Toddler Pick: A Short Hike Around Jewel Lake - 510 Families
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Toddler Pick: A Short Hike Around Jewel Lake

This guest post was written for us by Sara Lynne about the joys of a hike around Jewel Lake in Berkeley’s Tilden Park with her preschool-aged daughter.

One of our favorite activities is to walk the trail to Jewel Lake, behind the Little Farm in Tilden Park. I have a child who loves to run and I feel completely safe in setting her free there. She is also just as likely to discover the smallest pebble embedded in the ground or a bug crawling on a leaf and will stay there absorbed in it until her curiosity is satisfied or she has some other impulse.

kid and jewel lake

More great toddler-approved hikes in the East Bay >>

On a recent walk, she crouched down near a small stream of water. After a moment she stood up and started moving her little body. She told me that the water was music and stood there dancing for some moments. To me, this is one of the great privileges of parenting. Watching a new person experience the “music” of a stream or the mighty work of the tiniest insect. It’s all new and there are so many opportunities for ordinary magic.

Lots more free things to do in Berkeley’s Tilden Park with kids >>

ducks pond child
Enjoying the ducks swimming in Jewel Lake | Photo: Sara Lynne

Jewel Lake is in the Northern part of Tilden Park (the Marin side rather than the Ashby side). Download this detailed trail map. Free parking is available in the lot for the Nature Center. While you’re there, stop by the Little Farm or the many other free activities in Tilden Park.

[All photos provided by Sara Lynne and used with permission | All rights reserved]

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2 thoughts on “Toddler Pick: A Short Hike Around Jewel Lake”

  1. We just took the same walk the other day. Saw a cormorant, ducklings, banana slugs, a black crowned heron and a baby turtle!! Fabulous.
    PLEASE just be careful letting your kids run free rot now… There is SOOOOOOmuch poison oak.
    Enjoy!

  2. Pingback: Extended Family Pictures at Tilden Park in Berkeley - Laura Jaeger Photography

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