Page 159 - 2020 Travel Guide to California

and horseback trips. To the north, the Kla-
math Basin National Wildlife Refuge,
which extends into southern Oregon, is
part of the Pacific Flyway: In the fall its
skies are darkened by more than a million
migratory birds.
alpine hamlet of Weaverville, gateway to the
Trinity Alps, was the closest he’s ever come
to a real-life Shangri-La.
City & Town
For travelers, Redding was nothing more
than a pit stop along Interstate 5 until the
opening of the instantly iconic Sundial
Bridge across the Sacramento River in 2004.
On the lower flanks of its namesake peak,
Mount Shasta City sports a main street lined
with New Age bookstores and shops selling
crystals said to have mystical powers. No
less an authority than James Hilton, author
of Lost Horizon, once claimed that the pretty
The Great Outdoors
Mount Shasta is irresistible to climbers; in
the spring, summit-seekers are strung out
along its most popular routes like ants on
an anthill. To get to the top you need an ice
axe, crampons and the skill to use them
safely. But on Mount Lassen, its neighbor to
the south, a well-graded trail runs all the
way to the 10,457-foot-high summit.
World-class fly fishing abounds in the
Trinity Alps, and those willing to walk a
short distance with their rods are almost
guaranteed a spot to themselves. On the
Salmon River, between the Trinity Alps and
SUNSET TROUT FISHING at Manzanita Lake, Lassen Volcanic
National Park, below; Mount Shasta, opposite.
»
MUST
SEE,
DO
» Sundial Bridge Spanish architect Santiago
Calatrava’s now-iconic cantilever pedestrian span
across the Sacramento River is the centerpiece of the
worthwhile Turtle Bay Exploration Park in Redding.
› visitredding.com/sundial-bridge
» Summit Fever With the help of a local
guide, fit beginners can reach the 14,179-foot-high
summit of Mount Shasta via its classic Avalanche
Gulch route.
› shastaguides.com
› swsmtns.com
» Crystal Persuasion Feel the metaphysical
vibes of Mount Shasta City by shopping for a
Lemurian Seed Crystal at The Crystal Room. But
be warned that they won’t let it go home with you
unless it’s a “good energy match.”
› crystalsmtshasta.com
» Men in Tights Stretching 11 miles from the
southern Cascades to the Central Valley, Chico’s
sylvan Bidwell Park stood in for Sherwood Forest
in 1938’s “The Adventures of Robin Hood” staring
Errol Flynn.
› visitcalifornia.com/attraction/bidwell-park
» Romance of the Rails In Dunsmuir, a
classic old railroad town, rail buffs can inspect a
1927 Willamette steam locomotive, dine in a vin-
tage Pullman Club Car and bed down for the night
in a genuine caboose at the Railroad Park Resort.
› rrpark.com
INSIDER’S
»
TIP
While hiking on MOUNT SHASTA,
keep an eye out for the
LEMURIANS, a race of psychically
advanced beings believed by
some to live in an enormous cave
inside the mountain. They are
said to speak excellent English,
with a “slight British accent.”
lemurianconnection.com
2020 TRAVEL GUIDE TO CALIFORNIA 157