Avila

Avila Beach

Avila is a beautiful beach to visit. Especially right now, the seals and sea lions are out right at the pier. Tons of them! The kids walked right down the stairs and were so close they could have touched them, if I were crazy! It was so neat to see, a few were swimming around the pier but most were all lumped on top of each other relaxing in the shade. We also grabbed ice cream cones and took a stroll, watching people fish off of the pier and kayak in the water. Unfortunately I only took my phone and all of pictures were lost when I updated it so I have no pictures from our recent trip there to check out the wildlife. 

I do however have pictures from a previous trip to the Avila Valley Barn which is a must see if you are in that area.

 Starting at the end of September, the pumpkins come out and cover the place! There's a petting zoo type of set up around the barn area and you can get a bag of salad to feed the animals for .25!

Then there is a tractor/hay ride that takes you out into the pumpkin patch to pick your own pumpkins.

Or you can just pick one of the SEVERAL that are already picked for you!

My kids always get a honey stick for a treat, and sometimes we grab ice cream or lunch from the little cafe/ice cream shop.  It's such a fun place to go, we love it!

Nojoqui Falls

I LOVE waterfalls. Really love them. One of my favorite trips ever has been to Niagara Falls. I just love hearing the sound and seeing the water moving and I could visit hundreds of water falls and never tire of them.

Now this was no Niagara Falls but it included a small, kid friendly hike which we all love, so we were very excited to check it out.

This is right on the outside of Solvang and there is a little more info about it here: Nojoqui Falls

Our kids have short legs, like most kids so it took us longer than some of the other people we saw there, but even at our pace it was no more than about 20 minutes from our car to the falls.

We took a stroller the first time, but I wouldn't recommend it, the trail is quite bumpy but not bad walking.

Once you get to the water, theres a little stream area right in front of it, and a rock ledge with a little bench to rest on. It's very beautiful, even if there isn't a lot of water.

Afterwards, we went to the park, which you pass coming into the parking area of the falls, and had a picnic lunch. Great family day activity!