Bay Area Active & Social - 20s, 30s & 40s

Board Games at Blossom Hill Crafts

Sat, Jun 13 · 5:00 PM PDT

Blossom Hill Crafts Store, 354 East Campbell ave, Campbell, CA, US

Looking to escape the heat and meet new people? Blossom Hill Crafts in Campbell is hosting a board game bootcamp! The store manager, Blake Propach, will be teaching the board game Carcassonne and running game sessions for folk to practice playing it. All levels of board game experience are welcome to join!

Event Details

-The event is free.
-Downtown Campbell has tons of free nearby parking (details below).
-Attendees are welcome to bring outside food and drink to the event.
-The venue is a five-minute walk to VTA Light Rail station (details below).
-Blossom Hill Crafts will have copies of Carcassonne and a vast array of other board games for guests to browse.

The Board Game

In the game Carcassonne, players draw and place a tile with a piece of southern French landscape represented on it. The tile might feature a city, a road, a cloister, grassland or some combination thereof, and it must be placed adjacent to tiles that have already been played, in such a way that cities are connected to cities, roads to roads, etcetera. Having placed a tile, the player can then decide to place one of their meeples in one of the areas on it: in the city as a knight, on the road as a robber, in the cloister as a monk, or in the field as a farmer. When that area is complete that meeple scores points for its owner.

Parking

-Check out downtown Campbell’s parking map here.
-Tons of free no-time-limit parking in the First Street Parking Garage and Second Street Garage.
-Free 2-hour parking in the lots by Hyde Park, Khartoum, and (if you're lucky) Water Tower Kitchen (becomes no-time-limit parking at 6pm).
-Free 2-hour street parking spots are usually available along Orchard City Dr, Civic Center Dr, and E Campbell Ave though you might have to circle a bit (becomes no-time-limit parking at 6pm).
-More free no-time-limit street parking in the residential neighborhoods along North 3rd St, N 2nd St and N 1st St.

VTA Light Rail & Caltrains

-There's a Light Rail station a five minute walk from the store, in case you've got a Light Rail station near your home or workplace.
-If you're near a Caltrains station, you can take it to downtown Mountain View and walk across the platforms to catch a Light Rail to Downtown Campbell.
-Alternatively you can take Caltrains to Diridon station in San Jose, walk a few blocks to the Light Rail "San Fernando" station in San Jose and ride that to Downtown Campbell. We

June Viva CalleSJ: walk/bike/skate the streets

Sun, Jun 14 · 10:00 AM PDT

Saint James Park, N 1st Street X E St James St, San Jose, ca, US

Read the description! Adding this up top so it's easy to find: this event is going to have lots of people and finding people will be very hard, so think of this as an informational post. You're welcome to use the comment section below to try to find each other, but just know it'll be very unlikely. There will be lots of other people around though, so you'll have plenty of other people to talk to.

Viva CalleSJ is not just a bicycle event, it is an open streets event! Feel free to walk, bike, skate or just come play in the streets. (See https://www.vivacallesj.org/the-event/featured-event)
The San Jose Parks Department puts on this event a couple times a year and completely closes off the streets to regular traffic for this event, so you don't need to worry about cars and trucks! Sunday, June 14 is the second Viva CalleSJ of 2026. Last time there were lots of interesting bikes.

Here's the official page: https://www.vivacallesj.org/ and here's the map of activities/stops: https://www.google.com/maps/d/viewer?mid=1kYLZsxGWBvwH_GdSc8mUwLyS59ZOppc&hl=en&femb=1&ll=37.31439529032802%2C-121.86457779999999&z=12

Here are highlights from the previous events:
April 2026: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=on6O-b-tZhg
September 2025: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tK3rfbkJZzg
June 2025: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HNRCoEQgrUY
April 2025: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMd9S6Fp73Q
For those of you with short attention spans: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/dKdaL3yZ-0g
April 2026 Meetup event
September 2025 Meetup event

As a heads up, I'll be there for the event but probably not for the entire 5 hours, and there's going to be thousands of people here moving around the entire time, sooo you're probably not going to be able to find anyone. Think of this as an informational post and less of a traditional meetup where you meet specific people from our group :)

ABOUT THE EVENT
Join us on Sunday, June 14, during FIFA World Cup kickoff weekend in San José. Explore 6 miles of open streets as you bike, skate, walk, or roll from historic Japantown to St. James Park and the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds. Along the route, experience vibrant celebrations of art, culture, entertainment, wellness, and community that showcase the spirit and diversity of San José. This year’s "Greetings from San José" route invites thousands of people from near and far to come together and experience one of Northern California’s largest open streets events.

NOTE that this event will likely have thousands of people!
Good news: You'll find at least a couple interesting people.
Not so good news: You'll have a hard time finding specific people (including other people from this meetup event) among the thousands of other people.

My goal is to visit all the hubs, so I'll (probably) have a bike, but having a scooter/skateboard/roller skates (or an electric version) should be fine. Walking might be slow if you want to visit all the hubs, but is doable. If you do want to walk around, there's plenty of stuff to do so you won't get bored. If you want to go to all the hubs but don't have any alternative modes of transportation, get a Bay Wheels bike (see the HOW TO GET THERE section below)

HOW TO GET THERE
I'd suggest taking VTA, since that'll get you pretty close to the activity hubs and you won't need to worry about parking/closed streets.

If you're further away/don't have VTA nearby but can take BART, I'd recommend taking BART down to the Berryessa station, then with a bike/skateboard/e-bike/whatever, it'll take ~20 minutes to get to the St. James Park activity hub. Otherwise, you can hop on a Lyft bike - there are 2 Bay Wheels/Lyft Bike stations next to the Berryessa BART station at Newbury Park Dr @ King Rd and Berryessa BART (https://www.lyft.com/bikes/bay-wheels/explore). The day pass includes unlimited 30-min classic bike rides within a 24-hour period with any ride longer than 30 min costing an extra $0.19/min (see the plans here). You can also try your luck with Lime scooters, but those tend to move around so make sure you look at the map.

If you want to drive, there are a bunch of parking lots in downtown SJ that are close to the event: https://parksj.org/ - keep in mind roads WILL be closed for the event.

ACTIVITIES
Address for the main hubs:
Japantown Activity Hub: between 4th and 6th Street Link
St. James Park Activity Hub: 2nd St & St. James St. Link
Santa Clara County Fairgrounds Activity Hub: 344 Tully Rd, San Jose, CA 95111 Link
Bibloteca Lationamericana Activity Hub: Martha St. & Oak St, San Jose, CA Link

LIVE EVENTS
I added flyers from the official page below, but take a look at https://www.vivacallesj.org/ for the latest updates.

OTHER EVENT INFO
- Maintain a safe speed! Stay in control, go with the flow of traffic, pass on the left, slower traffic please keep to the right.
- Be aware of your surroundings! Never Stop in the middle of the route and keep your eyes sharp to avoid accidents and obstacles.
- Wear a helmet! We care about your safety and so does the law! Participants under the age of 18 must wear a helmet and everyone is encouraged to wear one.
- Viva CalleSJ staff, volunteers, and public safety officers can be found on route and in activity hubs, ask for help!
- Take public transportation. Parking will be difficult in the areas around the route, avoid the hassle by taking VTA!

SAFETY DISCLAIMER
The organizers of this meet-up are unpaid volunteers and not expert guides. All participants agree to assume 100% responsibility for their own safety, conduct, and well-being and recognize that possible hazards exist while participating in outdoor (or any other) activities, and agree to participate solely at their own risk. If you RSVP “Yes” and/or attend any of our events, it shall be conclusively presumed that you understand and agree to this policy.

Hike Foothills Park: 10mi, 2kFtElevGain, Moderate Difficulty

Sun, Jun 14 · 10:15 AM PDT

Foothills Park Neighborhood Entrance, 3230 Alexis Drive, palo alto, CA, US

Let's hike Foothills Park in the hills above Palo Alto!

Course
Check out the route on AllTrails or Komoot. You can view the overall Foothills Park map PDF. The hiking paths we take will add up to roughly 10 miles in length with around 2,000 feet of total elevation gain. Depending on how the group feels, we may grab food in town after the hike.

Trailhead Parking
We will be using the free curbside parking at the end of Alexis Drive, and meeting near the dirt trail path entrance (Google Maps, Apple Maps). Do not block driveways, mailboxes, hydrants or the fire road entrance. There should be plenty of parking.

Bathroom Availability
In case anyone needs a bathroom stop on their way to the hike meeting place, there’s one close-ish to the 280 exit (Apple Maps , Google Maps). Again this is NOT the meeting point for the hike, just a bathroom stop on the way.

There are also bathrooms one mile into the hike at the park’s Interpretive Center (Google Maps, Apple Maps). If you arrive early and head to the bathrooms on your own, remember to let someone know so we don't start the hike without you. Additionally, we will be walking near another set of bathrooms (located East of Boronda lake) on Toyon trail during the return journey as well.

Equipment & Hydration
Wear appropriate hiking shoes, comfortable clothing for the exertion and sun protection for the weather. This hike is new territory for me, and there may be a river crossing so consider bringing extra socks.

Bring adequate water and/or snacks to stay hydrated and fueled during the hike.

I encourage everyone to download the PDF map to their phone and sync the GPS routes to their smart device(s) ahead of the hike.

Wildlife Safety
Hiking involves a chance of encountering ticks, cougars, snakes, spiders and other wildlife on the trails. Here is a guide from REI for how to interact during various wild animal encounters (snake, cougar, etc.).

For mountain lion (aka cougar, puma, catamount) encounters, follow these tips tips from the US Fish and Wildlife service.

For rattle snakes, follow these recommendations from the US CDC.

Regarding ticks, please read this helpful guide from REI and consider the option that works best for you. If you do find a tick on yourself, here is a helpful video and info guide from the US CDC on carefully removing it.

Cancellation
Hike will be cancelled if there is heavy rain or other unsafe conditions.

Disclaimer & Assumption of Risk
By joining this event, you acknowledge that hiking and outdoor recreation involve inherent risks, including but not limited to slips, falls, wildlife encounters, changing weather, trail hazards, water crossings, dehydration, illness, vehicle accidents, and delayed access to medical assistance.

Participants should remain alert for ticks, rattlesnakes, mountain lions, poison oak, uneven terrain, and other outdoor hazards common to Bay Area trails.

Participation is voluntary. Each participant is responsible for determining their own fitness, health, preparedness, equipment, hydration, navigation, and personal safety needs. Participants are responsible for carrying any personal medications or emergency supplies they may require.

Event organizers and hosts are volunteers, not professional guides, medical providers, or rescue personnel. Routes, pace, distance, weather, trail conditions, and group plans may change at any time.

By attending, you agree to assume all risks associated with participation and release the event organizers and hosts from liability for injuries, damages, losses, or claims arising from participation in the event, except where prohibited by law or caused by gross negligence or willful misconduct.

Participants are responsible for their own transportation, personal property, and interactions with other attendees. Participants may choose to leave the group, continue ahead, or turn back at their own discretion and responsibility.