Rocky Picture Shows

What a show to behold! The strangest forces of SoCal geology could star in their very own cult movie. Crazy uplift, bizarre evidence of faulting, massive lava flows, weird underwater formations risen to the desert surface—they’re all ripe for exploring if you know where to look. And we do!

Week: 10.12.2017
Regions: Southern CA

Planet of the Pinnacles

Exploring the Trona Pinnacles

The Trona Pinnacles have costarred as backdrop in sci-fi epics like Planet of the Apes and Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, but seeing these tufa towers in person is far more jaw-dropping than the virtual version. When you stand before this rock fantasy, your feet are firmly plan
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Cave Country

Cave Adventures in Lake Shasta and Lava Beds

Take your explorations to new heights … or, rather, new depths, by visiting some of California’s coolest cave country. Get all Indiana Jones at Lake Shasta Caverns National Landmark, where your adventure begins with a boat ride across Shasta Lake, and ends on a mountain with a gu
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Psychedelic Lava

Exploring Fossil Falls

You’d be hard-pressed to find a volcanic landscape in California as memorable and psychedelic as Fossil Falls. This chasm of water-sculpted lava rock in the Coso Mountain Range northwest of Ridgecrest was carved thousands of years ago by the Owens River after an eruption dammed t
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Behold the Superslabs

Exploring Mormon Rocks in Cajon Pass

Bored with the scenery between LA and Vegas along I-15? You must have missed Mormon Rocks. Wedged smack on the San Andreas Fault in Cajon Pass, these massive, tilted slabs of sandstone are a stunner. Even if you’re not en route to Sin City, it’s worth driving out to explore. The
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Trending Stories NorCal

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  1. Mike Zakowski (aka Mike the Baker) standing in front of his wood-fire oven at the Sonoma Valley Farmers' Market

    NEW! Walkin' and Talkin': Break Bread, Go On a Panoramic Hike

    What’s a world-traveling, medal-winning baker’s favorite local hike? Weekend Sherpa co-founder Brad Day caught up with Mike Zakowski (aka Mike the Baker) at Sonoma’s Friday farmers' market, where his wood-fired loaves draw loyal crowds. Between bites of fresh-baked bread, they talk baking, travel, and why Sonoma's Overlook Trail is one of his favorite quick, panoramic hikes.

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  2. Hidden Botanical Garden

    Forget a dozen roses. Give your love a botanical garden. Hidden on the western slope of Sonoma Valley’s Mayacamas Mountains, Sonoma Botanical Garden has one of the Bay Area’s best displays of Asian flora—and it’s a brilliant place for a quiet picnic and some calming contemplations.

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  3. Sunnyvale and Salty

    For up-close bird watching, it’s hard to beat a walk along the San Francisco Bay. This 5-mile loop on the Sunnyvale coast is a favorite of local wildlife photographers.

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  4. A man takes a break at a temple spot on a hike at Dragon Mountain in Milptas

    Dragon Quest

    The newly reopened, 4-mile out-and-back hike at Dragon Mountain in Milpitas mixes the physical with the spiritual for a serene hiking experience.

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Trending Stories SoCal

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  1. People on ice learning to curl at Hollywood Curling

    You Go, Curl!

    Hollywood Curling’s Learn to Curl classes make the perfect setting for newcomers. Take the ice, and friendly curling instructors will teach you the basics.

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  2. Sponsored

    Warm Up to Winter in Reno Tahoe

    2026 is just getting started, but there’s one place already rising to the top as the best for adventure and relaxation: Reno Tahoe. The awe—and ahhhs—begin as soon as you arrive. G

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  3. Fall for These Falls

    Chase waterfalls in Redding’s Whiskeytown National Recreation Area. This 42,000 acres of wilderness park is home to four waterfalls. Hike to the tallest, the three-tiered, 220-foot Whiskeytown Falls.

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  4. Oh Snow Nice

    Live in California long enough, and you’ll come to know the rite of passage called “going to the snow”–when we ditch our fair-weather cities and towns in search of winter weather. Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Parks deliver a winter wonderland worth a visit if there’s been a good dose of snow.

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