Trail mix Check out the SLO County Parks and Recreation Department s trail map at gis.slocounty.ca.gov/parks/#/parks-trails-map for information about local hiking trails. For general county park and hiking information, visit slocountyparks.com. Ask any SLO County resident what they love most about living on the Central Coast, and their response will likely point to the region s vast amount of open space and the gorgeous weather. The appreciation for outdoor recreation was reinvigorated last year when the public health crisis resulted in stay-at-home orders that effectively closed entertainment and restaurant industries; the orders also came with a recommendation to get outside at a safe distance from others.
Happy campers Hipcamp is an app and website that allows property owners to rent out their land to campers. Check it out at hipcamp.com. Other camping options include SLO County facilities, which opened to all campers on Feb. 4. Check out the available sites at slocountyparks.com/camp. And Santa Barbara County parks camping information is available at countyofsb.org/parks/campingparks.sbc. Driving just a few miles out of Arroyo Grande and up to Branch Mill Organic Farm feels like entering a better, calmer world. A little produce stand greets you at the entry of the farm, where the midday sun peaks through the branches of lush oak and fruit trees, burning away the few remaining drops of morning dew. The smell of fresh-cut herbs and blooming flowers fills the air.
It became a near nightly occurrence last summer. As the bustling, sold-out campgrounds at Lopez Lake fell to a hush in the wee hours of the mornings, American black bears would lumber onto the premises in search of food scraps on the ground, open bags of trash, or coolers left outside. The campers are the big thing. The more they leave stuff out, the more the bears get comfortable, said Matt Mohle, a supervising park ranger at Lopez Lake, which borders the Los Padres National Forest southeast of Arroyo Grande. Some people will walk up to the bear dumpster and then set their trash on top of the bear dumpster, or next to it.