Chica in Chico: January 2013

Now that the temps in MN are hovering around the negative teens, plans are being made for winter visits. Here are some ideas and proposals for things to do when you are here. Sorry, Jamie....just had to lift some of this stuff from an email to you!

The weather has been cool but sunny lately (lows in the 30s and highs in the 50s). It is generally cold in the morning and warms up pretty well by the afternoon. The highs this week have been in the mid to upper 60s! Even with the cool mornings, I get on my bike every day. We are members of a fitness center that is a five minute bike ride from our house and if it is rainy, might be a great option for activities. I checked and we can get daily passes for unlimited use (classes too!) for 10.00 a day. I go to yoga about 3 times a week and I am also now doing a crossfit class. The pools are also great and I have used them even when the temp was in the 50s and rainy. You might want to check out their website:

http://www.inmotionfitness.net

Do you like to bike? We can rent bikes (includes helmet and lock) for about 20.00 a day.

One thing that many of you might want to do is a Sierra Nevada brewery tour. They are free and frequent. We have been to the brew pub a few times, but have not yet done the tour, but it looks great.

http://www.sierranevada.com/brewery/california/brewery-tour

We also joined a wine club this fall, called Benziger Winery. It is a sustainable, biodynamic vineyard in Sonoma County, just north of San Francisco. It is about a 3 hour drive from Chico, so is more of a commitment in terms of time. But, if you want to do some wine tasting, it is a great area. Here is the winery website:

http://www.benziger.com

If the weather cooperates, there is good hiking within a couple hours drive. Lassen National Volcanic Park is about an hour and a half away, but it has lots of snow now. Mount Shasta is about the same distance, also with lots of snow. The Feather River is closer (half an hour away) and it also has lots of hiking, including a nine mile loop to Feather Falls. Feather Falls National Scenic Trail has an incredible view of Bald Rock Dome, Bald Rock Canyon, and the 640-foot waterfall, Feather Falls!

Of course, as my previous post indicated, visiting the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuges is also spectacular. It is about an hours drive from Chico, but the bird watching is unbelievable.

Some links:

http://plumas.virtualsierra.com/pluHike3.htm

http://www.stateparks.com/sacramento.html

Also, Mark's pictures of the Wildlife Refuge were MUCH better than mine....here is a link to his pictures:

Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge

Here are some pictures from Big Bald Rock trail....an easy .5 mile hike near Feather Falls.

So, think about how you want to spend your time. Of course, we'd love to give you a little tour of Chico too. It really is a college town, and it is easy to get around. The downtown is cute, with lots of little eating and drinking places. And Bidwell Park runs right through town and is a great place for biking, hiking, or just stolling and enjoying the weather!

Looking out at the Coastal Mountains

Overall, I would have to say that winter in Chico is really not like winter at all. Most of the time, it feels more like a nice April day. It is cold in the morning (low 30s), but by mid afternoon the temperatures hit high 50s or low 60s. We have had two weeks of sunshine and have been able to continue exploring this diverse and surprising area.

The beginning of the MLK holiday weekend began on a disappointing note. Jamie and Greg Crandall were planning to come and visit, but they were flying stand-by. Late Friday afternoon, Jamie called and told us that all flights west were booked and they couldn't get out of the Twin Cities. I was quite disappointed and so immediately put on my running shoes and went out for a four mile run/walk....always a good way for me to readjust my attitude. When I got back, Mark had found a new area for us to visit and so we made plans to visit the Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex the next day. What a spectacular find!

The Wildlife Refuges are actually five different areas on the Pacific Flyways and over a million geese and three million ducks migrate through during the winter months. Our timing was perfect and so was the weather. I am sure we saw and heard hundreds of thousands of ducks and geese! We also saw hawks, egrets, pelicans, heron, coyote, rabbits, and even peacocks....although I think they were escapees from a farm of some sort. Here are some of my pictures: