A recent New York Times Fashion & Style article explores the trajectory of the sport given the cultural craze. From Staten Island to San Francisco, sales of kid-size recurve bows have more than quadrupled this year!

Whether you have a Robin Hood fan, a small Cossack (a kid into ancient weaponry) or you just love fun, free, urban family activities, you’ve got to check out the Golden Gate Park Archery Range in San Francisco when you’re visiting the city. It’s a beautiful and well-maintained piece of park real estate, near the beach. It’s easy to park and accessible by public transportation. It’s always open for folks with their own archery equipment. If you’re looking to try it out as an activity, you can swing by the nearby Archery Pro Shop, where you can sign up for lessons, rent or buy bows or investigate other equipment. You can also buy bows and arrows on-line.

Many folks first try out the sport at summer camp. My kids got a taste of it at Camp Mather, the San Francisco family camp, located near Yosemite, that is beloved by many city families. The setup at Mather was low-tech and we had a blast. We invested in bows and arrows and started learning about the sport.

The next summer on a visit to my in-laws’ home in a somewhat rural area on four acres on Washington State’s Olympic Peninsula, we built our own archery range. We bought a bale of hay for $8 at a local Feed Store and my kids made a target out of a giant poster board.

You do need space and oversight. Archers need to be at least 5-6 years old or have exceptional dexterity and listening skills. The range etiquette is vital, as safety is paramount.

On a recent, glorious, fall afternoon, with perfect pumpkin light, we made a family outing to the range in Golden Gate Park. There were quite a few free targets. Three other parties were there and the mood was genial. One guy handed out cards for another range down the coast near Pacifica, wanting to make sure we all knew about it (archery buffs are quite passionate about their sport).

There are often Community College and other classes held at ranges, so check out local options. We spent about an hour; all shot a few rounds, and the kids left with smiles across their faces and rosy cheeks.

There are the famous routes to Coit Tower where one can catch a glimpse of the Wild Parrots of Telegraph Hill, and the now famous Mosaic Stairs in Golden Gate Heights. Although not as crowded as say, Lombard (the crookedest street in the west), these top stairwalks can be bustling.

Instead, grab Adah Bakalinsky’s stairwalk bible, now in it’s 20th edition, and explore some of the more quirky areas. The book offers up the popular routes, but many of the stairways highlighted are tranquil spots, used only by locals and known only to a handful of people. Most walks take no more than an hour and string a number of staircases in a neighborhood together, with informative descriptions of the history, architecture and flora and fauna of the area.

Together, families can explore the nooks and crannies of this great city. My family often decides on a route and picks a restaurant or café in the area to make our ultimate destination. Avid hikers, we love to take our boys on treks outside the city, often inspiring them with treats or the prospect of counting banana slugs. Some days however, we just can’t get out of town, but want an outdoor activity that feels like a hike. Then we reach for our stairwalk book and pack a few snacks and layers of clothing.

One time it was dumping rain and each with an umbrella in tow, we geared ourselves up for the urban adventure. With each stairwalk we discover unique and unusual surprises, including hummingbirds, caterpillars, amanita muscaria mushrooms, blackberries, glorious flowers in bloom, secret cottages with magical gardens, never-before-seen views, maniacal exercisers and even a friendly kitty who followed us for blocks.

Most of these walks can be accessed by MUNI or BART (public transportation) and all can be great activities for out of town guests and spry grandparents.  Many walks include benches or vista spots where one can catch one’s breath. These stairwalks are particularly great options when kids are portable, either in backpacks or frontal carriers. Take photos of your stairwalk and add them to a Flickr pool.

Here are a few of our recent favorites:

Telegraph Hill: The popular Filbert and Greenwich Street staircases leading up to Coit Tower.

Highlights: Gardens full of roses and irises and trees filled with the loud and colorful wild parrots and views of the Bay Bridge. At the top visit Coit Tower!

Begin the walk at: (down) Telegraph Hill Blvd and either Filbert or Greenwich streets; (up) Sansome Street at Filbert or Greenwich.

Upper Market: The Saturn and Vulcan stairways lead through the residential neighborhood above the Castro district.

Highlights: Quirky cottages where residents share a stairway with no street access and views of the city streets below. Look for a giant statue-less pedestal.

Begin walk at: Levant Street near Lower Terrace.

Mt. Davidson: Covered with eucalyptus forest, Mt. Davidson is the highest point in San Francisco at 927 feet and the site of the controversial mammoth Easter cross. In 1997, the cross was purchased for $26,000 by The Council of Armenian American Organizations of Northern California, which placed a bronze plaque at the base memorializing the victims of the 1915 Armenian genocide. Sadly, there are often beer bottles and trash around the place since certain locals take advantage of the isolated park.

Highlights: Views of the city, a real sense of wilderness, blackberry bushes, wildflowers and the cross at the top! It can be muddy in the rainy season, so wear good hiking shoes.

Begin walk at: The bus stop (at the junction of Dalewood and Lansdale) and head up the unsigned but obvious trail.

I always travel with my yoga mat and often head to the back of the plane in-flight to stretch out and realign. Now you can actually use all that post check-in extra time at the San Francisco Airport to center yourself and work out the travel kinks. The City by the Bay has opened a yoga room in terminal two. If you don’t carry your own mat, mats are provided in the 150-square-foot room.

So, rather than kicking back with a cocktail why not salute the sun or invert a bit before your long or short haul flight? Let’s hope it’s a trend that catches on.

The stunning stretch, down Highway 1 from San Francisco in Marin County, is a small hippie beach community that has a posh side to it. A friend and her family were renting a house for a few weeks and generously invited us to come, that day I happened to have 2 extra boys in tow. I thought it would be too much but she said “Bring it on”. Although stunning, the water at Stinson is cold and the last time I was there we had to run from the water because of a shark sighting. Often it is too foggy or blustery, but on this spectacular August day, the stars had aligned. We brought the signature bagels and schmears and descended on the fabulous house. It turned out another mom was there with her two kids, as well as some neighbor kids, so there were about 10 kids in all ranging from aged 5-13.  We tucked into a yummy spread and then let the kids loose on the beach. Some had wet suits but the water was just borderline, warm enough to be enticing, but definitely chilly. The waves were perfect, the beach practically empty. The boys (the crew was mostly boys) decided to have a battle of the holes; who could dig the deepest and best hole. I sat in an Adirondack chair and had an intense conversation with another mom who I had just met. The kids would periodically return to the compound for sustenance and a warm up in the Jacuzzi; it all felt very Kennedy-like, but with a California twist. At one point I looked at my friend, who had invited me and said we have to go boogie boarding. She and I had taken a trip to Costa Rica a few years ago, ostensibly for my 40th birthday, along with ten other moms, to do yoga and learn how to surf. She and I had been partnered up and dubbed ourselves the wonder twins and would bump knuckles if we had a good ride or to pump ourselves up. Surfing was great fun, a challenge met and something I’d love to do again, but truth be told I get the same exhilarating feeling from boogie boarding with much less hassle.  This day at Stinson was glorious… it took a while to adjust to the water, but once ensconced it was pure joy. It sounds cheesy, but I felt like I was 15 again; there is nothing like catching a wave at the right point and gliding all the way to shore. I think my boys were impressed. Chilled to the bone, I didn’t want it to end, but we needed to get back to the city, drive the windy Highway 1 before dark.  We said our thank-yous and good-byes and on our way out of town stopped for ice cream at Odyssey Video; pretty much the only ice cream shop in town. The boys all fell asleep; a good fatigue as we made our way back across the Golden Gate.

Last week I was invited to a friend’s rental house in Inverness in Marin County, on Tomales Bay, surrounded by Point Reyes National Seashore, with my five-year-old. We left the house at 7 a.m. to maximize our visit, stopped at House of Bagels (the best bagels in SF) and bought loads of yummy stuff and headed over the bridge.  The sun was shining and I was so looking forward to spending quality time with my friend and her family.

Inverness is a small village named after the Scottish town and there is so much to recommend it. Views in every direction, swimming in Tomales Bay (we couldn’t this year because jelly fish invaded the small beach we usually go to), lovely shops nearby in Inverness and Point Reyes Station, killer fresh oysters, hiking, biking, birdwatching, mushroom hunting and so much more.

My friend’s husband is an avid unicyclist and loves to hit the local trails. It helps that the house they rent is just stellar, exactly the kind of place I dream of owning, even down to the sauna built overlooking Tomales Bay. We lit a fire, toasted with champagne and ate some local Cowgirl Creamery cheese and fig tapenade as the sun went down and then tucked into a yummy meal with a homemade fruit cobbler for dessert. This is why I live in the Bay Area…it was so hard to leave the next morning.

I also don’t get why it’s more to pick your own fruit at an orchard than to buy it at Farmer’s Market. Anyway, I do get that as summer is around the corner we are going to get hit with even higher prices to fill up. I thought this Rand McNally list was very helpful. I particularly like the bit about open sunroofs causing a significant decrease in gas mileage. So buckle up, gas up, close your sunroof and get ready for a lot of summer driving OR DON’T. Let’s hope we don’t see these prices again. Even though I think it’s a good thing to decrease driving, I can’t stomach these prices.

I had been to the same spot last summer for an epic 50th Russian Dacha birthday party, where many guests camped and a Russian BBQ ensued with a zip line, trampoline, bubbles, pool, jacuzzi and pogo-sticks for the big and little kids and of course shots of vodka and blinis for the hearty adults. This time it was for a five-year-old’s party, the daughter of my friends, the innkeepers.

Healdsburg lies at the crossroads of three of California’s most famous wine growing appellations: Dry Creek Valley, Alexander Valley and the Russian River Valley. It is surrounded by more than 60 wineries and is a favorite Sonoma Wine Country destination.

It was a surprise when I realized my son’s week at “Farm School” would be just down the road from the B & B. Deergnaw, as it is called, is an estate owned by the founders of my son’s small school in San Francisco. Synergy School 4th-8th grade students are lucky to spend a week in the spring at Deergnaw studying botany, gardening, fishing, writing poetry in the forest, hiking, camping, swimming, kayaking and learning about nature as an integral part of the curriculum. They all return in the autumn for Harvest Day. I have been looking forward to this since Sasha was a wee kindergartner. Parents told me it was a peak Synergy experience and since I love all of the above I was keen to help out, as were many other parents.  At any given time there were at least 8-10 parents and three teachers for 21 kids! I include all this seemingly random information because the experience was just so amazing, something every kid should experience.

I taught poetry writing one day, yoga the next and was a raft monitor in the afternoons. The location was just so stunning. I had been to a camp with my 4-8th grades in the 70’s outside NYC, but it was truly a camp: wooden bunks, sulphur-smelling water and lots of campfires. Alas, this time we couldn’t have a campfire because of our terrible drought and the advice/insistence of a 4th grade firefighter mom.

I was in awe of the beautiful property. We all camped, cooked and gathered outdoors, but the Deergnaw home, compound, estate whatever you want to call it, was right out of a Sunset Magazine spread, but not too precious—just perfect.  Built on more than 250 acres, Deergnaw is now an olive oil producing olive grove and one can buy their oil online and at local Farmer’s Markets.

The owners were not only gracious hosts but involved in the day to day schedule of Farm School. The parents helped with everything from cooking to tick removal. All the kids were obliged to do most of the work, including all the recycling, mulching and weighing the garbage to compare refuse production from year to year. Parents had moments to enjoy the surroundings. One dad took a killer mountain bike excursion, some fished in the pond. I hunkered down in a cushy hammock to read voraciously for an hour or so and squeezed in my own yoga practice on a beautiful deck overlooking a glorious garden.

We danced around a maypole, ate strawberries, cream and brown sugar and took a night hike to a spring. Each kid hiked alone in the dark, a sort of rite of passage/nature experience/empowerment exercise. I was only able to go for two days but look forward to future Farm School experiences and further exploring the Healdsburg area.

Nestled in Tam Valley, a part of Mill Valley, this spot is easily accessible by San Franciscans and Marinites alike. Over the years we have taken hard core hikes with friends, leisurely walks with visitors from out of town and quickie visits to get fresh air and bask in the beautiful scenery. If I were a visitor from abroad or out of town, this would be a great day trip to get a flavor of the tremendous wealth of the Bay Area hiking scene. I was there twice in April. Once with my two boys for a free, annual Easter egg hunt at the Horse Stables adjacent to the trail, and once with my close friend as a birthday treat. We took a 4 mile hike to the Pelican Inn, on the Coastal Trail, and had a scrumptious lunch at the pub and then a less strenuous 3 mile hike back; all in all a perfect day.

Years ago we used to meet friends at the Dipsea Café, right where the road to Tennessee Valley turns off Shoreline Highway. We would eat a big breakfast and then hike; always a good option after the trail too! Depending on the season the flora and fauna are stupendous…deer, lizards, the occasional mountain lion, all sorts of birds, butterflies and wildflowers that never fail to please.

With the slower lot, kids, grandparents, non-hikers, the flat-ish route to the beach is perfect. You can picnic on the beach and still feel like you got a good walk in. My 71-year-old mom, who does a lot of city walking in New York, felt it was a tad strenuous, but once completed she raved! There are plenty of the more rigorous routes along the coast and towards the Headlands. If you forget to pack a picnic there is often a farm produce stand open just as you turn onto the road. The parking lot can be crowded!