National Take A Walk In A Park Day 2016

After a long busy day, a calming and therapeutic way to relax would be a nice, long, leisurely walk in the park. Enjoy nature’s beauty and being outside.Take this opportunity to enjoy reading a book outdoors and celebrate National Reading Awareness month.

Long Beach Parks, Recreation and Marine serves the community with recreation programs and services offered at 162 parks with 26 community centers, two historic sites and the largest municipally operated marina system in the nation and six miles of beaches.

El Dorado Park and Nature Center

Looking for a bit of nature in the middle of the city? The nearly 100 acres that make up the Nature Center grounds provide sanctuary to over 150 species of birds, a wide variety of trees and plant life and many species of urban wildlife including turtles, frogs, rabbits, skunks and squirrels. Two miles of dirt trails and a ¼ mile paved trail wind around two lakes and a stream and through forested areas, grasslands and wildflowers. At the entrance, cross over the wooden bridge that spans the lake and you'll find yourself on a small island that houses the Visitor Center. The building houses educational displays, a museum gallery featuring local artists and a small gift shop offering environmentally themed books and gifts.

Long Beach Rosie The Riveter Park

This three acre park is nestled in an east side neighborhood, adjacent to the former Douglas Aircraft Plant. The park includes a walking path with a historical time line etched in the pavers along with symbols and quotations detailing the events of World War II. A memorial acknowledging that "All Gave Some and Some Gave All" during World War II in the military and the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP), is tucked into a grove of trees and surrounded by flowers -- giving visitors a tranquil spot at which to sit and reflect upon the sacrifices made. Visitors can experience the park by listening to a guided tour, 1940's music and radio broadcasts via their own cellphones.

Rancho Los Alamitos Historic Ranch and Gardens

Twice listed on the National Register of Historic Places - once as the sacred Tongva village of Povuu’ngna, the traditional birthplace of the native people of the Los Angeles Basin and, second, for the evolution of its significant historic landscape over time. The site includes traces of the ancestral village, an adobe-core ranch house ca.1800, four acres of lush historic gardens developed during the 1920s and 30s, and the restored working ranch barnyard of the early-mid 20th century. With the opening of the Rancho Center, the film, new exhibits and room environments feature the landscape, the people and the place over time and within the context of the development of the region and the state.

This exceptional site reveals the early Tongva presence, the Spanish and Mexican periods, the ranching and farming era, and the imprint of 20th century development. A quintessential place for people to experience the living story of southern California, Rancho Los Alamitos is a microcosm of the region, past to present.

Rancho Los Cerritos Historic Site

Rancho Los Cerritos Historic Site is a public museum open for tours, programs and events. Built in 1844, the adobe home and grounds echo with the rich history of Spanish, Mexican and American California and with the families who helped transform Southern California from its ranching beginnings to a modern, urban society. The two-story Monterey-style adobe is primarily furnished to reflect occupants and lifestyles from the 1860s-1880s. The site, a National, State and Long Beach Historic Landmark, also includes historic gardens and a research library and archives. It is owned by the City of Long Beach and operated through the Department of Parks, Recreation and Marine.

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