A Family Affair

Teri Crane and her daughter Alexis know a lot about family fun in the outdoors. From September to June, they squire folks of all ages on nature hikes around Placerita Canyon County Park’s Heritage Trail in Newhall. This month’s walk will take place at 10 a.m. Saturday.

The Cranes, respectively a teacher and student at Mt. Gleason Middle School in Sunland, provide a wide variety of activities for participants in this series of events held under the auspices of the Children’s Nature Institute.

“Every walk is different,” Crane said earlier this week while checking out the route of Saturday’s walk. “And every time I come here, a different 2month is my favorite time. This time it’s January because the weather is so refreshing.”

Alexis checked to see if there were enough big pieces of bark lying about so she could show kids how to use them as masks. Nearby, Crane looked for acorns that still had their little “hats” on, and also for “roly-polies,” or pill bugs, which she intends to show babies and toddlers.

“We always have kids too young to walk--and almost always there are grandparents, too,” Crane said. “This Saturday we have reservations for a family with someone in a wheelchair. It’s an easy trail, and a lot of people bring strollers.”

Walks begin with Crane pointing out a sign at the park that reads: “This is a natural area. Everything is protected.” Her spin on this admonition is, “When you pick something up, put it down before you leave.”

During the walk, kids will get to nuzzle the fuzzy side of a sycamore leaf (hummingbirds use this fuzz to build their nests), learn how to hoot like an owl and howl like a coyote, and do push-ups like the lizards likely to be encountered.

“Sometimes we see gophers pulling grass down into their burrows,” Crane said. “We march along in lock-step imitating ants. We see how part of the yucca plant can be used for sewing needles or tea or to make grass skirts.”

And there’s lots of singing--songs appropriate to the terrain, such as “The Old Oak Tree” because of the famous “Oak of the Golden Dream” at the site in the park where gold was discovered in 1842.

“The parents act differently when they are here with their kids outdoors in nature,” Crane said. Adult participants, while sometimes initially reticent, remark at the end of the hike, “This was fun,” she recalls, continuing, “Some people need an appointment to do this sort of thing. This is a perfect opportunity.”

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The walk the Cranes lead is but one of those offered by the Children’s Nature Institute. The Santa Monica-based nonprofit educational organization conducts such activities seven days a week throughout the Los Angeles area, including at Valley locations from Burbank to Valencia to Woodland Hills.

BE THERE

Nature walks for families with very young children (up to age 8), a program of the Children’s Nature Institute, on Saturday from 10-11:30 a.m. Meet at the Nature Center in Placerita Canyon County Park, Placerita Canyon Road, Newhall. Donation of $5 per family appreciated, $3 parking fee required. For details and reservations, call (310) 364-3591.