Wildflowers and Waterfalls

Rain plus warm weather is a recipe for wildflowers and waterfalls! Get out there and explore spring's bounty of bright colors and big flows!

Week: 04.05.2018
Regions: Northern CA

Hidden Long Ridge

Peters Creek Hike in Long Ridge

After heavy rains, the rolling headwaters of Peters Creek in Long Ridge Open Space Preserve pulsate along the forest floor via a series of small waterfalls that cut grooves in sandstone boulders. See it on a 4.5-mile loop hike starting from the Grizzly Flat parking lot.
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Call of the Coyote

Hiking Coyote Hills Regional Park

Wild and scenic Coyote Hills Regional Park is probably best known for its birdlife—from hawks to herons, kestrels to kingfishers. But its 978 acres of marshland and grassy hills is also fringed with flowers now—wildflowers! Enjoy it all on a 5-mile loop hike. From the southeast c
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Mammoth Lakes Epic Eight!

8 Epic Summer Adventures in Mammoth Lakes

1) Rainbow Connection Hike to Rainbow Falls from the famous Devils Postpile National Monument. It’s a 2-mile walk to this 101-foot stunner that plunges over a sheer cliff and leaves a rainbow glow in its mist. 2) Let the Good Times Roll Jump on the gondola and get whisked to 11,0
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Sunol Salutations

Hiking a less-traveled trail in Sunol Regional Park

Ahh … Sunol in the spring could make John Steinbeck wax poetic about the land of milk and honey. This East Bay Regional Park is a rolling green open space of giant oak trees, wildflowers, hidden canyons, seasonal streams, and winding hiking trails. While most visitors head to Lit
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Vote for Pedro

Hike Pedro Point by Pacifica

Green marks the spot. A green gate, that is. Hidden off Highway 1, just north of Pacifica's Devil's Slide Tunnel, this unassuming entrance leads to a 2.2-mile (round-trip) hike with spectacular views of the rugged Peninsula shoreline at Pedro Point. The trail's crown jewel? Pedro
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What a Rush!

Hiking to Cataract Falls on Mount Tam

Mount Tam’s Cataract Falls is the bobsled course of waterfalls: over a mile of twisting, turning, tumbling water—gushing, rushing, and making a splash! The real joy is hiking right beside Cataract Creek as it’s chugging on all cylinders, where the exclamations are 20- and 30-foot
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Colorful Calero

Hike in South Bay at Calero County Park for wildflowers and views

Tucked in the eastern foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains, Calero County Park has a surprise side. Its 4,455 acres are home to a well-known reservoir that’s a central attraction for water activities. But venture into its “back country” in spring and discover its wild—and wildfl
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All in for Alamere

Hike to Alamere Falls in Point Reyes

If you’re crazy about the ocean, the beach, and waterfalls, Bolinas’s Coast Trail is bound to become one of your all-time favorite spring hikes. It’s got one killer cliffside view after another and a classic climax: Alamere Falls, a 50-foot tumbler that launches off a cliff into
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Trending Stories NorCal

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  1. Picnic and a Pedal

    West Marin has all the right stuff for an afternoon getaway: bike paths, babbling brooks, canopy forests, and secluded picnic spots. Combine a picnic and a pedal at Samuel P. Taylor State Park by biking the easygoing Cross Marin Trail.

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  2. Hike the Oursan Trail alongside Briones Reservoir in the East Bay

    Opt for Oursan

    Hike the trail less traveled in the East Bay's Briones Regional Park. The Oursan Trail is pure serenity on a wide hiking path skirting the northern shores of Briones Reservoir.

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  3. Most Peaceful Hike of All

    Is this the most peaceful one-hour hike in the Bay Area? It's got our vote! Lake Lagunitas is the smallest lake in a series of five found on the north side of Mount Tam, so it’s got that tiny but mighty charm. Do a 1.5-mile loop around the lake's shore-hugging trail.

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  4. Sebastopol Food & Wine Roll

    One apple farm, three charming towns, multiple wineries, and infinite natural beauty. Savor a perfect autumn day in Sonoma County by biking the West County Regional Trail from Sebastopol to Forestville via Graton. It’s a 17-mile (round-trip) adventure. 

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Trending Stories SoCal

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  1. Wine Down, Dine Out in Lake Chelan

    The fertile soil around Washington State's Lake Chelan is ripe for more than just the amazing apples. Vineyards here yield high quality grapes, and some of the country’s best less-discovered wineries. Locals know it, and you will too when you start choosing from the more than 30 wineries in the region.

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  2. Lace Up for Lacy

    Lacy Park in San Marino is a hidden gem that may very well be the most pristine green space in greater Los Angeles, and a concealed pair of nearby stairways makes it all the more appealing.

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  3. Hiker amid trees at Oak Glen Preserve in Yucaipa Southern California

    Apple of Your Eye

    That fall feeling is definitely in the air and on display at the Oak Glen Preserve. Apple orchards and colorful leaves are a bonus, as are the apple cider donuts and slushies you can enjoy post-hike.

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  4. Hike San Diego Volcan Mountain Wilderness

    Planet of the Oaks

    Let us count the number of oak tree species in the Volcan Mountain Wilderness Preserve near Julian: coast, scrub, canyon, black, and Engelmann. Five! The preserve’s Five Oaks Trail is a 3.2-mile hike that boasts all five.

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