{"id":472832,"date":"2025-12-26T13:06:09","date_gmt":"2025-12-26T13:06:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/472832\/"},"modified":"2025-12-26T13:06:09","modified_gmt":"2025-12-26T13:06:09","slug":"start-2026-with-a-guided-hike-in-one-of-californias-state-parks-san-diego-union-tribune","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/472832\/","title":{"rendered":"Start 2026 with a guided hike in one of California\u2019s state parks \u2013 San Diego Union-Tribune"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Kickstart a year of outdoor adventure with a guided hike \u2014 or a wintry dip in the ocean \u2014 at one of San Diego County\u2019s state parks on New Year\u2019s Day.<\/p>\n<p>California state parks are offering dozens of First Day Hikes at more than 60 parks across the state on Jan. 1, including several in San Diego County.<\/p>\n<p>Along the trail, hikers will learn from park guides about each area\u2019s vegetation, local wildlife and geology. It\u2019s part of a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.stateparks.org\/special-programs\/first-day-hikes\/#:~:text=On%20January%201%2C%202026%20we,%22;\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">nationwide initiative<\/a> to get more people outdoors.<\/p>\n<p>And for the first time, Cardiff State Beach will hold a polar bear plunge on Jan. 1 for participants to ring in 2026 with a jump in the chilly Pacific Ocean. Average water temperatures this time of year are around 60 degrees.<\/p>\n<p>Visitors can search through the California State Parks <a href=\"https:\/\/www.parks.ca.gov\/?page_id=30737\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">online database<\/a> to find their hike or to sign up for the ocean plunge. Some First Day Hikes also require advance registration. State park entrance fees apply.<\/p>\n<p>For the hikers, guided mountain and desert hikes will be at Cuyamaca Rancho State Park, Anza-Borrego Desert State Park and Palomar Mountain State Park. Coastal hikes will be held on at San Onofre and Torrey Pines state beaches and at the Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve Extension nearby.<\/p>\n<p>Ocotillo Wells State Vehicular Recreation Area will offer a 19-mile guided vehicle drive to give visitors an overview of the area\u2019s history and flora and fauna.<\/p>\n<p>The hikes are short \u2014 the longest is 2 miles \u2014 and range in difficulty from easy to moderate. The start times vary throughout New Year\u2019s Day, and dogs are allowed on some.<\/p>\n<p>Keep an eye on the weather, as rain or snow will cancel a hike, according to the state agency.<\/p>\n<p>Cardiff State Beach\u2019s polar bear plunge also includes a short 0.3-mile walk. Participants should bring swimwear, a towel and extra layers. Warm drinks and fire pits will be available as supplies last \u2014 just bring your own mug.<\/p>\n<p>Swimmers should be confident in their abilities. State parks recommends the plunge only for participants over 5 years old. The event will be canceled if there\u2019s rain, high wind or severe ocean swells.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Kickstart a year of outdoor adventure with a guided hike \u2014 or a wintry dip in the ocean&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":472833,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5134],"tags":[5229,1582,276,9427,728,3549,3550,7264,1072,7289,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-472832","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-diego","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-ca","10":"tag-california","11":"tag-hiking","12":"tag-local-news","13":"tag-san-diego","14":"tag-san-diego-county","15":"tag-sandiego","16":"tag-things-to-do","17":"tag-top-stories-sdut","18":"tag-united-states","19":"tag-united-states-of-america","20":"tag-unitedstates","21":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","22":"tag-us","23":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115786021918862800","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/472832","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=472832"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/472832\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/472833"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=472832"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=472832"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=472832"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}