Picks and Pans – Chico, CA

PICKS: Bidwell Park

Bidwell Park offers many good reasons to spend your day outdoors — a huge natural swimming pool formed by damming the creek that runs through the park, large shady fields for lounging, picnicing or playing and miles of trail for walking, jogging or biking. We managed to spend two afternoons with fellow […]

Picks and Pans – Lassen National Park

PICKS:

Subway Lava Tube in Lassen N.F.

While in Lassen, we had the opportunity to walk through the prehistoric equivalent of a subway tunnel, formed by underground lava flow from ancient volcanic activity. The Native American tribes in the region thought the tubes were inhabited by a devil, understandable given that if you walked in […]

Picks and Pans – From Arcata to Burney Falls, CA

PICKS:

299 to Redding

Highway 299 winds along the Trinity River for most of the way to Redding, so our trip was punctuated with glimpses of great swimming holes and wildlife sightings, including a bear drinking from the river.

Calatrava’s Sundial Bridge at Turtle Bay in Redding

I was first introduced to Calatrava’s architecture by […]

Picks and Pans – In and around Arcata, CA

PICKS:

Ruby Van Deventer County Park in Del Norte County, CA

Due to California’s state budget crisis, their state park campgrounds now charge the astronomical rate of $35 per night (not including showers or any other extras). Lucky for us, Del Norte County has either done a better job managing their budget or they haven’t […]

Picks and Pans – In and around Ashland, OR

Oregon Shakespeare Festival

Oregon Shakespeare Festival is sort of a misnomer, as most festivals are temporary and relatively fleeting presences in a town. The OSF runs from February through November, occupies multiple permanent buildings in town, including the U.S.’s first Elizabethan Theater (a la the Globe), and brings in the major income source for the […]