Key Takeaways
- Palo Alto’s parks and open spaces are central to daily life here, and never more so than in summer.
- These places are kept beautiful by city staff, volunteers, and organizations who show up year after year.
- Some of my earliest and most enduring memories are tied to these trails, gardens, and open spaces.
- The character of a community is shaped by how it cares for the places everyone shares.
- Belonging is built through participation, not simply through living somewhere.
The Season the Parks Give the Most
There is a particular kind of evening in Palo Alto in July.
The light stretches long and golden. Sprinklers tick over the grass at Rinconada. Families spread out across the lawns. Kids ride bikes past Bol Park to see the donkeys. The Baylands fill with walkers and birdwatchers as the heat softens toward dusk.
Summer is when our open spaces give the most.
School is out. Days are long. The parks become the living room of the whole city, the place where neighbors who might never otherwise cross paths end up sharing the same patch of shade.
I have lived here long enough to have watched generations move through these spaces. And every summer, I find myself drawn back to them.
Why I Keep Showing Up
My connection to these places is not professional. It is personal, and it goes back as far as I can remember.
Some of my earliest memories live at Foothills Nature Preserve. The smell of warm grass, juniper, and bay laurel. The calm of the trails. The feeling of a place that belonged to all of us.
Decades later, I walked those same trails with my own young daughter, watching her notice the things I noticed at her age. Not long ago we took a short hike there together with her friend and came home nourished by the smell of damp earth, and the sound of birdsong.
That continuity is rare. It is also, I think, the heart of what makes Palo Alto feel like home rather than simply a place to live. I cherish these moments especially now that my daughter is getting older.
Another fond memory that we recreated this year was attending the annual 4th of July Chili Cook Off at Mitchell Park. Despite the heat there were 11 teams competing and swarms of people lining up to taste.
Enjoying the shade at Mitchell Park on 4th of July
“The parks helped raise me. Showing up for them now is one small way of returning the favor.”
The People Behind the Green
It is easy to take a beautiful park or open space for granted.
The trimmed trails, the healthy trees, the gardens in bloom, all of it can feel as though it simply happens. It does not.
Behind every well-kept public outdoor space is a network of people who choose to care for it. Volunteers who pull weeds, pickup trash, and plant natives. Organizations like Friends of the Palo Alto Parks who advocate, fundraise, and organize so these spaces remain protected and accessible for the next generation. The many employees of the city of Palo Alto who care for and love our parks.
This work rarely makes headlines. But it is exactly the kind of dedicated, sustained participation that defines this community.
I have come to believe that a city reveals its values in how it cares for the places everyone shares.
By that measure, Palo Alto has a great deal to be proud of, and we are grateful for it.
What the Parks Have to Do with Home
I spend my working life helping people buy and sell homes. But I have never believed that a home ends at the property line.
The experience of living somewhere is shaped by what surrounds it. The trails you walk. The parks where your children grow up. The shared spaces that make a neighborhood feel like a community rather than a collection of houses.
That is part of what people are really choosing when they choose Palo Alto. And it is part of what makes this place hold its meaning, and its value, over time.
So when I show up for the parks, I am not stepping away from my work. In a way, I am tending to the very thing that makes this community worth calling home.
This summer, I hope you find your way to one of Palo Alto’s many parks and open spaces. And if you feel moved to give a little back to them, you will be in good company.
Places Worth Knowing
If you are looking for somewhere to spend a long summer evening, the choices are abundant.
Foothills Nature Preserve offers peaceful trails and wide views for anyone wanting to step out of the pace of the week. The Baylands has some of the best birdwatching in the country. Gamble Garden, recently honored for its community work and its edible demonstration gardens, remains a gathering place where weddings, photoshoots, and grandparents reconnecting with grandchildren all unfold in the same green space.
And the neighborhood parks, Bol, Briones, Johnson, Ramos, Rinconada, Seale, and many more! hold the everyday rhythm of summer here.
Each one is a perfect reminder that the best parts of living in this city are often the ones that cost nothing at all.
The beauty of the Baylands at sunset.
Palo Alto Community Questions
What are the best parks and open spaces to enjoy in Palo Alto during summer?
Palo Alto offers a remarkable range, from the quiet trails of Foothills Nature Preserve and the birdwatching at the Baylands to neighborhood favorites like Rinconada, Mitchell, and Bol Park. Gamble Garden is a beloved gathering place as well. Long summer evenings are an ideal time to enjoy them. Palo Alto is unique in that it has over 4,000 acres of open spaces and 162 acres of neighborhood parks and playing fields.
How can residents support Palo Alto's parks and open spaces?
here are many ways to give back, from volunteering at cleanups and plantings to supporting organizations like Friends of the Palo Alto Parks that advocate for and help maintain these spaces. Even regular, respectful use helps sus tain the community’s connection to its open spaces.
Why do parks and open spaces matter to a community like Palo Alto?
Shared spaces shape how a community feels and functions. They bring neighbors together, support wellbeing, and reflect a city’s values through how it cares for them. Over time, that sense of stewardship and connection contributes meaningfully to why people want to live here.
