All "Relaxing" Stories in Northern CA

• 

  Redwoods, Blue Coast

  Redwoods, river, coastline, and sandy pocket beaches: See Sonoma Coast's best features on this 6-mile (round-trip) hike from Shell Beach to Pomo Canyon's sublime redwoods.

  View
• 

  Two Wheels to Wine in Healdsburg

  Bike and wine taste among the vineyards of Sonoma County's Dry Creek Valley in Healdsburg. The mostly flat backroads make for easygoing riding, with food and wine explorations too.

  View
• 
  Sponsored

  Get Outdoors In Sonoma County This Fall

  Sonoma County's great outdoors includes hike-in beaches, hidden redwoods, and a new zipline-to-treehouse stay. Here are 5 of the best ways to explore outdoors in Sonoma County.

  View
• 

  Bernal Desire

  It's one of the best views in San Francisco. Bernal Heights Park is an underrated hilltop park that simply beams at sunset, with views of downtown SF, the Golden Gate, and the Bay Bridge.

  View
• 

  Rock and Roll Golden Gate

  Golden Gate Park closes part of JFK Drive to cars, so walkers, bike riders, and roller skaters can have some fun outdoors. Here are some highlights for when you visit, including an adventure through the park with the characters from Adventures With Alice.

  View
• 
  Sponsored

  The Highway of Waterfalls

  Ready for a totally refreshing road trip? Hit the Highway of Waterfalls! This stretch of road in Southern Oregon travels alongside the wild and scenic section of the North Umpqua River—and more than a dozen waterfalls.

  View
• 

  Sleeper Hit

  It's all about the water, and the camping, at Utica Reservoir in Stanislaus National Forest, a High Sierra reservoir perfect for kayak explorations and pitching your tent with the lake in the background.

  View
• 

  Duck, Duck, Goose!

  Try to get a first-come, first-served campsite at one of the Lakes Basin’s lakeside campgrounds. We love Goose Lake Campground, where there are just 13 sites and no motorized boats.

  View
• 
  Sponsored

  Simply Amazing Road Trip

  Don’t overthink it, just go! Southern Oregon’s Klamath Basin is a hidden gem just north of the California border. This adventurous region makes savoring summer and fall easy with abundant outdoor recreation.

  View
• 

  Farm to Tent Cabins

  The hardest part of staying at Willow-Witt Ranch will be leaving. This sprawling 445-acre property in Southern Oregon is part organic farm, part campground, part wellness retreat, and wholly relaxing.

  View
• 

  Grizzly and Great Views

  You probably won’t see a grizzly bear on the hike up Grizzly Peak, but you will see locals on this 5.3-mile lollipop loop trail with panoramic mountain views and meadows of wildflowers.

  View
• 

  Hot Springs With a View

  People love a good hot spring. And Umpqua Hot Springs in Southern Oregon is a marquee attraction. You're perched on a mineral deposit above the flowing beauty of the North Umpqua River.

  View
• 

  Gone Rogue!

  If one thing can make you feel like a kid at summer camp, it’s spending a day on the river, rafting, floating, cannonballing off cliffs—eureka! One of the best rivers in the West to float is the Rogue River.

  View
• 
  Sponsored

  National Parks Road Trip: Circle of Discovery!

  Love national parks? Love road trips? Combine the two on one fabulous Circle of Discovery route in Northern California and Southern Oregon! This itinerary features 7 national parks with wondrous features.

  View
• 

  Magical McClures

  McClures Beach is a seductive little spot: small, beautiful, and quiet. It’s easy to while away an afternoon-turned-sunset at this pocket cove in Point Reyes.

  View
• 

  Freedom of Beach

  Nearly a mile of slate and black sand, expansive views of San Francisco, and just minutes from the Golden Gate Bridge, Marin's Black Sands Beach is the size of Baker Beach—without the crowds.

  View
• 

  Secret Beach

  A hidden beach and a killer view? Those are hard to come by, but that’s exactly what you’ll get at Perles Beach on Angel Island. Bike or hike to this beautiful pocket cove.

  View
• 
  Sponsored

  All Roads Lead to Rogue

  Idea for your next road trip: Go Rogue! The Rogue Valley in beautiful Southern Oregon has some of the state’s best hiking, swim holes, and wineries, and the charming historic towns of Ashland, Medford, and Jacksonville.

  View
• 

  Ideas for Mother's Day

  Create arrangements from what is already growing in your yard (or in between the cracks of your sidewalk). Make make beautiful bouquets from a variety of weeds, grasses, and plants.

  View
• 

  Mellow in the Marsh

  Beach, birds, ice plant popping purple flowers: That’s a hiking slam dunk! Hike about 2 miles at Pescadero Marsh Natural Preserve using their easy to navigate (well-signed) Sequoia Audubon Trail.

  View