More Fun Than Sun on Holiday Outings : Easter: Thousands flock to the beaches and county campgrounds despite coastal fog and inland chill.

A blanket of thick, gray fog along the coast Saturday made for a chilly, sometimes drizzly day but couldn’t stop thousands of holiday weekend vacationers from crowding parks and beaches across Ventura County.

Weather forecasters predict continuing clouds for the coastal regions today, but the fog should burn off in the inland valleys to reveal blue skies for Easter. Temperatures are expected to be in the low- to mid-60s on the coast and in the mid-70s inland.

Weekend revelers participated in a cadre of pre-Easter activities Saturday, from mountain biking and fishing at Point Mugu State Park to picnicking in Thousand Oaks.

Simi Valley residents Laura and Bryan Gentry bundled themselves in warm clothes before stationing their fishing pole in the sand at Thornhill Broome Beach near Point Mugu.

“If it was warmer it would be nice, but it doesn’t matter,” Laura Gentry said. “It’s just nice to get away from the house.”

Using frozen chicken as bait, Bryan Gentry said he wasn’t expecting to catch his Easter dinner.

“We’re not trying real hard. It’s just something to do,” he said.

Although campsites were packed at state and national campgrounds in the county, afternoon beach-goers were hard to find.

“If this was nice and sunny, it would be full,” state parks Ranger Simon Cavazos said while gazing at the nearly empty beach. “It’s going to be a little mellower day for us.”

Rangers said the lack of sunshine at the beaches had a calming effect on a holiday that can be marred by traffic accidents and ocean rescues.

“As the temperature increases (and) the number of people increase, so does the number of incidents that we have to be prepared for,” Cavazos said. “I’ve been here for 14 years and I’ve seen it all.”

In past years, Cavazos has had to peel adventurous rock climbers off cliffs and watch lifeguards drag children out of the sea, but this weekend was shaping up as a quiet one, he said.

And quiet was exactly what some vacationers were seeking Saturday.

“The guys are off riding their bikes, I’m relaxing--they’re doing what they love and I’m doing what I love,” said Kathy Setka, holding up a thick hardback novel while reclining in a folding chair at her campsite near Sycamore Cove Beach.

“We could have used some sun,” she said. “The bathing suits are definitely not going to get used.”

Setka said her group of 10 campers, all from San Pedro, made reservations eight weeks ago for their campsite under a sprawling sycamore tree near the beach.

The vacationers plan to roast a leg of lamb and hunt for Easter eggs in the newly grown brush by their camp to celebrate Easter today. Portions of Sycamore Canyon were burned during the fires last fall.

Leo Carrillo, Sycamore Cove and Thornhill Broome beaches, three popular county vacation spots, were all booked solid for the weekend, as were McGrath and Emma Wood beaches to the north, park rangers said.

“All the way from Refugio to McGrath, everything’s full,” said park operator Daniel Wills.

Some Ventura County residents bypassed the beach Saturday to seek blue skies and warmer temperatures inland.

Newbury Park residents Chris and Carla Hoglund picked up their two daughters from an overnight camping trip at Leo Carrillo and decided to escape the cool fog for an inland picnic.

“We thought we’d try out here,” Chris Hoglund said, gesturing at a vast green field at Wildflower Playfield in Thousand Oaks. “We just wanted to be together as a family today.”

At Lake Casitas near Ojai, 400 of the 450 available campsites were full Saturday, and the recreational area is expected to be packed solid today, rangers said.

“Easter Sunday is our biggest single day of the year,” Ranger Brent Doan said. “People come to hide their eggs, barbecue. . . . It’s a great day to kick off spring.”

In Ventura, at the the annual Cottontail Canyon Day at Arroyo Verde Park, children seemed unfazed by the chilly weather. The event drew about 8,000 people, who participated in an egg hunt and various games for kids.

But many children, like Ventura resident Alice Bailey’s 4-year-old daughter, Rebecca, couldn’t get past the petting zoo.

“She’s been here since 11 a.m.,” a weary Bailey said at 3 p.m. “And they’ve been nibbling on her all day.”

Rebecca’s pink tights had bite-size holes where the baby goats had been chomping at her legs. But that didn’t stop her from scooping up the crying goats in her arms.

“This one loves varmints,” her mother said with a chuckle.