Find Plenty of Water for Play in Redding and Shasta Cascade Waterfalls, Rivers, and Lakes Offer Water Wonders for Stand-Up Paddle Boarding, Rafting, Fishing, Kayaking, and More Redding, CA – March x, 2015 -- The majestic region of northeastern California, Redding located in the center of Shasta Cascade, is abundantly scattered with pristine lakes, breathtaking waterfalls, and roaring rivers all year long, inviting visitors to enjoy unforgettable water fun and adventure. Covering an area roughly the size of Ireland, the Shasta Cascade region is the perfect place to get back to nature, relax, and enjoy the great outdoors on the water. Boasting 300+ days of beautiful weather annually, this one-of-a-kind travel destination offers boundless outdoor recreation on crisp, clean waters close to Mount Shasta, Lassen Volcanic National Park, two national monuments, six national forests, and seven state parks. Situated at the northern end of the Sacramento River Valley, two hours north of Sacramento and three hours northeast of San Francisco, Redding is Shasta Cascade’s bustling hub city offering great dining, events, lodging, and entertainment - the perfect starting point for expeditions into one of America’s most spectacular regional destinations. Redding is easy to, get to by car, train, or air, thanks to daily flights through SFO and its proximity to Interstate 5 and the downtown Amtrak station. Time magazine recently hailed Redding as the “Unofficial Capital of Kayaking” for its abundance of active clubs, paddling events, and beautiful kayaking spots. While Redding is famous for its kayaking, it is also a popular destination for stand up paddle boarding, rafting, and canoeing, along with fishing, house boating, swimming, and other water activities. The Sacramento River, California’s longest and largest, is one of the top reasons this area is ideal for water sports and aquatic fun of all kinds. Visitors can watch salmon swim upstream to spawn, or charter boats to drift along the mighty Sacramento River under the world-renowned Sundial Bridge. The wide riverbed accommodates reliable flows from 4,000 up to 20,000 cubic feet per second for rafting, yet remains a well-mannered giant due to the low gradient. The largest rapids in the region are class II, though the current can be swift. The mild climate, sweeping vistas, and easy access points combine to make this a wonderful venue for paddle sports, accommodating all levels of water sports enthusiasts. Here are some ways to have fun on the water this spring in Redding and Shasta Cascade:
Kayaking There’s something about being close to the water that brings on the calm, letting you take in the fresh air and mountain lakes, with nothing but the sound of the birds as you paddle. It’s no wonder why Redding locals are so ‘weirdly obsessed’ with kayaking! Bring your own or rent from a local outfitter, but don’t miss your opportunity to experience the waters for yourself. Rangers at Whiskeytown National Recreation Area lead fun and informative kayak tours, sometimes by moonlight, and Shasta Lake has more inlets to paddle around than most people can get to in an entire summer. Catch some trout right from your kayak along the Sacramento River, or grab some friends to cruise around with the ducks on Kutras Pond. No matter how you like to kayak, Redding offers many opportunities to keep you coming back for more! Rafting and Canoeing Rafts and canoes make great choices when you want to get up close and personal with a river, and Redding has that down to a science! Whether you're looking for something family-friendly or a little thrilling, there’s a stretch of river just for you. Stand Up Paddleboards, aka SUP SUP lately? Redding can’t get enough of it! Drive through town on a sunny day and you’ll see vehicles with paddleboards strapped on top or sticking out the back window. Calm waters, like those found at Whiskeytown Lake or Kutras Pond, are the perfect places for novices and for centering yourself with SUP yoga. More experienced SUPers can cruise along the currents of the Sacramento River, which runs through the center of town, passing under the beautiful Sundial Bridge. Visitors can explore coves and inlets as they SUP Shasta Lake, or take in the unforgettable scenery around Manzanita Lake in beautiful Lassen Volcanic National Park. Bring your own gear or rent from one our local enthusiasts - sup to you! Next Paddling Event • California 100, May 23– 24, 2015 Join Rivers for Change for the third annual California 100! The 100-mile, one-day paddling race on the Sacramento River begins under the Sundial Bridge in Redding and finishes near Chico. This moving water, round-the-clock event is open to all paddle sport enthusiasts in sea kayaks, marathon canoes, surfskis, standup paddleboards, outriggers, prone paddleboards, and just about anything else you can paddle. Register by May 10th or come watch the action. May 23rd – Mandatory Evening Safety Briefing May 24th – Race Day! May 25th – Awards Ceremony Fishing is Top Notch! Fly Fishing – Redding is number four on Forbes’ list of the nation’s top ten fly-fishing towns – the only city on the West Coast to receive this honor. It’s no surprise that the city is also home to The Fly Shop: the world’s largest fly-fishing outfitter. The Fly Shop is the place to go for equipment, expertise, and to arrange guided trips for a unique fishing adventure.
Houseboats Shasta Lake is famous for being the "Houseboat Capitol of the World", with the largest commercial houseboat fleet on the planet. With so much shoreline and so many coves to claim for an afternoon (or two), you may never leave the house[boat] again! Swimming Swimming is an all-ages activity perfect for the north state’s sunny summers! If you're looking for wild water slides, poolside fun, or lazy lakes, Redding has some of everything. Waterfalls July is considered Waterfall Month in Redding because, well, they’re everywhere! Dunsmuir and McCloud Falls flow to the north, MacArthur-Burney Falls is to the east, and the Whiskeytown Falls are just west of Redding. If that’s not enough to get you misty-eyed, there’s Angel Falls, Bear Canyon and Bear Creek Falls, Big Springs, Bluff Falls, Deadhorse Falls, Elephant Butte Falls, Feather Falls, Fern Falls…we could keep going, but we think you get the picture. Waterfalls around here are magnificent and plentiful; there is no shortage of cascading water over mountain ridges in Redding and Shasta Cascade. They need to be seen to be believed! Shasta Dam The Shasta Dam, which forever changed the water landscape of California, is the second largest dam in mass in the United States. Its Visitor Center features a film about the dam’s construction and offers free public tours daily. Explore inside the dam with a guide to learn about its importance in California, how it works, and the intriguing history behind it, including famous historical figures who helped build it rock by rock. Group tours are also available. Three Remarkable Bridges Find your inner engineer, because Redding is home to three notable bridges worth exploring: • Sundial Bridge — One of the world’s most beautiful bridges, is a pedestrian bridge that crosses the Sacramento River through the middle of Turtle Bay Exploration Park, a complex of art, history, and environmental museums, discovery centers, and gardens. Designed by world-renowned architect, Santiago Calatrava, Sundial Bridge is an artistic and engineering marvel. At 217 feet/66 meters tall, the pylon of this cable-stayed suspension bridge functions as the gnomon of the world’s largest sundial. • The Diestelhorst Bridge — This picturesque arched bridge was built from 191415 and is listed in the National Register of Historic Places. The Diestelhorst Bridge, a pedestrian and bicycle path across the Sacramento River in Redding, has the distinction of being the first automobile bridge and the first reinforced-concrete bridge built across the Sacramento River. While not scientifically proven, a stroll across Diestelhorst at sunrise is said to add a year to your life! • The Ribbon Bridge — The first of its kind in North America, this 13-foot-wide, 418-foot-long concrete-stress-ribbon bridge provides a clear span of the entire Sacramento River floodplain. The bridge is supported by 236 steel cables inside the
bridge deck connected to rock anchors drilled deep into solid bedrock. The Ribbon Bridge links two sections of the Sacramento River Trail, a pedestrian-bicycle path that runs from central Redding via the Sundial Bridge to the Shasta Dam. “Ribbon Bridge”, as locals call it, has the slender profile of a rope bridge, draping gracefully across the river canyon, seeming to disappear in the distance. Natural Attractions, some that even impressed Teddy Roosevelt! • Whiskeytown National Recreation Area – a clear blue lake, free kayak tours, sailing, fishing, hiking, waterfalls, forest camping. • Shasta Lake – the houseboating capital of the world with marinas, jet skiing, wakeboarding and waterskiing, hiking, deep lake fishing, Lake Shasta Caverns, views of Mt. Shasta and Lassen Peak. • MacArthur-Burney Falls Memorial State Park – a waterfall described by Teddy Roosevelt as the eighth wonder of the world. • Lassen Volcanic National Park – all four types of volcanos can be found here: plug dome, composite, cinder, and shield, along with bubbling mud, hissing fumaroles, spurting geysers, and amazing colors. Visitors can hike to the top of an active volcano. ### About Shasta Cascade Covering an area roughly the size of Ireland, the Shasta Cascade region is the perfect place to get back to nature, relax and enjoy the great outdoors. Comprised of eight rural counties historically known for being part of the pioneer gold rush in the mid-1800s, this majestic region of northern California is abundantly scattered with lakes, rivers, mountains and historic mining towns, and includes Lassen Volcanic National Park, two national monuments, six national forests and seven California state parks offering unforgettable fun and adventure. This area offers boundless outdoor recreation with magnificent landscapes and breathtaking vistas: from towering volcanoes, alpine ranges, and glaciers, to waterfalls, lush forests, pristine lakes, and roaring rivers; this travel destination is one of a kind. Shasta Cascade is easy to get to by auto, air, or Amtrak, and offers an off-the-beaten-path experience where people discover the abundance of nature in one of the few unspoiled areas remaining in California. For more information or to request a visitor’s guide, visit www.shastacascade.com, like our Facebook page www.facebook.com/ShastaCascade, or find us on twitter www.twitter.com/ShastaCascade. About Redding, CA Situated at the northern end of the Sacramento River Valley, Redding is the hub city in Shasta Cascade and is located just two hours north of Sacramento and three hours northeast of San Francisco. Boasting 300+ days of beautiful weather a year, Redding offers outdoor adventure and attractions all year long, along with great wine, food, sporting and cultural events, dining, lodging and entertainment. The great Sacramento River runs through the center of town, helping earn Redding the fame of being America’s “Unofficial Capital of Kayaking” according to Time Magazine. Nearby scenic lakes, rivers, state and national parks, including Shasta Lake, Whiskeytown National Recreation Area and Lassen Volcanic National Park, make Redding a
fantastic base-camp for exploration in Shasta Cascade, offering Any Adventure, Any Day. Redding is conveniently located at the crossroads of I-5 and California state routes 299 and 44, and is accessible by daily flights from San Francisco. For more information or to order a visitor’s guide, visit www.visitredding.com, like our Facebook page www.facebook.com/VisitReddingCA or find us on twitter at www.twitter.com/visitreddingca. For up-to-date happenings, follow our blog at www.visitredding.com/blog. Media Contacts Susan Hartzler Mental Marketing 818-585-8641 shartzler@mentalmarketing.com www.mentalmarketing.com Lisa May Shasta Cascade Wonderland Association 530-365-7504 lisa@shastacascade.org www.shastacascade.com