Dog-Friendly Adventure!…read more Lake Shasta Caverns was the perfect stop on our road trip from Portland to San Francisco! We were thrilled to discover it's dog-friendly and our pup loved every minute of it. The location is ideal for a midway break, and late May weather was absolutely beautiful. We arrived 30 minutes early and found parking easily. The gift shop kept us entertained while we waited, and the boat ride across the lake set the perfect tone for what was to come. But the real star? The caverns themselves. The natural beauty and the opportunity to explore with my dog made this feel truly special. Fair WARNING: you will get your steps in! The climb to the cathedral room is steep, and my partner and I, who are gym-goers with an active dog, definitely felt it. That said, the views (and the bats!) absolutely make it worth it. I noticed some older visitors and those recovering from knee surgery opted out, and a few families with small children were cautious on the descent, so know what you're signing up for. The walk back down requires careful footing so please take your time and watch your step. The tour guide wasn't as polished as I'd hoped and leaned a bit too playful for our taste, but honestly? You're paying for the scenery, not the commentary. And yes, it's pricey, but it genuinely feels like a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Overall, worth every penny and every step. Highly recommend!

A guided tour of Lake Shasta Cavern. You can get tickets online or in person inside their gift…read moreshop. Tour included boat ride to the bus, bus ride to the cavern. Inside the cave, there are so many different rock formations. Each section, our tour guide gave many interesting facts and information. Be prepared to walked through hundreds and hundreds of stairs. Up and down. Some can be pretty steep and slippery. The ground inside were mostly wet and muddy. I will recommend wearing comfy shoes, hiking shoes, closed toes shoes or any shoes you don't mind getting tons of muds on it. It can get chilly inside the cave, so bring a jacket just in case. At the end of the tour, you get a chance to take pictures with the beautiful colorful formations. Once the tour is done, you will walk back to the bus stop to get a ride back to the boat. The boat will then take you back to the starting point. Plenty of parking. There are restrooms to use.

This was such a fun event. I wish I had taken more pictures. Everybody was dressed up and looked…read moreamazing! The mansion was beyond beautiful and each room featured a cocktail from four different bars. They were all delicious and perfectly crafted, it was so hard to choose a favorite. Our night ended with a little crafting where we got to decorate our own candle holder. I hope there's another event like this one. 10/10!!

We came for the free event last week sponsored by Nevada Arts For All. Our 3 yo got to create…read moreseveral Christmas themed art projects, got a free Christmas themed book, and told Santa what he wanted for Christmas. We had a great time watching our boy learn to create, without spending much money. I really love this organization and location and encourage parents to check out their offerings. Truly a blessing to our community.

Went camping over the weekend at Loafer Creek. Stayed in site 94. They've cleared a lot of the…read moreunderbrush around that site so not nearly as much privacy as in previous years. The a holes in spot 132 decided to party until 4 o'clock in the morning and keep everybody up. Thanks for that. Lots of clean bathrooms, and a central shower area in the first loop provides reasonably priced showers with both hot and cold water. Apparently, there are no evening patrols in this particular campground. No enforcement of the reasonable time to be quiet. When we informed the people at the gate on the way out, they just looked at us blankly. I guess we'll have to contact the district office. Cell phone reception was mixed. People with AT&T did not seem to have good cell phone reception in most places. I have T-Mobile and got two bars in most places. My friend who had Verizon had full service and 5G If you get a chance, go to the waffle shop in town. That's literally the name of the restaurant. See Rachel at the counter for excellent service. Also in the area not to be missed is Jake's burgers.

This place is so cleaned up and so nice it has everything it has the lake going through it it has a…read moreplay array with these little bears in it that the kids can sit on kind of thing it has toys they can ride on it's beautiful it's clean it's monitored with some security driving through once in awhile I was so impressed after seeing the other place the bedrock place and I was so disappointed this place was a thing of beauty

it may look clean, but it has a lot of feces problems. There are fresh water showers, and it is wet…read moreand cool. Just do not drink the water.

More cities need community swimming holes like this one…read more It's a bit nostalgic, really, to think of a gathering place you could bring your family and friends to swim and have a good time... for free! Even more of a throwback was to see actual lifeguards on duty. There was even a snow cone vendor nearby. For a second I thought I was imagining myself in an 80s flick and waited for John Cusack to float by me on an inner tube... must have been the triple digit heat that day. Anyway, Chico continues to throw a surprise at me every time I visit and explore around. One Mile is a gem and I'm grateful to my friend for introducing it to me. Next time I'm bringing a picnic for sure. Check it out!

While driving through Sundial Bridge Dr, I saw a sign that says "Monolith". I had no idea what it…read moreis. We made a stop to check it out. It is located next to Sheraton hotel. Remains of Shasta Dam that was converted into art pieces. Learned a bit about the history of Redding during this quick stop. Free to explore and browse. Free parking as well.

This is an amazing landmark and art piece that's on the grounds of the Sheraton Redding Hotel at…read morethe Sundial Bridge. It's basically an old aggregate plant that took stones from the Sacramento River and used a miles-long conveyor belt to send them to be used in the construction of the Shasta Dam. It's a very cool piece of history that easily flies under the radar.

We were lucky enough to visit the dam on a beautiful day in spring…read more You can drive over the dam and there is plenty of parking on the other side, and even a picnic area. We had lunch and enjoyed the great weather and beautiful views. People were walking, biking and even roller skating over the dam. There is lots of educational information on the dam to read. The area is locked between 11pm and 5 am but otherwise open to the public and free for everyone to enjoy.

When I was in Oroville last year, I finally visited this area. And glad I did!…read more I took a walk along the walkway with a stunning view of the lake on one side and a breathtaking view of the town on the other. People walk, like I did, jog, walk their dogs, or just take a nice stroll through here. I went on a beautifully sunny day and was amazed by the sight and atmosphere of the area. Would gladly come by and take another walk in the future, because I wasn't able to explore the whole area.

Artifacts, items of cultural or historical interest, are intended to counter the natural flow of…read moreforgetting. When I'm out and about I'm always looking around for artifacts. I wonder. What if it could speak? What would it tell me about itself? How has it been used? Where did it come from? How did it get to here? Whom did it belong to? It's a tale as old as time. For artifacts tell more about ourselves than our confessions. My family and I were recently at Reno City Plaza, 10 N Virginia St, Reno, NV, former site of the now demolished historic Mapes Hotel. An artifact, a cool street clock, is there. I remember when it was previously located at Park Lane Mall where it was a popular place for all ages to meet up at or to just hang out at. A couple of my cousins report they had their first kiss under this clock while it was at Park Lane. Park Lane Mall was not this clock's first home. Starting in 1935, this Joseph Mayer 18-foot-tall, 5,180-pound clock, made by E. Howard Co., was located outside Russian immigrants Ginsburg Jewelry https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=163887 at 133 N. Virginia St. Reno, Nevada where it was known as the Ginsberg Clock. "Businesses, especially jewelers, were known to place these types of clocks outside their stores. There was at least one other street clock downtown in the 1940s, located in front of L.C. Griffin, Inc. Jewelers, just across Virginia Street from Ginsburg's. However, as the only street clock remaining in the area, the Ginsburg clock is the last surviving local resource and artifact of its kind." Park Lane Mall, a popular cultural hub for a couple generations of Renoites, acquired it in 1967, painted it green, installed it, and incorporated it into their logo. I liked Park Lane Mall. It had a great selection of stores, supported many local causes held at the mall, held several national visits including a memorable Star Trek event, and was the place to walk for exercise during inclement weather. I always enjoyed watching horologist Brian Bullard, a Bachelors Degree graduate of California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo and 25 year owner of Timeless Enterprises, Inc. in Reno, Nevada, maintain this clock. Sadly, Park Lane Mall closed in 2007. As an aside, many of we Veterans were so sad and disappointed and remain so that City of Reno didn't support the idea of expanding the very old and very small severely over-crowded existing Reno Veterans hospital to the Park Lane Mall location. To date, the Reno Veterans hospital remains very old and very small and very severely over-crowded. No surprise why Nevada has such a much higher rate of Veterans succumbing to suicide than the other states. Private real estate investment company M&H Realty Partners LLC bought the 40-year-old mall from long-time owner The Macerich Co. They donated the clock to City of Reno who put it into storage. Skip forward a few years to conversations between friends Bill Thornton (then co-owner of Club Cal Neva) and Tim Healion (then of Deux Gros Nez restaurant and now of Laughing Planet). They got to talking about this historic clock in storage and Healion mentioned he had a high school buddy -- Tom Erb -- who is a clock expert and owner of Electric Time Co. in Massachusetts. Thornton and Healion decided to get the beloved old clock restored by Erb. Jeffery Siri, president and CEO of the Cal Neva and voluntary donations by devoted-to-history Cal Neva employees footed the bill. As part of Cal Neva's 50th birthday celebration, A Time For Peace, in 2012, it was presented to City of Reno, who dedicated it on 18 September 2013. What makes this beloved historic preservation so special is that Cities of Reno and Sparks are not exactly good at preserving their history. Noted architect Frederick DeLongchamps built some of Northern Nevada's best known and stately landmarks. He designed more than 500 buildings in the Silver State, including the State Capitol in Carson City, Second Judicial District Court in Reno, downtown Reno Post Office, Riverside Hotel (now Riverside Artist Lofts) and the former train depot, now the Depot Craft Brewery and Distillery, and the beautiful Mediterranean Revival architecture Immaculate Conception Church in Sparks, built in 1932, cruelly allowed to be demolished in 2022 although on the National Historic Register. City of Reno just as cruelly allowed the demolition of in 2022, Reno's oldest, longest-standing commercial building, the old Masonic Lodge, which dated back to 1872, an elaborate, for that time, 3-story classic. More cool history about this clock and the Ginsberg Family are at: https://www.historicreno.org/media/custom/docs/FPv12n4.pdf https://www.newsreview.com/reno/content/time-for-preservation/623443/ I rate it 3 stars. According to the Yelp ratings' definitions, 3 Stars is "Ok". That to me is an acceptable rating of something that does day in and day out what it is there to do. It is NOT a negative review.

Free self-guided tours of the outdoor hatchery facility…read more The parking lot is adequately large and rather empty early in the day before 11am. There are many picnic tables with plenty of shade spread out to the left of the parking lot. There's a water fountain too in case you forget to bring drinks. Great place for a picnic lunch after touring the facility. Depending on the day of your visit, the buildings may or may not be open. Regardless, the outdoor facility is still open for public visitation. To begin your self-guided tour, start at the little gazebo area in the center of the parking lot. There you'll find introductory placards. After finishing, you can begin your rounds toward the gated pools that house the young salmon. At the back left of the facility, you'll also find the step ladder section near the lakes. It gets hot under the sun, so be sure to bring sun protection and some water. Happy learning! :)

U.S. Dept of Fish and Game. Wild salmon, Chinook and Steelhead salmon. 7 jumping dams, nursery and…read moreincubation ponds. 3rd Saturday of October every year is salmon hatching festival.

Very interesting and unique experience. Very dark cave inside. Definitely bring flashlights,…read moreheadlamps or use phone lights. Short trail inside. Wet, muddy, uneven and rocky trail. Wear appropriate shoes. It can get very cold inside so bring a jacket. Free to explore. Parking lot and restroom in the front.

Best way to cool off from the heat wave…read more Bring sturdy shoes bc the ground is rough Bring flashlights and try not to bring led lights as to not blind others Amazing lava flow chambers

I have known about the Sundial Bridge for a very long time but never took the opportunity to check…read moreit out. My boyfriend and I wanted to do a little getaway to celebrate our anniversary. We decided on Redding since I have never been there. We wanted to check out the Sundial Bridge during daytime and nighttime. Very cool and beautiful bridge. The walkway is made of glass panels. Nighttime, the bridge lights up. Easy pathway to walk through. The bridge crosses over the Sacramento River. Plenty of parking. No parking fee. No admission fee to walk across the bridge.

The Sundial Bridge is a nice bridge to visit in Redding. The 700 foot long bridge crosses over…read morethe Sacramento River and connects the north and south campus of Turtle Bay Exploration Park. The floor or deck of the bridge is made with glass so that you can see the river below. The bridge is a real sundial in daylight hours. We visited over the Christmas/New Year Holiday on a rainy cold night. We couldn't see much, except for the bridge lit up in holiday lights. The bridge was a little slippery with the glass and tiles. It was a little difficult to walk with a bad knee because of the slipperiness. It was a beautiful bridge at night. We need to come back in daytime.