This always popular watering hole offers sandy beaches, shady picnic spots, and plenty of room for recreational and lap swimming every day from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Use of the lagoon is free; parking at Spring Lake is $7 per vehicle or free for park members.

Free life vests are offered on loan at Spring Lake (and at Russian River beaches), and kayak and paddleboard rentals at the lake are available daily. The inflatable water park will return to the lagoon next summer.
Six Shady Hikes for Escaping the Summer Heat

On hot days, hikers naturally seek out the cool green shade of a forest. Sonoma County Regional Parks offers more than a few options for tree-lined trails, and we’ve selected six favorites for you to try, including the less-traveled Soda Springs Reserve pictured above.
Safety Precautions for Pooches and People

Regional Parks offers the most dog-friendly trails in Sonoma County. But all visiting dogs must be kept on leash. And as Ranger Ilana Stoelting explains in this helpful video, there are many good reasons for doing so, starting with the safety of the dogs themselves.
More advice for both four-legged and two-legged park visitors: Potentially harmful blue-green algae mats have been reported growing on local river bottoms. Because children and dogs are most susceptible to serious health impacts from toxic algae, they should avoid touching algae or scum found in the water or along riverbanks.
Run, Walk or Plog in REI's Dirt, Sweat & Beers

Regional Parks is proud to co-host “Dirt, Sweat & Beers,” a multi-part race-and-cleanup series organized and sponsored by REI with partners Salomon and Sierra Nevada. Event 3 of this four-event series features 5K and 10K courses at our own Shiloh Ranch Regional Park and Spring Lake Regional Park, respectively, from Aug. 1 to Sept. 29.

“Run, walk, hike or plog your way through the course on your own schedule and at your own pace,” explains REI. (“Plogging” is a Swedish exercise trend that combines jogging with picking up trash.) Competitors may run the courses as many times as they like over the 60-day period; only their fastest time will be used.
Learn and Connect with Nature

Regional Parks events offer various ways to learn from, and connect with, our natural world. Two upcoming nature journaling workshops, one for adults and one for all ages, accomplish this through writing and sketching, while Kayaking with the Dragons (i.e. exploring the cattails, rushes and dragonflies of Spring Lake by kayak) offers a more immersive experience.
'P3' Just a Big Kitty

'P3' is a female lion who was tagged as a juvenile in Sonoma Valley by the Living with Lions research team. These days she is about 20 miles away, on Regional Parks land not yet open to the public. Recently she graced our trail camera over a three-day period, showing us how she stretches, lounges, grooms and naps just like any house cat—and calls out for a mate, too.
Skunks Running Laps

We're not sure why this mother skunk and her kit were running so energetically up and down a trail at Stillwater Cove Regional Park—making several laps over a four-hour period—but it sure is amusing watching them do it! The wildlife video, posted recently to our Facebook page, also shows nighttime footage of another skunk marking territory with its infamous scent.
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Sonoma County Regional Parks
(707) 565-2041