All Stories from Northern CA

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  Cool Tees!

  There’s a golf course in Golden Gate Park where the relaxed attitude of the players (beers and flip-flops encouraged; plaid sweater vests need not make an appearance) sets the stan

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  Romancing the Stow

  If you’re prone to poetry or singing “When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, that’s amore,” then you’re not going to be able to resist paddling the romantic waters of Go

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  Bowl for It

  If the Big Lebowski switched from lane bowling to lawn bowling, Golden Gate Park would be his new hangout. Quirky fits right in at the San Francisco Lawn Bowling Club here, which h

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  Like Summer Camp, Only Better

  Mountains, lakes, ample playtime. Mammoth Lakes is like the ultimate summer camp, only way better: because it's for kids and kids at heart! Take a guided kayak trip on Mono Lake, a

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  Multiple Choice Hot Springs

  Travertine Hot Springs stands apart from other Eastern Sierra soaking sites for the astounding way that rock formations convey water to its primitive pools. Craggy ridges of traver

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  Hot, Wet, and Wild!

  At Wild Willy’s Hot Springs, you can soak up a primeval landscape that’s amazingly close to Mammoth Lakes and Highway 395—it just feels a few geological epochs away. The springs ar

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  Tramp at Trampas

  Epic East Bay views: check! Terrain with just enough challenge to keep things interesting: check! Wildflowers blooming on spring green hills: check and check! Yep, you’ll wanna tra

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  Secret Diablo

  Great views, wildflowers, vibrant green hills, even a Secret Trail … Mount Diablo State Park does it again with this spectacular 6-mile loop hike fit for spring. The Briones–Mount

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  Briones Bragging Rights

  Behold the Briones Reservoir Loop Trail in Orinda: an epic 13.5-mile hike that’s still the secret of hikers who love solitude and spring-loaded scenery! Located just beyond the bus

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  Soaking Up History

  When you slide into the soothing water of Keough’s Hot Springs, you’re bathing in a piece of Owens Valley history. Although this rustic resort south of Bishop has changed hands a f

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  Wildflowers and Wonderful Views

  Cheese and chocolate go great with wine, but right now Sonoma Valley has something even better for your pairings: wildflowers! On top of its award-winning wines, Sonoma Valley’s 13

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  Mammoth Lakes Epic Eight!

  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 leave

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  Hike the Pioneer Trail

  Wildflowers unfurling from their winter slumber, birds chirping in the trees, turtles warming themselves in the sun—find your Zen early this spring with a mellow and scenic hike to

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  All the Ride Stuff

  Car-free, paved, picnic-friendly, and paralleling the river, the American River Parkway–Jedediah Smith Memorial Trail is the perfect place for exploring on two wheels. The multi-us

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  Sponsored

  7 Best Local Waterfalls

  They say good things come in threes, but this spring we’re all about lucky 7. That’s because Peninsula Open Space Trust (POST) released its (free) digital guide to the 7 Best Water

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  Row With the Flow

  Gliding across the tranquil waters of Lake Natoma, you’ll quickly discover why this oasis is beloved by locals. The lake—actually part of the American River—is a paddler’s paradise

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  Spring for Bend

  Outside magazine named Bend the best multisport town for 2017, and 2018 is equally spring loaded! This central Oregon mountain town surrounded by the Cascades has outdoor adventure

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  Totally Tubular!

  Lift, slide, scream, repeat! For pure winter fun, you can’t beat tubing at Woolly's Tube Park near Mammoth Mountain. It’s all about the simplistic delight of hurtling down a 600-foot-long chute of packed snow on an inner tube.

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  Snowshoe Country

  Snowshoeing at Virginia Lakes, a cluster of alpine lakes nestled in the rugged eastern Sierra northwest of Mono Lake, is an unforgettable journey—and you’re likely to see just a ha

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  Peaceful Pistes

  Downhill not your cup of cocoa? Go Nordic! Mammoth’s stunning Lakes Basin has 19-plus miles of groomed cross-country ski and snowshoe trails where you won’t find crowds or expensiv

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