Park district turning Black Friday green with FREE Park Day
Special Visitor Center activities planned, one at Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve in Antioch
By Dave Mason, Public Information Supervisor, Public Affairs, East Bay Regional Park District
For the past seven years, the East Bay Regional Park District has celebrated Green Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, as a healthy outdoor alternative to Black Friday holiday shopping. To encourage time in nature, the Park District is again making Green Friday a FREE Park Day, meaning all District fees are waived for park entrance and activities, including parking, dogs, horses, boat launching, fishing, as well as entry to Ardenwood Historic Farm.
“Time in nature improves physical and mental health and is a great way to relieve holiday stress,” said Park District Board President Dee Rosario. “The day after Thanksgiving is a great opportunity to get outside and spend time with family and friends.”
The fee waiver does not include State fees for fishing licenses and watercraft inspections for invasive mussels or privately operated concessions such as the Tilden Merry-Go-Round and Redwood Valley Railway steam train.
The Park District’s Green Friday is part of the “#OptOutside” movement that started in 2015 when REI closed its doors on Black Friday and encouraged its employees and the public to explore the outdoors instead of shopping. Millions of people and hundreds of organizations now participate in #OptOutside each year.
Visitor Center activities planned for Green Friday include:
- Feast Your Eyes On Nature Hikeat Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve, 9-11:30 a.m. (Registration Required)
- Post Thanksgiving Hike It Offat Reinhardt Redwood Regional Park, 9-Noon
- Ojo De Diosat Ardenwood Historic Farm, 12:30-2:00 p.m.
- Animal Feedingat Ardenwood Historic Farm, 3-3:30 p.m.
To find a park or activity, visit www.ebparks.org/parks.
The East Bay Regional Park District is the largest regional park system in the nation, comprising 73 parks, 55 miles of shoreline, and over 1,300 miles of trails for hiking, biking, horseback riding, and environmental education. The Park District receives more than 25 million visits annually throughout Alameda and Contra Costa counties in the San Francisco Bay Area.
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EBRPD Green Friday 11-26-2021
