Egg hunts and other Easter fun planned around SLO County. Here’s where and when

San Luis Obispo County youngsters will have several opportunities to hunt for eggs and candy on Easter weekend, as in-person events return to many communities after pandemic pauses.

However, some cities and towns postponed their events again, due to uncertainty about surges of COVID-19 variants, given the amount of lead time it takes to plan for and put on these celebrations.

This list includes just some of the events on tap countywide, but does not include not church services and celebrations, festivities sponsored by individual businesses, and larger neighborhood or family events that may be open to the public. For details on those, check with the entities most likely to sponsor or hold them.

The events are mostly free, although there may be a slight charge for some elements offered at a festivity.

Some springtime events have already been held. For instance, the Easter Bunny visited Paso Robles last weekend, according to Chamber of Commerce representatives.

So, hop on the SLO County bunny trail this weekend, for family fun and amazing photo ops.

Thursday

San Luis Obispo: The annual Bunny Trail returns to downtown SLO during Farmers Market on Thursday.

Some 20 local businesses will be giving out free treats from 6 to 8 p.m. Free treat bags and maps will be available at the corner of Chorro and Higuera streets.

The event will also feature a visit from Downtown Bunny, who will be be available for photos: $6 take-your-own, $7 add-on per souvenir photo.

For more information, go to downtownslo.com/events/bunny-trail-at-the-downtown-slo-farmers-market.

Friday

San Luis Obispo: There’ll be a Good Friday“stations of the cross” procession through downtown, featuring an ecumenical consortium of churches.. Beginning at noon in the courtyard of First Presbyterian Church (981 Marsh Street), the event will feature readings and contemporary reflections at various locations in the historic downtown, accompanied by Dixieland Jazz music in the style of a New Orleans funeral procession.

Saturday

Arroyo Grande: The 33rd annual Egg Hunt & Festival will be held at Elm Street Park, 1221 Ash St., at 10 a.m.. The free, time-staggered egg searches for all ages (that means you, too, Mom and Pop!) are set for: 10 a.m., ages 2 and younger and 3 through 6; 10:35 a.m., ages 7-13, and 11:15 a.m. for ages 14 through adult.

Attractions include free bunny-hop races and an egg toss competition, a fire truck and police car exhibit, and hot dogs (while supplies last) provided by the Oceano/Five Cities Lodge Elks #2504. Other offerings (some fees may apply) include carnival games, bounce houses, face painting, pony rides and more (some fees may apply). Participants are encouraged to bring a basket for goodie collecting.

The event is presented by the Arroyo Grande Recreation Services Department along with the Elks.

For details, call 805-473-5474 or go to www.seecalifornia.com/events/easter/arroyo-grande-egg-hunt.html.

Cayucos: Canines, their humans and some tag-alongs, many of them dressed to the nines for the season, will gather at noon at the foot of the pier for a procession through downtown called the Cayucos Pup Parade.

Expect fine spring attire and Easter bonnets at this event sponsored by the Cayucos Lioness Club.

The parade route is expected to loop down Front Street to N. Ocean Avenue and back to the pier. There will to be a photo booth, a raffle for Easter baskets, and commemorative T-shirts for sale.

Donations for the Mutt Mitts program doggy bags will be accepted at a table at the pier. The bags are dispensed from more than four dozen Mutt Mitts stands at all beach accesses in Cayucos. Last year, the project provided hundreds of thousands of the waste-cleanup bags for free.

San Luis Obispo: Join the Easter Bunny at 10 a.m. to search for prize-filled eggs at the Egg Scavenger Hunt at Meadow Park. The free city-sponsored event is open to ages 0 to 9.

Pismo Beach: The Eggstravaganza hunt at Dinosaur Cave Park, 200 Cliff Avenue, starts at 10 a.m. with search times staggered by age, as follows: 10:10 a.m., ages 3 and younger; 10:40 a.m., ages 4 through 6; 11:10 a.m., ages 7 through 9; and 11:40 p.m., ages 10 through 12.

The young egg hunters are each asked to bring their own basket or bag for collecting the eggs and goodies.

The celebration sponsored by the city’s recreation division is to include a balloon artist, games, bounce houses, face painting and more. The Easter Bunny will visit (photos, anyone?).

For questions, contact the City of Pismo Beach.

Sunday

Cambria: Cambria’s American Legion Post No. 432’s Easter morning event for kids ages 8 and younger launches at 8 a.m. sharp, and eager participants and others are encouraged to line up early.

The event will progress as usual, with all the traditions intact, from having the Easter Bunny and Winnie the Pooh on hand to the first-out-of-the-gate dash for little ones, ages 2 and younger, who hunt in a special area of Park Hill’s Shamel Park. The hunt happens in the park at the curve of Windsor Boulevard, just west of Highway 1.

The Perkins Memorial Easter Egg Hunt, held since 1982, had been on pandemic pause for two years, according to this year’s event leads, Jay and Pat Burbank. The Cambria Chamber of Commerce also assists with the event.

San Simeon: Miguel and Judy Sandoval of San Simeon Lodge and the Cambria Rotary Club are sponsoring the community’s egg hunt at noon on the grounds of the lodge, at the northeast end of the town’s business strip off Highway 1.

Offerings for youngsters ages up to 12 include lots of eggs, prizes and activities.

The Cambria Chamber of Commerce helps support this event, too.

This story was originally published April 14, 2022 at 5:00 AM.

Kathe Tanner

The Tribune

805-781-7904 (voicemails only)

Kathe Tanner has been writing about the people and places of SLO County’s North Coast since 1981, first as a columnist and then also as a reporter. Her career has included stints as a bakery owner, public relations director, radio host, trail guide and jewelry designer. She has been a resident of Cambria for more than four decades, and if it’s happening in town, Kathe knows about it.