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Shasta Cascade
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Shasta Cascade Overview
The Shasta Cascade surrounds the northern central valley with volcanoes and volcanic history. Several large lakes offer exciting activities from houseboating to water skiing and salmon fishing. Its volcanic wonders, both dormant and active, are there for you to explore. Because of its distant proximity to any major airports, the northern regions of the Shasta Cascade are the least populated regions in California. A visitor can explore all day and never see another person.
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Lassen Volcanic is an active volcano with its last major eruption occurring in 1914. Two of Lassen's main attractions are the boiling mud pots of Bumpass Hell and Sulphur Works. MORE DETAILS
Lava Beds are ancient volcanic lava flows that once covered the entire area. The main attraction is the hollow lava tubes that form caves throughout the region. These tubes are more like tunnels that hikers and cavers can explore. MORE DETAILS
Whiskey-Shasta-Trinity contains 3 of California's most beautiful lakes; Shasta, Whiskeytown and Clair Engle. Activities include camping, fishing, hiking, horseback riding, mountain biking, boating and houseboating and caving on Lake Shasta. MORE DETAILS
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Castle Crags was named for the jagged crags that were formed by glaciers, this park features 28 miles of hiking trails and swimming & fishing access to the Sacramento River. MORE DETAILS
Plumas-Eureka features two lakes, a trout filled creek, historic gold era buildings, numerous hiking trails and a nearby ski resort. MORE DETAILS
MacArthur-Burney Fall is one of our favorites and features a large waterfall that emits from a porous lava wall creating a larger waterfall than the surface creek would normally produce. Camping is near the fall along Burney Creek. The nearby Lake Britton offers numerous lake activities and boat rentals. MORE DETAILS
Lake Oroville is a large man-made lake that offers camping, picnicking, horseback riding, hiking, sail and power boating, water-skiing, fishing, swimming, boat-in camping and houseboating. MORE DETAILS
Bidwell Mansion/Park is where a historic military officer made his home following the civil war. Bidwell Park is nearby and offers fantastic picnicking, hiking, a natural swimming pool and swimming holes along ancient lava flows. This is the real 'Sherwood Forest'. MORE DETAILS
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Water Works Park is small but has great rides like Avalanche and Raging River Ride. MORE DETAILS
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Downtown Chico has plenty of entertainment options. Chico State has more than once been ranked as the top party school in the nation. A few of the businesses that offer entertainment include Madison Bear Gardens, The Graduate and La Salles. MORE DETAILS
Indian Casinos offer entertainment options from live music to boxing events. Try your luck at Blackjack, Poker or Pai Gow tables or a lucky slot machine. MORE DETAILS
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Mt. Shasta Mall is a traditional mall featuring nearly 100 stores like Macy's, Wet Seal, Fred Meyer Jewelers, See's Candies and more. MORE DETAILS
Anderson Outlets feature nearly 50 outlet stores including Bass Shoes, Gap, Polo Ralph Lauren, Tommy Hilfiger, Vans and more. MORE DETAILS
Chico Mall is a traditional mall with nearly 100 stores including Gottschalks, Hot Topic, New York & Company, Victoria's Secret and more. MORE DETAILS
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Miscellaneous Recommendations
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Shasta Caverns are only accessible by ferry from Holiday Harbor. This is a fair sized California cavern with displays of stagtites and stagmites. MORE DETAILS
Shasta Sunset Dinner Train offers dinner tours in lavishly restored 1916 railcars, traverse through Shasta National Forest offering panoramic views of Mt. Shasta, Mt. Lassen, the Trinity Alps and more. MORE DETAILS
Houseboating on Lake Shasta. What better way to enjoy one of California's most beautiful lakes than to stay on the lake. Choose your own secluded cove from one of hundreds throughout the lake. Cook up the day's catch for dinner, watch bald eagle snatch fish from the lake's surface and count shooting stars from the patio deck at night. MORE DETAILS
Recreational Lakes are located throughout the Shasta Cascade including Lake Shasta, Lake Almanor, Lake Oroville and Whiskeytown Lake. Activities include houseboating, camping, water-skiing, fishing, swimming and much more. MORE DETAILS
Turtle Bay Exploration Park is located in Redding and features a museum, aquarium, botanical gardens, sundial bridge over the Sacramento River and more. MORE DETAILS
Horseback Riding is available through multiple stables and ranches throughout the Shasta Cascade. Traverse the trails of Lassen Volcanic National Park, circumnavigate secluded lakes and head for panoramic vistas. MORE DETAILS
Snow Skiing is available at Mt. Shasta and a few smaller downhill ski resorts. Cross-country skiing is available at several locations throughout the Shasta Cascades. MORE DETAILS
Hot Air Balloon over the Shasta Valley with spectacular views of Mt. Shasta. Flights depart from the Yreka-Montague Airport. MORE DETAILS
Golf Courses are located throughout the Shasta Cascade from Alturas to Yuba City and Lake Almanor to Paradise. Test your skills at one of several courses along the along the Sierra Nevada range. MORE DETAILS
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Shasta Cascade Hotels With so many great hotels, inns, resorts and bed & breakfasts we can't see making this page any longer than it already is. Visit our Hotels page for accommodations we personally recommend or that receive overwhelmingly high ratings from former guests. These recommendations were determined according to price, cleanliness, location, service and proximity to local attractions. MORE DETAILS
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Shasta Cascade Restaurants With so many great restaurants, we can't see making this page any longer than it already is. Visit our Restaurants page for restaurants we personally recommend or that receive overwhelmingly high ratings from former patrons. Dine at the places that locals frequent for a reason. These recommendations were determined according to price, ambiance, portions, outstanding views and/or one-of-a-kind flavors. MORE DETAILS
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Sacramento is an international airport situated to the far south of the Shasta Cascade region off Interstate 5 and Highway 99. MORE DETAILS
Other options to consider would be
Redding, or Chico Municipal airports.
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Traffic & Transportation
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Interstate 5 & Highway 99 run north & south through the Shasta Cascade region. Traffic is not an issue except during the major holidays of Thanksgiving and Christmas at the end of November and December respectively. Highway 99 is prone to rush hour backup through the regions of Chico, Oroville, Yuba City and Marysville.
Highways 399 & 36 are the main highways heading to Eureka. Highway 36 is the less traveled of the two. Both pass through beautiful redwood forest with lush fern canopies.
Highways 44 & 89 pass through the heart of Lassen Volcanic National Park.
Highway 36 runs east to west and connects Fortuna at the coast with Red Bluff, Chester and Susanville to the east.
Highway 70 runs north from northern Sacramento through Yuba City and Oroville, where it hooks east and eventually joins Highway 395 on the way into Reno.
Highway 20 runs east to west and connects Fort Bragg at the coast with Willits, Clear Lake, Williams, Yuba City and Gold Country to the east.
Public transportation is good in the populated regions Redding, Chico, Oroville, Yuba City and Marysville. The Shasta Cascade is surrounded by National Forests accessed by many smaller highways with no public transportation options.
RABA (Redding Area Bus Authority) offers bus services to the Redding area.
TRAX (Tehama Rural Area Express) offers bus services to Tehama County including Red Bluff, Corning, Los Molinos and Tehama.
B-Line (Butte Regional Transit) offers bus services to Butte County including Chico, Oroville and Paradise.
Yuba-Sutter Transit offers bus services to the Yuba City, Marysville and Sutter regions including Sacramento and the rural communities Foothill, Live Oak and Wheatland.
Consider a rental car for exploration of the surrounding regions. Amtrak and Greyhound offer connections with outlying areas including San Francisco, Sacramento, Reno and beyond the Oregon border.
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Winter brings lows in the 10's and highs in the low 60's. Heavy rain is common in the lower regions sometimes leading to area flooding near swollen rivers. Heavy snowfall in the upper elevations can cause temporary road closures.
Spring brings lows in the 40's and highs in the 80's. Rain decreasing to misty mornings and fog.
Summer brings lows in the 60's and highs in the 100's. Cloudless skies with little to no precipitation in the lower regions. Upper elevations offer cooler temperatures and an occassional thunderstorm.
Fall brings lows in the 30's and highs in the 70's. Thunderstorms increasing to snow flurries in the upper elevations. Serious FOG beginning in the late evening and thickening by morning.
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Apr 20-22, 2012 - Red Bluff Round Up is held at the Tehama County Fairgounds east of Red Bluff. This is California's largest rodeo event that draws top world champion riders. See barrel racing, calf roping, bull riding and the always popular, mutton busting. WEBSITE
Apr 28-May 1, 2011 - Gold Nugget Days is held in Paradise at the Gold Nugget Museum and celebrates the 1859 finding of a 54-pound gold nugget. Events include a parade, live music, food, costume contest and more. The Donkey Derby is an event favorite where contestants re-enact the transport of the historic gold nugget while taking their donkeys through an obstacle course. WEBSITE
Oct 6, 2012 - National Yo-Yo Contest is held in the City Plaza of Downtown Chico. Contestants from around the world converge on Chico to test their yo-yoing skills against the best in the world. See the world's largest working wood yo-yo at 256 lbs. Visit the Chico Toy Museum inside Bird in Hand and purchase your own professional yo-yo. WEBSITE
Oct 15, 2011 - Return of the Salmon Festival is held at the Coleman Fish Hatchery in Anderson. Celebrate the return of Salmon and Steelhead from their time in the open ocean. Tour the operations of the hatchery during mating season and peruse the many vendor booths of local businesses. WEBSITE
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