With the holidays and cool weather upon us, this is a great time to get outdoors with family and friends to enjoy fishing, hiking, bird-watching, nature photography, biking, boating and other outdoor pursuits.
Here are a few suggestions for getting out to enjoy the natural beauty of Palm Beach County this holiday season:
• Take a walk on the beach or along the shaded South Dune Trail at John D. MacArthur Beach State Park on Singer Island. You’ll likely see fish from the boardwalk leading to the beach. Butterflies are common on the dune trail. The state park is open every day, including Christmas Day. A guided kayak tour is set for 2 p.m. on Christmas Day. (Call ahead to reserve a spot if you plan to go on the tour.) The park admission fee is $5 per car. Call (561) 624-6950.
• Go hiking or bring a bike to ride the trails at Jonathan Dickinson State Park. Mountain bikers like the Camp Murphy Trail. There’s a nice collection of hiking trails in the park as well. The park entrance is on U.S. 1 in Hobe Sound. Canoes, kayaks and small powerboats can be rented to explore the Loxahatchee River any day except Christmas. The park will be open on Christmas. Admission is $6 per car. Call (772) 546-2771.
• Check out the family twilight bike ride set for 4 p.m. Friday at Riverbend Park on Indiantown Road west of Interstate 95. The guided ride will be followed by a full-moon bike ride at 6 p.m. Guided rides cost $5 per person. Reservations are required. Call John Welch at (561) 741-1359.
• Explore the boardwalk and nature center at Grassy Waters Preserve, located on the south side of Northlake Boulevard about a mile west of Beeline Highway. A short guided canoe trip ($6 for adults) is planned for 10 a.m. today. Free winter wonder walks are scheduled for 10 a.m. Wednesday and Thursday. Call (561) 804-4985.
• Try a bird-watching walk at the Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge on U.S. 441 at Lee Road south of Boynton Beach Boulevard. Two-hour guided birding walks on the Marsh Trail begin at 7:45 a.m. today and Wednesday. Bring binoculars or check them out from the visitor center. (The visitor center will be closed Christmas Day.) Guided walks are free with the $5-per-car refuge admission fee. Guided boardwalk tours of the cypress swamp also are being offered this week. Call (561) 734-8303.
• Check out the Wellington Environmental Preserve with its paved walking trails, nice interpretive signs and six-story observation tower. Admission is free. Hours are 8 a.m. until sunset. To get there, take Southern Boulevard west beyond Royal Palm Beach to Flying Cow Road. Drive south on Flying Cow Road 3.4 miles to the north entrance.
• Go fishing at one of the county’s two ocean fishing piers: the Juno Beach Pier or the William O. Lockhart Municipal Pier at Lake Worth Beach. The Juno Beach Pier is open from 6 a.m. until 6 p.m. and is accessible from Juno Beach Park on U.S. 1 about a mile north of Donald Ross Road. It costs $4 to fish the Juno Beach Pier; parking is free. Call (561) 799-0185 to find out what’s biting. The Lake Worth pier is located on the city beach at the east end of Lake Avenue. Hours are 6 a.m. until 11 p.m. It costs $3.18 to fish; parking costs extra. To find out what’s biting at the pier in Lake Worth, call (561) 582-3474.
Advanced Roofing wins sailfish event: Thirty-seven boats released a total of 400 sailfish in two days of fishing Dec. 14-15 during the Operation Sailfish tournament based at Sailfish Marina.
The Advanced Roofing team from Lighthouse Point, led by captain Jeff Scott, won the tournament with 23 sailfish releases posted over two days. Captain Art Sapp and his team, Liquid Skillstorm, finished second with 21 releases. The third-place team, Swagger, also had 21 releases but finished behind Liquid Skillstorm based on the time of the releases.
Daniel Hassan won top angler with nine releases while fishing for Swagger.
