Take on the great outdoors in a way only an experienced wrangler can show you — by horseback. NorCal Trail Rides offers safe, comfortable trail rides for all ages along the scenic Sacramento River, with ample wildlife viewing opportunities. They have a morning and an afternoon ride every day of the week, year-round (call for times), and supply everything you need for a relaxed t … [Read more...]
#32 – Coleman National Fish Hatchery
Everyone knows there’s great salmon fishing in Northern California. One of the primary reasons is the Coleman National Fish Hatchery on the Battle Creek tributary of the Sacramento River. This enormous hatchery is the largest in the continental United States, and rears more than 13 million fish every year, primarily Chinook salmon and steelhead. The hatchery is open for s … [Read more...]
#33 – Sacramento River Trail
Do you long for a quiet stroll along the Sacramento River? Then the Sacramento River Trail is the place to go. Over the years Redding has built up its reputation as a first class destination for hikers, bikers, runners and walkers by impressively expanding its trail system. The capstone of this system is the 11-mile long Sacramento River Trail. Although this trail is near … [Read more...]
#34 – Clear Creek Greenway & the Horsetown-Clear Creek Preserve
The expansive Clear Creek Greenway is a quick 20-minute drive from Redding. It offers acres of open country for hiking, biking, horseback riding, wildlife viewing and swimming. The adjacent Horsetown-Clear Creek Preserve is dedicated to habitat restoration and outdoor education and offers guided hikes and events during the spring andfall. During salmon spawning season from … [Read more...]
#35 – Rafting & Kayaking the Sacramento River
Many people underestimate the power of the Sacramento River in the Redding area. We walk across the Sundial Bridge gazing at the beauty of what we have in our backyard, not understanding the force of the water flowing beneath our feet. Kayaking the Sacramento River requires skills that are not very easily obtained. Many hours of training and practice are required to learn how … [Read more...]
#36 – Shreder Planetarium
Light up the evening with a planetarium show. Billed as a “multi-media science education facility,” the Schreder Planetarium has been shedding light on the night sky since 1979. Visitors learn about astronomy and space science along with insights into how explorers and others used the constellations throughout history. There are a number of shows available in the digital the … [Read more...]
#37 – WaterWorks Park
This year WaterWorks Park is bringing the Beach to Redding with a 10,000 sq.ft. brand new wave pool! Play in the waves or stand in the shallows. When the temperature rises, the perfect place to be is WaterWorks Park. It is THE place for families to get cool, have fun and make memories. From the pulse racing Dragon to the Kiddie Pool, there is something fun for everyone. Take a … [Read more...]
#38 – Turtle Bay Exploration Park
The Turtle Bay Exploration Park is one of the best places for the family to spend a day full of play, excitement and learning. Its 300-acre campus was designed with sustainability in mind and highlights the unique relationship between people and nature. The museum building resembles a tree, with branches reaching upward, blending into the forest landscape surrounding it. Inside … [Read more...]
#39 – Sundial Bridge
Connecting the north and south campuses of the Turtle Bay Exploration Park is the Sundial Bridge, an iconic and captivating piece of Redding culture. Designed by the renowned Spanish architect and structural engineer, Santiago Calatrava, and completed in 2004, it also serves as the trailhead for the Sacramento River Trail. The 700 ft. pedestrian bridge spans the width of the … [Read more...]
#40 – Turtle Bay’s McConnell Arboretum & Botanical Gardens
Across the river from the Turtle Bay Museum is the McConnell Arboretum and Botanical Gardens. Extending over 200 acres along the Sacramento River Trail, like all of the Turtle Bay campus, natural harmony and sustainability are keynotes. You will only find plant species that are native to one of five Mediterranean climate zones: the Mediterranean Basin, South Africa, Chile, … [Read more...]
#41 – Whiskeytown Lake
If you’re looking for an on-the-water experience, a short, 10-mile drive from Redding will take you to the 3,200-acre Whiskeytown reservoir. You can put in your boat at one of three launches (Brandy Creek Marina, Oak Bottom and Whiskey Creek) or rent pontoons, canoes, kayaks and other fishing crafts from the Oak Bottom Marina. Adventures, excursions, and kayak and stand-up p … [Read more...]
#42 – Whiskeytown Sailing Regatta
Soon after President John F. Kennedy dedicated the Whiskeytown Dam in September of 1963, the Whiskeytown Sailing Club launched the annual Whiskeytown Memorial Regatta. Held in May and hosting over 300 participants racing dinghies, centerboards, keelboats and multi hulls, the event is now in its 52nd year. Some sailors are third generation racers. In addition to the regatta, … [Read more...]
#43 – Brandy Creek Swimming Area
It’s hard to resist a dip in the glassy, cool, aquamarine waters of Whiskeytown Lake. Although swimming is permitted all over the lake, the safest and most accessible swim area is Brandy Creek. Lifeguards are present during summer months, and there are areas of shoreline that are very shallow for young learners. There’s a nice tree-lined picnic area if you want to get out of the … [Read more...]
#44 – Whiskeytown Waterfalls
Waterfalls, old-growth forests, historic landscapes and sweeping vistas are just a few of the gems you’ll encounter in the recreation area surrounding the Whiskeytown reservoir. While most tourists come to Whiskeytown for water recreation, the park also boasts a 70-mile trail system, including four waterfalls. In fact, the park service even invites visitors to partake in the “ … [Read more...]
#45 – Kayak Tours of Whiskeytown Lake
A great way to learn about the history and wildlife of the Whiskeytown area is through the unique offer of a free, guided kayak tour with a Ranger Station volunteer. The two-and-a-half hour tour will take you all around the magnificent coves and secluded shoreline of this distinctive lake environment. For an even more memorable experience, try the moonlight tour. Tours are … [Read more...]
#46 – Shasta State Historic Park
Shasta City, once the “Queen City of the Northern Mines” during the Gold Rush, was a thriving, cosmopolitan community and one of the largest and wealthiest cities in Northern California. Up to 2,000 mules a day hauled in goods from San Francisco and Sacramento for distribution to the gold mine camps. In 1872 the railroad came through and built its terminus in Redding instead of … [Read more...]
#47- The Dark Skies of Lassen Volcanic National Park
Lassen Volcanic National Park is happily situated well away from any population centers with bright city lights. The nighttime glow caused by those artificial lights (even from very small cities) is called light pollution, and it is more than just an annoying condition that makes it harder to see stars at night. Light pollution also disrupts the biological rhythms of nocturnal … [Read more...]
#48 – Lassen Peak
Considered most likely to erupt next in the Cascade Range, Lassen Peak (also called Mount Lassen) last erupted between 1914 and 1917. It is a type of volcano called a plug dome volcano. These are are formed by flows of thick, viscous lava that pile up around a vent. The flows themselves are not explosive, but they can cause an eruption when the lava cools and hardens, and … [Read more...]
#49 – Bumpass Hell, Lassen Volcanic Park
Aside from the Lassen Peak trail, Bumpass Hell is the most popular area in Lassen Volcanic National Park. This easily accessed, large hydrothermal area is a roiling, boiling bed of vapor, water, mud and rock. It can be reached by a well-marked 1.5-mile trail from the parking area. Here you’re at about 8,000 ft., and although the trail is quite easy, it can seem moderately d … [Read more...]
#50 – Wild Horse Sanctuary
In 1978 some public lands around Shingletown, CA were slated for development. Unfortunately, the land was home to 80 wild horses that would need to be euthanized. Rather than allow that to happen, the founders of the Wild Horse Sanctuary created a safe haven for them and set out on a lifelong mission “to protect and preserve America’s wild horses as a living national tre … [Read more...]
#51 – McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park
Amid evergreen forests within the Cascade Range and Modoc Plateau is the McArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park. The second oldest state park in California, it is home to the amazing 129 ft. spring-fed Burney waterfall. If you make the trek here, you won’t be disappointed by what President Theodore Roosevelt called the “Eighth Wonder of the World.” Springs above and at the fa … [Read more...]
#52 – Lake Britton
For a nice afternoon on the water in the mountains outside of Burney, go to Lake Britton. The recreation opportunities are seemingly endless on this picturesque lake that was created from damming the Pit River. The North Shore and Dusty Campgrounds are on PG&E land, and there are also RV camps near by. It’s a paddler’s paradise with kayak fishing for bass, crappie, catfish, … [Read more...]
#53 – Ahjumawi Lava Springs State Park
Ahjumawi (Ah-joo-MAH-wee), also transliterated Achomawi, is the name of one of the 11 bands of the Pit River Tribe of native Americans indigenous to the area. Their name translates to “where the waters come together.” Ahjumawi Lava Springs State Park is situated along the shores of Big Lake near the confluence of the Fall River (a major tributary of the Pit River) and Tule Riv … [Read more...]
#54 – Hat Creek Radio Observatory
Unlike optical telescopes, radio telescopes can detect “invisible” light, or naturally occurring radio emissions from stars, planets and other bodies outside of the Earth’s atmosphere. The Hat Creek Radio Observatory is ideally located in a remote valley surrounded by mountain peaks that block “noise” from television, cell phones and radios here on earth. Founded in the 1950s, i … [Read more...]
#55 – Hat Creek Volcanic Area, Subway Cave
Located in Lassen National Park, Hat Creek Volcanic Area is the second largest ancient lava bed in the state. 20,000 years ago a river of lava called the Hat Creek Flow crawled northward near Old Station for 16 miles, and covered the floor of Hat Creek Valley. Typical of a lava field, the landscape is a mostly barren expanse of craggy rock but there are two points of interest … [Read more...]
#56 – Fall River
The Fall River is a major tributary to the Pit River, which it joins just below Fall River Mills. Resting between the Sierra Nevada and Cascade Mountain ranges, it is a slow-moving, meandering mountain stream renowned for its fly fishing. Most of its waters come from mountain springs. Although the Fall River Valley comprises over 600 square miles of drainage, relatively little … [Read more...]
#57 – Fort Crook Museum
For a little museum, Fort Crook really packs a punch! Named for the fort that protected travelers on the Shasta-Yreka Road and the Lockhart Ferries in the 1850s, the Fort Crook museum provides an intimate peek into the area’s history. There are 10 individual buildings that make up the museum including The Fort Crook Cabin, the only known original building remaining from Fort C … [Read more...]
#58 – Great Shasta Rail Trail
Eventually, the Great Shasta Rail Trail will provide 80 miles of non-motorized terrain between the towns of McCloud and Burney. The trail will wind through historically and environmentally notable terrain and will be open year-round, allowing for hiking, biking, running and horseback riding but also cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. Currently, there are two open sections: … [Read more...]
#59 – Crystal Lake Fish Hatchery
Located on Baum Lake near Cassel, the Crystal Lake Fish hatchery seeds 60 different waterways in Lassen, Shasta, Modoc, Siskiyou and Trinity counties. Its seven raceways can rear as many as 1.5 million rainbow, brown, eastern brook and Eagle Lake trout each year. More than just a great place to view fish, the adjacent Baum and Crystal Lakes offer great fishing, and the Pacific … [Read more...]
#60 – Shasta Lake Boating
The first sight of Shasta Lake in the summer is awe-inspiring — the expansive sky-blue water encircled by tall green trees and majestic Mt. Shasta in the background. Renting a boat is one of the most rewarding ways to experience Shasta Lake. The extensive shoreline allows almost endless exploration of inlets, beaches, coves and other out-of-the-way places only accessible by b … [Read more...]
#61 – Lake Shasta Dinner Cruise
What could be better than a Lake Shasta Dinner Cruise? A majestic lake setting, beautiful sunsets, emerald green waters, and the company of your family and friends, this is definitely an experience you’ll want to enjoy time and time again. Shasta Lake Dinner Cruises depart twice weekly on Friday & Saturday evenings at 6:00pm from Memorial Day to Labor Day. It’s a great way t … [Read more...]
#62 – Camping Lake Shasta
Imagine falling asleep to the sounds of an owl hooting, water rippling and the wind whispering through the trees. That’s the experience you get when camping on Shasta Lake. There are hundreds of acres and numerous places to stay around the lake, whether at the water’s edge or back among the pines and oaks. Whether you’re looking to rough it in a primitive campsite or looking for … [Read more...]
#63 – Shasta Dam
three Shastas: Shasta Dam, Shasta Lake and Mt. Shasta. Completed in 1945 as the chief feature of Central Valley Project to provide irrigation to farmers and flood control in the valley, the dam is 602 feet high and 3,460 feet long. Its 6.5 million cubic yards of concrete is enough to build a sidewalk around the equator, 3 feet wide and 5 inches thick. Free tours lasting about … [Read more...]
#64 – Chappie-Shasta Off-Highway Vehicle Area
The Chappie-Shasta Off-Highway Vehicle (OHV) Area is located just 10 miles northwest of Redding and offers 200-miles of roads and trails, and over 52,000 acres of off-road-accessible wilderness. Elevation varies from 600 to 5,000 ft., and terrain varies from steep and challenging to rambling and leisurely with sprawling views of Mt. Shasta, Lake Shasta and the Trinity Alps. The … [Read more...]
#65 – Shasta Caverns
Imagine being in a cavern, light glistening off calcite crystals embedded in stone walls made of limestone and marble. Water crashes on rocks as it falls from the ceiling high above your head. The cavern tour begins with a cruise across beautiful Shasta Lake, followed by a ride in a comfortable tour bus offering the most scenic view you can get of the McCloud Arm of the lake. … [Read more...]
#66 – Shasta Lake Trails
With 365 miles of shoreline, Shasta Lake has a lot to offer hikers, bikers, equestrians and trail runners. Many of the trails are short spurs heading down to the water, carved out by anglers looking to access the best fishing spots, but there are plenty of loops and longer hikes as well. The Samwel Cave Nature Trail takes you on a 1-mile tour through an ancient landscape … [Read more...]