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Gray Lodge Wildlife Area GreyLodge_KG_1280x642
Kodiak Greenwood

Gray Lodge Wildlife Area

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Gray Lodge Wildlife Area
Some 300 species of birds and mammals make this a mecca for outdoor enthusiasts

Located on the Pacific Flyway 60 miles north of Sacramento, Gray Lodge encompasses 9,200 acres surrounded by agricultural flatlands and backdropped by the small but stately Sutter Buttes, the smallest mountain range in the world. Birders perch on elevated viewing platforms to watch and photograph swirling clouds of migratory waterfowl, including uncountable numbers of snow geese, swans, and sandhill cranes.

"Birders perch on elevated viewing platforms to watch and photograph swirling clouds of migratory waterfowl, including uncountable numbers of snow geese, swans, and sandhill cranes."

Best viewing times are mid-morning through sunset. The area closes at sunset. In the morning, the waterfowl return from feeding in the surrounding rice fields (farms here have a cooperative agreement to leave some fields unharvested, so that birds can find food and shelter). After resting through the day on Gray Lodge, they become active again in the evening. Keep your eyes peeled for an impressive array of birds of prey, including bald eagles and peregrine falcons, and native wildlife including river otters and gray foxes. Check the schedule for educational programs and guided walks.

 

Butte County
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Spotlight: Butte County

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12
March
Average (°C)
Mar - May
22°
High
7°
Low
June - Aug
33°
High
15°
Low
Sept - Nov
25°
High
8°
Low
Mar - May
22°
High
7°
Low

Butte County is a land of remarkable contrasts. North of Sacramento, between the Central Valley and Sierra Nevada, it’s a diverse agricultural region where citrus groves thrive and a growing range of specialist crops, such as lavender, have made Butte County a destination for agritourism. Follow the Sierra Oro Farm Trail and you’ll discover olive oil producers, cherry orchards and the collection of wineries that have put Butte County on the California wine map.

Home to Chico’s iconic Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, the county also helped pioneer America’s craft beer movement and today an assortment of newcomers have joined the local brewing community. With its vintage city centre filled with shopping and dining and a vibrant arts scene centred on Cal State University Chico, Chico blends small-city charm and a surprising sophistication.

Give yourself time to experience the charm of the county’s other historic towns, including such spots as Oroville, Biggs (which despite its name is actually Butte County’s smallest municipality) and Gridley. Read on to discover more of this beautiful region in Northern California.

 

Cal State, Chico
Courtesy of Explore Butte County

Chico

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Chico
This college town, historic community, and craft beer pioneer is Butte County’s largest city

One of California’s most distinctive small cities, Chico blends the energy of a contemporary college town and a long history as a hub for the surrounding farm communities of Butte County.

With a downtown of stately 19th-century buildings and a leafy canopy of thousands of street trees, the city remains rooted to its past. That’s especially true at Bidwell Mansion State Historic Park, where you can tour the grand, three-story Italianate home of city founder John Bidwell. Bidwell is responsible—along with his wife Annie, who donated nearly 2,200 acres of land to the city following her husband’s death—for Chico’s remarkable Bidwell Park. Now stretching for 11 miles from the heart of town into the foothills, the park gives Chico a municipal park and recreational destination that cities many times its roughly 100,000 population would envy.

Generations of Californians first discovered Chico on their college tours to Cal State University, Chico. With a campus adjacent to both downtown and Bidwell Park, Cal State Chico influences the life of the city and gives the community an unmistakable vibrancy and wealth of cultural attractions. The bell tower of Trinity Hall rises over this beautiful university, where Big Chico Creek meanders among the buildings and the Petersen Rose Garden, with 50 types of roses and 350 bushes, brightens the grounds. Take a stroll around campus on a self-guided walking tour and check out the outstanding concert series at Laxson Auditorium, the grand, 1931 venue that has hosted appearances by everyone from Nobel Prize laureates to such musicians as Yo-Yo Ma and Willie Nelson. You can also learn about world cultures and aspects of local history at the university’s Valerie L. Smith Museum of Anthropology.

Back in town, the Museum of Northern California Art in the 1927 Veterans Memorial Hall showcases works by more than 96 regional artists collected by Chico’s Reed Applegate, a graphic designer and advertising executive. Of course, Chico, like many university towns, also has its non-traditional side and is home to the National Yo-Yo Museum, the world’s largest public collection of yo-yos, and the Little Red Hen vintage shop, where you’ll find midcentury modern and rustic furniture and decorative home goods.

As the birthplace of the pioneering Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., Chico played a big role in America’s craft beer revolution. The craft beer tradition is also carried out at The Commons Social Emporium near downtown, which is owned by longtime locals and features more than 20 beers and ciders on tap.

Though its legacy for brewing excellence is perhaps the city’s best-known culinary contribution, Chico does not live by beer alone. You’ll also find terrific dining, including the contemporary California cuisine at acclaimed chef Ann Leon’s Leon Bistro and the sushi at Japanese Blossoms. Or start the day off right with such favorites as the apple walnut pancakes and banana Nutella French toast at downtown’s Café Coda). And the delectable blackberry lemon scones at the beloved Upper Crust Bakery & Café are irresistible. 

Just around the corner, on Broadway, B Street Pub starts off the day as a coffee shop/brunch spot, then serves lunch and dinner menus, and finally takes on the role of late-night music venue. Down the block is Live Life Juice Co., which specializes healthy cold-pressed concoctions as well as vegan soft-serve. And with its local-only food-sourcing policy and eclectic decor made from upcycled materials, Foodie Café has a loyal local following.

Many local restaurants count on the bounty of Chico’s surrounding farmland, which produces a cornucopia on vivid display at the city’s twice-weekly farmers markets. The markets run year-round, while the annual Taste of Chico in September is a great opportunity to discover the best of the city’s dining and craft beer scenes. Another major local event is the Chico Wildflower Century, during which you can burn off some of the calories you packed on while in town as you ride among almond orchards and hills blanketed by spring blooms traveling along routes that range from 12 to 125 miles.

If you’re looking for a place to stay in the heart of downtown, the 1904 Hotel Diamond has a gorgeous lobby with brick walls and a graceful wooden stairway, as well as rooms that combine historic atmosphere and contemporary comforts.

Sierra Nevada Brewing Company in Chico, California
Courtesy of Sierra Brewing Company

Sierra Nevada Brewing Company

Sierra Nevada Brewing Company
Pale ale put this trendsetting Chico producer on the map

What began as a cobbled-together home-brewing operation grew up to become Sierra Nevada Brewing Company, one of America’s first modern microbreweries, and the producer of one of California’s most beloved beers: Sierra Nevada Pale Ale.

Founder Ken Grossman started out as a young home brewer, making beer in five-gallon batches with homemade equipment. After studying chemistry in college, he opened a home-brewing shop in Chico for like-minded brewing fanatics.

Two years later, he took the plunge into commercial brewing. To make dowith limited funds, Grossman outfitted his operationwith used dairy tanks, a soft-drink bottler, and equipment salvaged from defunct breweries. 

In 1980, he brewed his first bottleof Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. The bold, piney beer was an instant hit—so much so that Grossman had to expand the brewery twice to keep up with demand.

In the decades since that first auspicious batch of its namesake pale ale, Sierra Nevada’s lineup has grown to include many other fascinating brews, such as the Hop Hunter IPA, Kellerweis, Beer Camp IPA, and the intense “High Altitude” series.

At Sierra Nevada’s taproom and restaurant in Chico, visitors can sample 19 draft beers and nosh on seasonal, farm-to-table fare. Those interested in observing up close how it all happens can select from a range of brewery tours,each of varying length. The restaurant makes bread from spent brewers’ grain and even offers a good kids’ menu, with organic peanut butter, golden raisins, and fresh fruit on crunchy flatbread. The brewery also has a 350-seat live music venue, so be prepared to stay a while. 

Bidwell Park
Fifth and Flume/Flickr

Bidwell Park

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Bidwell Park
Visit this surprising find in Chico

Be sure to bring your bathing suit when you visit Bidwell Park, a surprising find in the inviting college town of Chico in the northeastern part of the state. At an impressive 3,670 acres, Bidwell is one of the largest city parks in the United States. Much of Upper Bidwell (west of Manzanita Avenue) is hilly, rugged, and wild, while Lower Bidwell (east of Manzanita), tends to be flatter. Stop in for an overview of the park and a visit to the Chico Creek Nature Center, where you can learn about native plants and wildlife and also check out the Janeece Webb Living Animal Museum, which is located inside.

Now that you’re oriented, rent some wheels at Campus Bicycles and head for the Annie Bidwell Trail, a moderate 4.7-mile loop that hugs the southern bank of Big Chico Creek in a quiet section of Upper Bidwell. Nearby is Bidwell Mansion State Historic Park, where you can take a first-come, first-served tour of the 19th-century, 26-room Italian Villa-style home. As the residence of city founders Annie and John Bidwell, the ornate structure saw visits from such guests as President Rutherford B. Hayes, General William T. Sherman, Susan B. Anthony and John Muir. After your ride—if the weather is warm enough—take a leap into Sycamore Pool, a gargantuan concrete-lined 3-acre pool that was formed out of Big Chico Creek in the 1930s. Locatedright in the center of town, the pool is shaded by its namesake sycamores and has five lifeguard stations and a roped-off section for kids. Admission is free.

Gray Lodge Wildlife Area vc_spotlightbuttecounty_module_agritoursim_su_explorebuttecounty_almendrawinerydistillery2_1280x640
Courtesy of Explore Butte County

Butte County Agritourism

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Butte County Agritourism
Taste the many farm-fresh flavors in Northern California

What do you have a taste for? Olive oil? Wine? Or the freshest summer produce? Because with an agricultural heritage dating back well over a century, Butte County is a major agritourism destination.

For a terrific overview of county agriculture, follow the Sierra Oro Farm Trail, as it meanders through the county visiting everything from the Earthworm Soil Factory to the New Clairvaux Vineyard, where Trappist-Cistercian monks carry out their order’s nearly 1,000-year-old winemaking tradition. A great time to explore the farm trail is during the annual Passport Weekend in October.

Oroville is considered the birthplace of California olive production. With several spots along the farm trail for olive oil tasting, including historic Lodestar Farms and the third-generation Bamford Family Farms, you’ll find premium extra virgin olive oils and can learn about Butte County’s unique role in the industry.

With the tree-ripened satsumas at the Tri-L Mandarin Ranch and premium varietal chestnuts at Harrison’s California Chestnut, the county is a true cornucopia. At the Pedrozo Dairy & Cheese Co., you’ll find traditional farmstead cheeses, including such favorites as the creamy Black Butte Reserve, and you can tour the facilities as well. Or for almonds, walnuts, and an assortment of gourmet items from a local farm in operation since 1875, stop into the Sohnrey Family Foods gift shop in Oroville.

Thanks to Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. in Chico, Butte County is better known for its craft beer than its wines. But from the foothills down to Durham, the county’s wineries are gaining acclaim to the point where The Sacramento Bee newspaper asked the question, “Will Butte County be the next big thing in winemaking?”

Find out for yourself at such leading county wineries as Durham’s Almendra Winery & Distillery, where you can not only enjoy wine flights but also a gin made from local almonds, lavender, and mandarins. Oroville’s warehouse chic Purple Line Urban Winery makes a full-bodied Petite Syrah from grapes grown in the Sierra foothills. Then again, if you’re more into ciders than Syrah, Chico’s Cellar Door Cider has a tasting room where you can discover its French oak barrel-aged ciders handcrafted from Northern California apples.