Page 51 - 2014 Travel Guide to California

WINTER HIKING is popular in the
desert, below; a skier gets some air at
Lake Tahoe, right.
and ski in a single day. Outside of the ski
resorts, snowmobiling provides high-
octane motor sport fun, while dogsledding
is a way to enjoy a different sort of ride
with some furry friends. For the adven-
turous, remote backcountry skiing, the
increasingly popular “sidecountry” Alpine
Touring connected to the ski resorts, ice
climbing and hut-to-hut hiking in the
Sierra Nevada mountains can feed one’s
hunger for adrenaline.
The Great Outdoors
Step away from organized resort sports
and there’s still a wealth of winter outdoor
activities in California. The bears may be
hibernating but that doesn’t mean you
have to as well. Avoiding the hot summer
months means visitors can enjoy
temperate winter hiking and camping
opportunities in desert parks such as
Death Valley, Joshua Tree and around Palm
Springs (but be forewarned that the nights
can still get frigid). Prior to snowfall, the
Sierra Nevada mountain forests are ablaze
with colorful fall foliage, making a drive
through the hills a prime “shoulder
season” activity.
Wintertime means an escape from the
summer crowds in famed Yosemite
National Park. Visit the near-empty
wilderness to enjoy a quiet blanket of
snow covering towering cliffs, the sun
glistening off frozen waterfalls and the
muffled clomping sound of guided
snowshoe tours. Hot springs around
Mammoth Lakes provide some toasty
outdoor relaxation with a view of
snowcapped mountains. Or, perhaps
bundle up and climb a mountain for some
prime star-gazing opportunities in the
crisp mountain air, then add a few more
layers and try some ice fishing on a high
alpine lake.
Winter also is the time when visitors
can spot many animals migrating south to
follow the sun. From massive gray whales
to miniature monarch butterflies, flocks of
birds in the central wetlands and pods of
seals come to mate on the shores of the
Pacific, the world’s wildlife also seems to
think that California’s outdoors is a great
place to visit in winter.
» FIND YOUR
SPORT
Skiing
skilaketahoe.com
mammothmountain.com
bearmountain.com
xcski.org
Hiking/Camping
yosemitepark.com
nps.gov/state/ca
parks.ca.gov
Wildlife
whalewatching.com/california
birding.com/wheretobird/california.asp
dfg.ca.gov/wildlife
2014 T R AV E L G U I D E T O C A L I F O R N I A 49