Mendocino, California

The former logging town turned tourist destination, Mendocino. Picturesque.

Sundial Bridge - Redding, California

I recently visited the beautiful Sundial Bridge designed by Santiago Calatrava in Redding, California. This pedestrian span crosses the Sacramento River and leads to 300 acres of trails and parkland. An arboretum and interactive museum seal the deal. Worth a visit. Like functional sculpture.

 

Founders Grove - Avenue of the Giants, California

When visiting Northern California, be sure to drive along the Avenue of the Giants. Make note of Founders Grove, an old-growth grove where 2,500-year-old trees tower over you at ridiculous heights. The fallen trees are just as amazing. Everything is so gigantic you'll feel like a tiny ant, running around taking photos. It gets dark in the late afternoon in the fall, so use a flash. Good luck.

 

Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest, California

If you appreciate truly ancient, bizarrely beautiful trees, make a point of visiting the Bristlecone Pine Forest in the White Mountain range of the Eastern Sierras. These dense, tough trees can live thousands of years. The oldest recorded tree nearby is over 5,000 years old. That's one tree; 5,000+ years old. Some are only 4,000+ years old and there's plenty of middle-aged centuries-old trees as well. Our trip covered more in full, here.

Devil's Postpile and Rainbow Falls - Mammoth Lakes, California

Be sure to visit these two natural wonders. Rainbow Falls contains an actual rainbow within its waters. Devil's Postpile National Monument is one of the largest columnar basalt formation in the world. More about this trip, including bristlecone pines—the oldest living organisms on the planet—on the blog, here. (Bristlecone pine post coming soon.)

Lassen Volcanic National Park - Lakes and Sky

A couple shots of some of the lakes you can drive and hike to in Lassen Park.

Shadow Lake (a couple hundred steps away from Terrace Lake)

Summit Lake in the rain - you can drive right up to it

The Cafe at Mineral Lodge in tiny Mineral, California

Nice people, good eats, vintage pinball

Burney & McCloud Falls, California

Burney Falls is the 129-foot-high result of multiple outlets of year-round 42-degree spring water, bursting forth from under the Earth's crust for our edification. A spectacular experience!

First glimpse before descending into the cool valley.

The road to Burney Falls is paved with many stones.

Well worth a visit.

Nearby McCloud Falls has three levels of falls and good swimming. Easy access, either by walking or driving to the three conveniently located parking lots for all three falls. The trail is an easy uphill slope along the river. But watch out for bees. One stung me on the lip, which was weird. Perhaps it was a wasp. Anyway, it was aggressive, and helped me build some character.