What you can do at Sacramento-area parks as some coronavirus orders extend, others end
Two counties in the Sacramento region have recently extended health directive orders to slow the coronavirus spread, but some of the local restrictions have been lifted as warm weather begins to lure residents outside of their homes.
Two other counties in the region have allowed their health orders to expire. Residents in those counties are still directed to comply with the superseding statewide stay-at-home order, which has been in place for six weeks and remains in effect to limit the number of COVID-19 infections.
With these changes, residents must be asking what can they do outside this first weekend of May?
Those who are feeling sick are advised to stay home and only leave to seek necessary medical attention. For those not feeling sick, here’s a list of what you can do at parks throughout the region, if they’re open, and some links to find more information:
Sacramento County
Sacramento County has extended its stay-at-home order another three weeks to May 22. But the revised order now allows tennis courts and dog parks to reopen. Boating ramps, shooting and archery ranges and other activities that involve shared equipment are now allowed, too. Those heading out for disc golf must sanitize.
But children’s playgrounds remain closed for now. Basketball, soccer and football are still not allowed. The Sacramento County Regional Parks Department is still reminding residents that anyone heading outdoors must continue to practice social distancing of 6 feet from others. Officials also said park visitors should avoid gathering in groups with people who do not live in the same home.
Out of the 29 county parks, only seven have playgrounds; the others have open spaces for walking, hiking, jogging, bicycling and golfing with safe social distancing. The parks department offers some trail etiquette tips online, including pedestrians should stay on left facing oncoming traffic, and bicyclists should ride in single file 6 feet apart.
Sacramento’s city parks remain open, but the playgrounds there are off-limits. City officials advise park visitors to allow proper distance on jogging paths or trails. Restrooms may be closed, and bring a bag for your garbage to reduce the risk of exposure for park employees.
Yolo County
Yolo County has extended its shelter-in-place order through the end of May, and revised the order to allow drive-in religious services and construction with strict social distancing guidelines. County officials say residents can still go out for a walk, a hike or a run. Golf courses, gun or hunting clubs, archery, boat launches and fishing also are allowed under the county order.
The county, which had 164 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 16 deaths as of Thursday, now requires masks or face coverings in public or while working at an essential job. But Yolo County officials say face coverings are not required outdoors when “walking, hiking, bicycling or running” for exercise while maintaining 6 feet of distance from those who live in different homes.
Placer County
Placer County has decided to let its own shelter-in-place order end this weekend without extending the health directive. Officials said the local order was intended to compliment the statewide stay-at-home order, which the county will continue to follow.
They also said they are now focused on “phased reopening,” as local infection numbers show that sheltering in place has slowed the COVID-19 spread in the county. As of Thursday morning, Placer County had 147 confirmed COVID-19 cases and eight deaths due to complications from the respiratory disease.
Placer County already loosened restrictions on outdoor activities on its shelter-in-place order earlier this month. The then-revised order allowed a number of parks, golf courses and tennis, pickleball, basketball and volleyball courts to reopen under certain conditions.
El Dorado County
El Dorado County also decided to allow its stay-at-home order to expire. The county’s chief health officer, Dr. Nancy Williams, has said residents will be directed to comply with the statewide coronavirus order.
But her April 3 no-travel order for the Lake Tahoe Basin will remain in effect, along with fines for visitors at short-term rental housing. That order directed visitors to stay away as the popular vacation spot continued to attract too many people. The Lake Tahoe area had some of the largest numbers of COVID-19 cases in the county.
California Outdoor Recreation
Under the California stay-at-home order, state officials say residents can still go outside to go for a walk, to exercise and other outdoor activities as long as they maintain 6 feet social distancing and gather only with people who live in the same home.
You can go for a bike ride, garden, play golf but without using carts, go for a hike, ride a horse, go for a jog, go kite-boarding or kite-surfing, go skateboarding, play catch with a baseball, softball, Frisbee or wash your car, according to state list of authorized activities.
Californians can walk, run, hike and bike in their local neighborhoods, but they must avoid crowded trails and parking lots. A list of all closures at state parks, campgrounds, museums, and visitor centers can be found on the state parks website. Vehicle access has been closed to all 280 state parks and beaches, including Folsom Lake State Recreation Area in the Sacramento area and parks in El Dorado, Placer, Sonoma and San Joaquin counties.
After crowds flocked to beaches in Orange County over the weekend, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced that beaches in that county would be temporarily closed. Visitors at those beaches apparently violated social distancing rules, placing people living in different homes dangerously close to each other on the beach.
