Outdoor

Happy July! Our e-newsletter is filled with warm-weather fun! Outdoor activities like kayaking and parasailing are back, and Summer Camp programs invite kids to once again explore, learn and play! Retailers, restaurants, wineries have reopened their doors — all with safety guidelines. Mission Valley has a brand new hotel and resort filled with cool attractions. And many of San Diego’s museums and cultural venues are reopening as well. Read on and stay healthy and safe everyone! https://buff.ly/2NO846r

Welcome to Summer! We’re so excited to share that many retailers, restaurants, wineries have reopened with social distancing guidelines in place. Many of San Diego’s beloved museums and cultural venues are finally reopening as well. Outdoor activities like parasailing and kayaking are back, and Summer Camp programs invite kids to once again explore, learn and play! Read on and have fun this summer, San Diego!

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Carolyn Howard
PassPort to San Diego

It was the perfect San Diego October afternoon to go parasailing! Captain Sam and his assistant Jeff led the boat of 11 passengers, two of whom were 9-year old boys, who had the time of their lives! We left out of Mission Bay and made our way to the ocean for our parasail trip which ran between the jetty to the PB Pier. Once equipped in our parasail gear, which included life jackets, we paired off for our tandem flights.

With approximately 8 minutes of airtime, we experienced the amazing coastal views. With about 700 feet of line, you’re floating about 350 feet up in the air. What an awesome experience! Toward the end of the flight, Captain Sam brings you down gradually, to dip your toes in the ocean. This is the only time you come in contact with the water and you are barefoot. Once back in the air, you are slowly reeled back in, to land on your feet on the boat.

Safety is always a priority, so weather conditions— low wind and no fog — must be optimal. Both Captain Sam and Jeff were very personable and extremely knowledgable. I highly recommend getting friends, family or co-workers together to have the whole boat to yourselves. There is a maximum of 12 people allowed. We had so much fun and will definitely be back for this great experience!

A top San Diego attraction, this adventure of a lifetime is located in Mission Bay by Sea World. Also ask about their 800-foot SkyRider Flight and GoPro Video/Photo Package, as well as last-minute deals when you fly stand-by. Book online at goparasailing.com.

Note: San Diego Parasail Adventures is closed for the months of January and February.

Cathy Hendrie
PassPort to San Diego

Engineer a day devoted to miniature heaven at the San Diego Model Railroad Museum in Balboa Park. Both San Diego locals and out-of-towners love this impressive venue, which spans 27,000 square feet of space in the lower level of the Casa De Balboa building.

The museum features six bustling train exhibits and an unparalleled attention to detail that has to be seen to appreciated. Chug along and be transported to real and imaginary railway lines with weathered and modern trains running through them.

The main exhibit loops you around fascinating displays featuring various O, HO and N scale exhibits. The large dioramas are completely landscaped to represent actual railway scenarios found in California and Arizona. Tiny towns, figurines, vintage vehicles, a carnival, trestle bridges over huge gorges, mountains and deserts, grazing lands, are all constructed with fine detail and accuracy.

A fifth operating display devoted to rare and modern toy trains is for the child in each of us. The Toy Train Gallery is a nostalgic trip for visitors remembering Lionel Type trains and the cute lighted villages set up at Christmas time, and a delight to little ones discovering the Lionel trains for the first time.

Outside the back door, find the newest exhibit, a small fenced-in garden called the Centennial Garden Railway. It is dedicated to the electric street car lines designed for transporting the masses who visited the San Diego for the Panama-California Exposition in 1915. The miniature street cars run past scale models of some of the original buildings like the Balboa Park’s famous Spreckels Organ Pavilion and the California Tower.

A labor of love, the San Diego Model Railroad Museum is operated and maintained largely by volunteers, and a must see for rail fans. General admission tickets include access to all indoor and outdoor exhibits and daily programs. On the first Tuesday of each month, show proof you are a San Diego County resident, and enjoy free admission!

The museum is open from 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Friday and from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Call (619) 696-0199 or visit the museum online.