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Destinations
The Waterfall of Fire – Horsetail Fall is a Rare Natural Phenomenon
Horsetail Fall is typically not that unique in Yosemite, where waterfalls are vast and beautiful. It is a somewhat low-flow waterfall…
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Destinations
Trinity Alps Wilderness Highlighted in Outside Magazine’s “Favorite Fall Backpacking Trips”
The Trinity Alps Wilderness, located just northwest of Redding, is a gorgeous mountain range providing backpackers with stunning views, pristine…
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Destinations
Mount Shasta Named “Most Charming Ski Town” by TripAdvisor
TripAdvisor, the world’s largest travel website, conducted a survey in order to name the “Most Charming Ski Town in America,” and…
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Destinations
Video Previews the Sunken Ships of Tahoe’s First Underwater Trail
The California State Parks streamed a live video on Facebook last week, previewing the sunken ships of the brand-new Emerald…
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Destinations
Visit North America’s Tallest Waterfall in Northern California
Everyone knows that Northern California is home to hundreds of beautiful waterfalls, some of them world-renown. But did you know…
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Waterfalls
The Phantom Falls Experience: 164-Feet of Pure Waterfall Bliss
By Ryan Loughrey From the directions I had read online, I anticipated pulling off the side of the road in…
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Outdoors
Airstream Livin’ – A Brand New “Glamping” Experience is Coming to Yosemite
Camping is great but if you prefer the comfort of glamping, you can stay in an iconic silver bullet Airstream at…
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Destinations
NorCal’s Redwood Coast Named the Top Place to Visit in 2018 by Lonely Planet
Northern California locals know the Redwood National Forest as one of the great beauties on this planet. The tallest trees…
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Destinations
Visit National Parks for Free on September 22 for National Public Lands Day
On September 22 you can celebrate National Public Lands Day by visiting any of the National Parks in Northern California…
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Destinations
Lake Tahoe Opening its First-Ever Underwater Trail
The area surrounding Lake Tahoe is world-renown for its beautiful scenery and amazing trail systems in the mountain above the…
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History
A Beacon Of Northern California History: The Battery Point Lighthouse
A D.C. socialite, the Gold Rush, shipping lines, San Francisco, Crescent City and Battery Point Lighthouse intertwine in history to…
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Destinations
A Harrowing Journey into the Haunted Caribou Wilderness
By Chip O’Brien “AAAAAAUUUUAAAACK… AAAAAAUUUUAAAACK…” My eyes opened the size of softballs and the sleeping bag I’d been dozing in…
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Destinations
See What It Takes To Hike Humboldt’s Lost Coast Trail
A mention of the Lost Coast should never be omitted from any comprehensive discussion of California’s best outdoor attractions. The misplaced…
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Destinations
Explore the Circle of Discovery: The 7 National Parks Surrounding Far Northern California
Did you know that Northern California and Southern Oregon are home to seven National Park sites? This circle of parks…
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Destinations
Areas of Whiskeytown NRA to Remain Open Indefinitely
Whiskeytown National Recreation Area was closed for 5 weeks following the devastating Carr Fire that burned 39,000 acres within the 43,000-acre…
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Hikes
The Historic Hike To Faery Falls
Combining history and nature, the Ney Springs Canyon Trail near Siskiyou Lake in Mount Shasta City is an easy hike…
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Destinations
The Ultimate Northern California Brewery-Camping Road Trip
By Zach O’Brien This journey began a few months ago, when I was lounging in my back yard, sipping on…
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Destinations
This Northern California Destination Made World’s 100 Greatest Places in 2018 from Time Magazine
Yosemite’s Mariposa Grove is famous for being one of the largest collection of mature trees in the world. The grove’s sequoias…
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Destinations
A Kayaking Adventure to Mossbrae Falls
Mossbrae Falls is probably NorCal’s most unique waterfall. Instead of your typical water falling off a cliff (although very beautiful…
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Destinations
New Photos of the Sacramento River Trail Show Carr Fire Devastation
When the Carr Fire blazed through west Redding on July 26th, the biggest concern on everyone’s mind was making sure…
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Stories
Q&A with Michelle Titus – the Owner of Northern California’s Premiere Fishing Lodge
In a short time, Michelle Titus went from a Bay Area city-dweller to a North Valley, horse wrangling “anglet”. When she…
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Destinations
Kiss a Giraffe at this Awesome Northern California Park
By Amy Sue Do you have an animal lover in your family? I’ve got one, and she gets extraordinarily excited…
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Destinations
Shasta Lake is Surrounded by Two Large Wildfires, Lake Businesses Remain Open
The Carr Fire has officially moved all the way from Whiskeytown Lake to waterfront of Shasta Lake, blazing through another…
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Waterfalls
The Short Hike To Hedge Creek Falls
Similar to hideout entrances seen in Batman movies and the Legend of Zorro, Hedge Creek Falls cascades in front of the…
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Destinations
Road Trippin’ – Southern Oregon’s Toketee Falls and Umpqua Hot Springs
Sure, we are Active NorCal, covering all the cool outdoor stuff in Northern California. But for us to ignore the…
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Destinations
3 Bidwell Park Swimming Holes to Beat the Heat
What Chico lacks in terms of manageable summer temperatures, it makes up for with all the swimming hole options at…
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Stories
Almost Climbing Mount Shasta: A Story of Misery and Life Lessons at 14,000 Feet
by Chip O’Brien At four thirty in the morning no one saw the light from my tiny headlamp inching uphill…
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Destinations
9 Family-Friendly Camping Spots in Northern California
The insistent bzzzzzzzz of a mosquito roused me from sleep, but my eyes refused to open in hopes it would…
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Waterfalls
A Tour of 10 Stunning Waterfalls in Yosemite National Park
Yosemite National Park has countless waterfalls. A tour of the massive park can yield many small waterfalls, but we wanted…
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Destinations
See What it’s Like to Summit Mount Shasta via Avalanche Gulch
Climbing Mount Shasta is the ultimate badge of honor in NorCal. It’s a grueling hike up steep terrain with changing…
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Outdoors
Fly Fishing on the Haunted Upper Sacramento River
By Chip O’Brien Thankfully, no invisible or bony hand ever reached out to touch my shoulder on dark evenings while…
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Destinations
A Summer Getaway to Lake Aloha in the Desolation Wilderness
By Ryan Loughrey The entrance to the Desolation Wilderness is anything but – neither desolate nor wild. The southern Lake…
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Destinations
Road Trippin’ – The Painted Hills of the Oregon Heartlands
By Ryan Loughrey The first leg of our trip took us 323 miles, having left late last Thursday night, spending…
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Sports
Whitewater Rafting + Fishing: Catching Fish Deep in California’s Gold Country
“To find the goods, you have to be willing to go to places where no one else is willing to…
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Hikes
Weekend in Lassen – Exploring Cold Boiling Lake and Kings Creek Falls
By Ryan Loughrey Lassen Park offer a bounty of opportunities of exploration. Although I feel I’ve explored a good amount,…
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Destinations
This Northern California Ghost Town is Cursed, According to its Visitors
The workers at the Bodie State Historic Park are used to receiving letters in the mail talking about the “Bodie…
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Destinations
5 Tips for Hiking Lassen’s Brokeoff Mountain
By Ryan Loughrey Brokeoff Mountain in Lassen National Park is notorious for being one of the most difficult hikes in…
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Outdoors
Exploring the Car Graveyard of Mt. Shasta
By Ryan Loughrey Walking through the car graveyard felt like walking through an ancient time. Even though the cars couldn’t…
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Outdoors
A Tale of Summer Backpacking: A Little Sketchy, A Lot Worth It
By Benjamin Goodpasture, Founder and CEO of Shasta Rock Club I’ll never forget the day I first saw Emerald and…
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Waterfalls
The 20 Most Beautiful Waterfalls in Northern California
In 1995, the recording group TLC released their massive hit Waterfalls, in which the chorus reads “don’t go chasing waterfalls,…
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Destinations
The Desolate Hike to Lassen’s Mill Creek Falls
By Ryan Loughrey Now that the road through Lassen National Park is open, Kiva and I decided to hike a…
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Destinations
The Flumes and Cable Pools of Paradise
The town of Paradise, California, which is just outside of Chico, is not necessarily known as NorCal’s “paradise,” but it does…
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Destinations
An Overnight Trip to Tangle Blue Lake in the Trinity Alps Wilderness
By Ryan Loughrey We had it in our mind that the hike to Tangle Blue Lake was going to be…
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Hikes
Hiking Castle Crags – Castle Dome Trail
Castle Crags seems to hide in plain sight. Though clearly visible from I-5, the magnificent geological oddity receives less mention than other North…
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Outdoors
My Northern California Summer Bucket List
By Ryan Loughrey The sun has inspired me to start thinking more about summer. One of the activities I am…
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Waterfalls
Feather Falls – Hiking to Northern California’s Towering Waterfall
Before being accurately measured, Oroville’s Feather Falls was considered the sixth tallest waterfall in the United States. Though widely reported, the height of the falls…
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Destinations
Road Trippin’ – 10 Waterfalls in a Day at Silver Falls State Park
By Ryan Loughrey Sometimes your weekend starts with a long drive. This one in particular ended at a campsite at…
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Destinations
Off the Beaten Path – Kosk Hot Springs
By Ryan Loughrey A typical Redding Pre-Summer: glimpses of the searing heat to come, interspersed with rain and wind. While…
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Destinations
An Underground Visit to Lava Beds National Monument
By Ryan Loughrey This past weekend, Kiva and I visited Lava Beds National Monument for an overnight trip. I’ve been…
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Destinations
Mammoth is a Must-See Destination for Outdoor Enthusiasts
U.S. Highway 395 runs from the Canadian border all the way down to Southern California, and approaching the Eastern Sierras…
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Hikes
3 World-Renown Day Hikes in Yosemite National Park
Many people like to visit Yosemite National Park for intimidating adventures, like the thrilling hike to the top of Half Dome,…
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Destinations
Daytrippin’ in Humboldt – Beach Bouldering and the Lost Coast Brewery
By Ryan Loughrey With the holiday season, traffic and locales around Redding have been busy. Not to mention the heat,…
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Destinations
The 10 Best Summer Activities to do in Lassen Volcanic National Park
Summer has officially hit Northern California, which means we ceremoniously trade out our snowshoes and hard-shelled jackets for swim shorts…
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Destinations
Yosemite’s Famed Mariposa Grove Reopening to the Public
Following three long years of restoration work on Yosemite’s famed Mariposa Grove, park officials are ready for its grand reopening…
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Destinations
Mt. Shasta’s Underground Adventure – Going Deep in Pluto’s Cave
By Ryan Loughrey After exploring Lassen’s Subway Cave, my spelunking desire wasn’t quite satiated. Subway Cave in Lassen was wild,…
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Lassen
Discover the Hydrothermal Areas of Lassen Volcanic National Park
It’s been a hundred years since Lassen Peak’s last eruption, but evidence of its violent volcanic potential still pervades Lassen Volcanic National…
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Lassen
Lassen’s Jot Dean Ice Cave – A Cool Summer Getaway
By Ryan Loughrey The Jot Dean Cave is easy to get to, although it doesn’t have a set trail or…
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Outdoors
Into Thin Air – Climbing Mount Shasta
Sometimes the appropriate way to appreciate our beloved Mt. Shasta is to sit down, relax and enjoy its beauty. Sometimes…
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North Coast
13 Breathtaking Hikes in the Redwoods National Park
The Redwood National Park in Humboldt can provide some of the most memorable hikes for visitors. There aren’t many places in…
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History
How This Man’s “Hell” Became One of Northern California’s Favorite Destinations
Bumpass Hell is a popular destination for people traveling through Lassen Volcanic National Park. Lassen is chock-full of hydrothermal activity,…
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Destinations
Road Trippin’ – The Must-See Tamolitch Blue Pool in Oregon
By Ryan Loughrey As long as you don’t mind how discovered the place can be, the Tamolitch Blue Pool is…
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Destinations
Exploring Humboldt’s Illustrious Fern Canyon
By Ryan Loughrey The Northern California coast defies the stereotype of the typical Californian beach. We don’t have red swim-suited…
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Butte
4 Ways to Enjoy Chico When You Don’t Have Time to Enjoy Chico
By Ryan Loughrey Chico is a beautiful college town sitting in the valley of Northern California. Whether its exploring the…
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Destinations
Grizzly Falls-The Grueling Hike to Northern California’s Remote 600-Foot Waterfall
Grizzly Lake and Falls has become a staple during the summer months for outdoor enthusiasts in Northern California. The long…
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Outdoors
Mt. Shasta Ski Park Opens its Summer Activities – Mountain Biking, Hiking and Disc Golf
Mt. Shasta Ski Park has opened its summer activities to the public, giving visitors the ability to ride the mountain…
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Stories
Road Trippin’ – Boards, Beers and Bucktail Streamers in Bend, Oregon
By Chip O’Brien For a town with 10,000 fewer people than Redding, Bend, Oregon is a lot cooler. Now, I could…
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Destinations
The 5 Best Northern California Swim Holes to Beat the Heat
By Ryan Loughrey The excessive heat is about to hit Northern California for the duration of the summer and I’ll…
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Waterfalls
Hatchet Creek Falls – The Best Swimming Hole in Northern California?
Everybody loves Hatchet Falls (or Lions Slide Falls, depending on who you ask). A Montgomery Creek swimming hole, Hatchet Creek…
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Butte
A Complete Guide to Bidwell Park – Chico’s Massive Outdoor Utopia
Hot, flat, dry and the most interesting thing to do is drink beer. It’s not a far reach to…
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Outdoors
The 6 Best Places to Camp in Northern California
It’s that time of the year again. It’s time to pop-up your tents, put on your mosquito repellent and sleep…
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Destinations
Lake Siskiyou – One of Northern California’s Best Destinations
By Ross Lawrence An expected forty-five minute road trip to Lake Siskiyou had turned into an hour-and-a-half, and hyped up…
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Destinations
Exploring the “Lost Coast” of Humboldt County
By Ross Lawrence You’d be hard pressed to find a place more quintessentially Californian than Humboldt County. It’s a natural…
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Destinations
A Retreat to Shimmy Lake in the Trinity Alps Wilderness
By Ryan Loughrey Our initial plan had been to go to Granite Lake in the Trinity Alps last weekend, but…
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Lassen
Lassen Peak Ranked As Top 10 Summit Hike In U.S.
Sitting on the eastern side of Northern California lies our beloved Lassen Peak, an active volcano sitting in the middle…
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Destinations
Climbing a Volcano: Hiking to the Summit of Lassen Peak
It’s hard to beat the experience you get when you’re standing at the summit of a significant mountain, especially when…
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Hikes
The Thrilling Hike to the Top of Half Dome in Yosemite National Park
Rising nearly 5,000 feet above Yosemite Valley and 8,800 feet above sea level, Half Dome is a Yosemite National Park…
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Hikes
An Overhead View of Northern California from Whiskeytown’s Bully Choop Lookout
Sometimes a trip starts from your eye catching a name on a map. For our trip this past weekend, it…
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Destinations
The Short Hike To Lassen’s Kings Creek Falls
The trail to Kings Creek Falls in Lassen Volcanic National Park probably sees more hikers than any other route in the…
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Destinations
A Guide to Camping in Whiskeytown
Camping is a time-honored summer tradition in Northern California, and more than that – it’s a blast. Whether you’re hiking…
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Destinations
Hiking to the Top of Whiskeytown’s Shasta Bally
By Chip O’Brien You might do it for the exercise. You might do it because it’s something you see almost…
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Waterfalls
Hiking the Four Waterfalls of Whiskeytown
Deciding where to hike in NorCal is anything but the “path” of least resistance. But for most people in the…
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Waterfalls
Burney Falls – The Eighth Wonder of the World Sits Right Here in Northern California
We’ve spent a lot of time admiring NorCal’s king of all waterfalls, Burney Falls. We’ve asked the question “did Tarzan…
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Hikes
Beauty Meets History – Hiking Tahoe’s Rubicon Trail
Tahoe’s Rubicon Trail might sound familiar to you as it has become a very popular destination for hikers in NorCal.…
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Lassen
The Tricky Trek to the Summit of Lassen’s Cinder Cone
Lassen Volcanic National Park can be accurately described as both a geologist’s wonderland and an adventurer’s paradise. The hike to…
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Butte
Lake Oroville Offers 10 Free Recreation Days This Summer
In order to entice boaters and swimmers back to Lake Oroville following the Oroville Dam spillway collapse in 2017, state…
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Destinations
Breathtaking Views Await at the Top of Lassen’s Brokeoff Mountain
Several hundred thousand years ago, ancient stratovolcano Mt. Tehama blew forming Brokeoff Mountain. Experts suggest Tehama’s explosion matched the destructive…
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Bay Area
Finding Cool “Off The Beaten Path” Destinations in San Francisco
By Ryan Loughrey Our weekend was spent in a common way – not enough time to do all the things we…
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Destinations
A Day at Wake Island Waterpark – Northern California’s Water Wonderland
The Wake Island Waterpark in Sacramento is a dreamboat for anyone that enjoys water activities. The amount of fun you…
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Sports
Fishing the McCloud River: Famous Fish in a Special Setting
By Chip O’Brien See if you can guess this famous NorCal trout stream: It was once the southern-most river in…
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Outdoors
The Hike to Heart Lake – An Unforgettable Summer Experience
By Ryan Loughrey Castle Lake near Mt. Shasta is beautiful. Not only is it the deepest alpine lake in…
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Destinations
Trash to Treasure: Exploring Nature’s Art at Fort Bragg’s Glass Beach
It was common practice in the early 1900’s to just throw your trash in the ocean. Today, we can all…
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Hikes
Gorgeous Views Hiking the Lake Siskiyou Loop
Trail Difficulty: Easy Trail Length: 7.3 miles Map: Click Here Trail Description: This multi-use trail system crosses three bridges to circumnavigate beautiful Lake…
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Sports
Your Complete Guide to Catching Big Trout in Keswick Reservoir
By Chip O’Brien The security guard handed my driver’s license back and announced something into the burly walkie-talkie hoisted from…
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News
Northern California Ski Resorts Prepare for Summer Activities
As warm spring temperatures melt the snow in the Northern California mountains, ski resorts are switching gears from waterproof jackets…
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Destinations
Northern California’s Natural Waterslide – Little Backbone Creek on Shasta Lake
The Little Backbone Creek natural waterslide on the McCloud arm of Shasta Lake has become a top destination for NorCal…
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Waterfalls
13 Waterfalls in One Weekend: Northern California’s World-Famous Waterfall Loop
There is a legendary loop sitting in the Shasta-Cascade of Northern California that includes 13 incredible waterfalls to visit. Realistically, you…
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Destinations
The Extraterrestrial Clouds of Mount Shasta
Mount Shasta is not only beautiful, it also holds an air of mystery. The mountain is a supposed hotbed of…
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News
National Park Tourism Contributes $2.7B to California Economy, Tops in Nation
A new National Park Service report shows that about 40.5 million visitors to national parks in California spent nearly $2…
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Outdoors
Fishing the Pit River – Name is the Pits, but the Fishing Isn’t
By Chip O’Brien You sometimes run into people with odd or unpronounceable names, and you think to yourself, “Now there’s…
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Random
This Unbelievable 3D Tour of Lake Shasta Caverns will Blow Your Mind
Lake Shasta Caverns is one of the coolest destinations Northern California has to offer. Located on the McCloud River arm…
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