Chelsea and the boys had spent most of the week with Jane at the trailer in Pismo, and Chris drove over to join them Friday night. There are a handful of stroller-friendly hikes in the area, so we had talked about taking Jude and Ollie on a walk or two before they went back home on Sunday. One of our options was Oso Flaco Lake, a two-mile-long, level walk we had taken several years ago with Jane’s aunt and uncle, down the coast near the town of Guadalupe. The path begins with a walk down a semi-paved road, then a short section along a causeway that runs across the lake itself, followed by a half-mile or so of boardwalk that winds its way through the dunes to the ocean. Arriving at the trailhead about 11:30am, we loaded the boys into the stroller and set off down the tree-lined road. Right away, Jude wanted to walk by himself, which was fine until he fell on the rough asphalt and scraped the palm of his hand – that experience killed his mood, and Chelsea carried him for much of the rest of the hike in. We passed several large clumps of poison oak along the road, but it was cleared well back from the pathway and was never a problem. The lake was very pretty in the midday sun – habitat for several shorebird species, some endangered, there was plenty of avian wildlife to be seen both on the water and in the air. We understand that Spanish explorers, after putting ashore nearby, found an emaciated bear at the water’s edge and so named the lake in its honor. We followed the boardwalk through the dunes, Ollie now wanting to try his hand at walking on his own – the level path is perfect for young families, and we saw several others as we made our way along. The boardwalk ends at the open beach, a short extension running southwest to an observation platform – since none of us were in sandals, we chose to forego the beach sand for the platform. The views here were great – the air was crystal clear, and we could see southward to Point Sal, north to the Irish Hills and Pismo Beach, and east to Santa Maria and the mountains. When we had been here before, the skies were overcast and the views more limited – now, we could even see the Diablo Canyon power plant at the westernmost tip of the coastline to the north. After a few minutes on the platform, we strapped the boys back in and headed out, Jude falling asleep almost immediately. We noted a sign indicating recent bear activity in the area upon our return to the trailhead, which was a little surprising given the park’s proximity to both agricultural fields and the adjacent recreational vehicle area. The whole hike took less than an hour, and we decided to return to the trailer in Pismo for lunch before heading north to Morro Bay for another walk.