10 Destinations To Mark Off Your Shasta Cascade Bucket List
The Shasta Cascade region is one of a kind. The collection of waterfalls, trails, mountains, caves, rivers, museums and other landmarks provides a good starting point for Northern California explorers. We went a little more in depth in our investigation of many of the places so that you’ll know what you’re getting into when you decide to visit them.
Start making plans to cross off your Shasta Cascade bucket list by learning a little more about our 10 favorite destinations in the region:
1. Lassen Volcanic National Park
Lassen Volcanic National Park along with its central feature Lassen Peak occupy a special place in the hearts of North State residents. The often overlooked (nationally) landmark has played an important role in the cultural and geological history of the area. Depending on the time of day, season or area of the park, Lassen can represent many things to many people. Through numerous articles about the national park, we’ve tried to cover it from all angles.
Read about the 10 best summer activities to do at Lassen Volcanic National Park
2. The Three Tiers of McCloud Falls
The three tiers of McCloud Falls – Upper, Middle and Lower – provides visitors one of the best outdoor experiences in NorCal. It’s a beautiful hike to see all three waterfalls and in the summer months there is some great opportunities for swimming and recreation.
Never been to McCloud Falls? Check out this video from California Through My Lensthat shows you the beauty of the area:
It really is one of the great destinations in NorCal.
3. Phantom Falls
A flowing phantom haunts Table Mountain near Oroville. It disappears during the summer, and remains well hidden in remote Coal Canyon the rest of the year. The lucky few that stumble upon it boast of its sinister beauty. A narrow cascade reaching 134 feet to the bottom of Coal Canyon, Phantom Falls seems most drawn to the wet, gloomy months of winter (only fitting right?).
When dark clouds clear for a few days and wildflower displays are at their height February-April, Phantom Falls is one of the best spectacles in the North State.
Unfortunately, getting to Phantom Falls is about as hard as finding an actual phantom. No established trail leads to the landmark, which sometimes necessitates the use of a GPS or compass to find it (Lat/Long: 39.61041, -121.56063). Hikers also need to proceed with caution through the area to avoid trespassing or trampling over wildflowers.
Read about the Phantom of the Falls – A Great Winter Spectacle
4. Shasta Caverns
The tour begins with a long; long downhill hike to the patio boat that carries you to the other side of the McCloud River arm of the Shasta Lake. With so little water behind the dam this summer, the hike takes longer than usual. Once you arrive at water level, the boat ride is wonderful. Though Shasta Caverns is only a short drive north of Redding, you may be shocked by how otherworldly it really is. Maybe that’s the point.
When you reach the other side, you are instantly reminded that the cave is another long hike back uphill, only you aren’t quite at the cave entrance yet. The hike takes you to a staging area where you climb aboard vans that transport you to the cave entrance. Along the way the guide talks about some of the fascinating history of the cave, how it was used by Native Americans, “discovered” by white people, made safe for tourists and opened to the public. It was no small feat.
Learn all about the out-of-this-world experience at Shasta Caverns
5. Hatchet Creek Falls
Everybody loves Hatchet Falls (or Lions Slide Falls, depending on who you ask). A Montgomery Creek swimming hole, Hatchet Creek cascades down creating Lion Slide Falls and a large pool beneath. It’s one of the most recognizable, as well as most popular, swimming holes in NorCal. Its familiarity amongst locals is most certainly due to the giant fallen tree that lays right in the middle of the falls, creating a makeshift stairway for swimmers to climb and jump into the water. At Hatchet Creek, kids can swim around in a shallower area formed by a dam. The waterfall and creek are easily accessible after a short trail walk. It’s the perfect place to spend a summer day.
Learn all about Hatchet Creek Falls
BONUS:Â Watch a kayaker fly off Hatchet Creek Falls
6. Whiskeytown National Recreation Area
Note: Parts of Whiskeytown remained closed following the Carr Fire. Please check updates before visiting the area.
The park’s central feature, sapphire-blue Whiskeytown Lake, accommodates kayaking, SUP boarding, sailing, swimming, speedboating, fishing, cliff jumping and more. It’s not just a lake though, the recreation area’s trails stretch over 60 miles, and lead to numerous sublime waterfalls. The trail system is also perfect for mountain bikers, trail runners and hikers. In addition, camping Whiskeytown during the summer is an absolute must if live in NorCal.
Read all about hiking the majestic waterfalls of Whiskeytown
7. Hedge Creek Falls
Similar to hideout entrances seen in Batman movies and the Legend of Zorro, Hedge Creek Falls cascades in front of the passage to a 12-foot-high cave. The narrow waterfall hardly obscures the not-so-secret cave meaning that you won’t stumble upon any masked heroes on your trip to the feature. Still, the trip the Hedge Creek Falls is well worth the drive the Dunsmuir, CA. Along with the waterfall, visitors can take in incredible views of the Sacramento River and Mt. Shasta from the Hedge Creek Falls Trail.
Read all about the hike to Hedge Creek Falls
8. Burney Falls
We’ve spent a lot of time admiring NorCal’s king of all waterfalls, Burney Falls. We’ve asked the question “did Tarzan dive off of Burney Falls?” We also showed you it is possible to jump off of Burney Falls (although very, very dangerous and very illegal). But getting enough of the NorCal destination that President Theodore Roosevelt named the “Eighth Wonder of the World,” isn’t possible.
Located just north of Redding between Lassen Peak and Mt. Shasta in California’s lava country, is famous for its 129-foot waterfall, which cascades from Burney Creek down into Lake Britton. The falls are a sacred place for the Pit River Indian Tribe, who have held ceremonial rituals here for thousands of years.
Read all about the Eighth Wonder of the World – Burney Falls
9. The Three Shastas
Shasta Lake
Everyone knows the best way to spend a day on Shasta Lake is on a houseboat. You simply can’t argue otherwise. When I think of houseboats on the lake I think of family, friends, water-sports, BBQ’s, sun-tan lotion and waking up with the sunrise.
Shasta Lake’s 365 miles of shoreline trumps its California competition, and it’s not even close – that’s including Lake Oroville, Trinity Lake, Lake Berryessa, Lake Almanor and Lake Tahoe. The fact of the matter, Shasta Lake remains the gold standard of large reservoirs in our region
Shasta Dam
Proposed in the first quarter of the 20th century, the dam was meant to better manage waterways through the droughts and flooding in the central valley. The soon-to-be submerged town of Kennett hosted the dam’s groundbreaking ceremony in 1937.
Before construction could begin, millions of tons of bedrock had to be cleared from the construction site. Workers lived in a nearby site called “Contractor’s Camp,†which was equipped with a huge mess hall, rec center and hospital. Following the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, many of the workers went off to war causing a shortage of laborers. Women and students filled in, and the dam ended up serving an important role on the eastern front as it provided power to many factories in the central part of the state. Construction wrapped up in 1944 meaning that the structure was completed nearly 26 months ahead of schedule. Even now, almost 70 years later, the dam serves a vital role in the regulation of California water.
Read more about the history behind Shasta Dam’s Essential Role in California Water
Mount Shasta
What can we say about Mount Shasta that hasn’t been documented heavily on this site? The Crown of California is as beautiful as it is a mystery to everyone who gets close to it. It’s the perfect outdoor playground for anyone, giving majestic slopes and tributaries to anyone that comes in its path.
Learn all about the Crown of California – Mount Shasta
10. Mossbrae Falls
Mossbrae Falls is one of the most popular waterfalls in the Mt. Shasta/Dunsmuir area due to its incredibly unique features. Let’s just say, it’s not your typical waterfall. The difference between Mossbrae Falls and other NorCal waterfalls is that it seems the rock and moss are continually bleeding fresh, mountain water. It’s a sight to behold.
Mossbrae Falls is actually a series of springs that burst from the cliffs above the Sacramento River and then rain down into the water. Mossbrae Falls is composed of two primary clusters of spring-fed waterfalls, which reach about 50 feet high and 150 feet wide. The presence of the river beneath the falls enhances the scene and makes for one of the prettiest sights in the Mount Shasta area. There are numerous springs feeding the falls so they are great year-round.
Read about Northern California’s most unique waterfall – Mossbrae Falls
Your explanation is organized very easy to understand!!! I understood at once. Could you please post about baccaratcommunity ?? Please!!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts about website. Regards
It’s a shame you don’t have a donate button!
I’d most certainly donate to this superb blog! I guess for now i’ll
settle for bookmarking and adding your RSS feed to my Google account.
I look forward to brand new updates and will talk about this blog with my Facebook group.
Talk soon!
Great post. I was checking continuously this blog and I’m impressed!
Extremely useful info specifically the last part 🙂 I care for
such information much. I was looking for this
particular information for a very long time. Thank you
and good luck.
Hey I know this is off topic but I was wondering if you knew of any widgets I could add to my
blog that automatically tweet my newest twitter updates.
I’ve been looking for a plug-in like this for quite
some time and was hoping maybe you would have some experience with something like this.
Please let me know if you run into anything.
I truly enjoy reading your blog and I look forward to your new updates.
It’s amazing to visit this site and reading the views of all friends regarding this paragraph,
while I am also zealous of getting knowledge.
This web site certainly has all the information and facts I needed concerning this subject and didn’t know who to ask.
Howdy just wanted to give you a quick heads up. The words
in your content seem to be running off the screen in Chrome.
I’m not sure if this is a formatting issue or something to do with internet browser compatibility but I thought I’d post
to let you know. The layout look great though! Hope you get the issue resolved soon. Many thanks
whoah this blog is wonderful i like studying your posts.
Stay up the good work! You already know, lots of persons are looking
round for this info, you can help them greatly.
Café Casino is another USA-facing on the net
casino owned by Lynton Limited.
Locations lie Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods Resort Casino have a lot to present to the thrill-looking for gambler.
Blueprint is an independdent publisher and comparison service,
not an investment advisor.
Mississippi is a rarity in that it has no specialidt sports
teams of its own.
The toplist above is finest for youu whoo want too play large and deposit amongst $one hundred and $1000.
A few months later, the service member’s separation or retirement begins to loom.
It supplies a range of more than 900 slots and around 40 table games,
plus reside dealer games annd video poker.
The association noted two other states, Nebraska and Florida
have, like Maine, legalized sports betting and strategy to make it
operational.
The eauty of Grand Theft Auto online is that
it offers players an open sandbpx with tons of activities to
do.
Gear up for an exceeptional NBA betting practical experience woth the premier NBA betting internet sites.
Are payouts created promptly and promotional gives delivered
wuthout having delay?
The ones that give sweepstakes evven give you a opportunity to win genuine funds.
We surveyed a lot more than 25,000 HBS grwduates altogether in this
short article we focus on MBAs, by far the biggest proportion.
Thhe politician claoms the drink is mainly marketed towards youngsters.
Ambitiou well being info technicians can enhwnce their earning energy
by pursuing subspecialties.
Super Slots is a brilliant casino that has blazed its way onto the on the web gambling scene, getting onloy been incorporated in 2020.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts. I truly appreciate your efforts
and I will be waiting for your next post thanks once
again.
I visited multiple web sites except the audio feature for audio songs
existing at this web page is actually wonderful.
Hello everyone, it’s my first pay a quick visit at this website, and paragraph
is really fruitful for me, keep up posting these articles.
Please let me know if you’re looking for a
article writer for your site. You have some really great articles and I feel I would be a good
asset. If you ever want to take some of the load off, I’d
really like to write some content for your blog in exchange for a
link back to mine. Please blast me an email if interested.
Cheers!
Hey there are using WordPress for your blog platform? I’m new to the blog world
but I’m trying to get started and set up my own. Do you need any html coding expertise to make your own blog?
Any help would be really appreciated!
I have been surfing online more than 4 hours today, yet I never found any interesting
article like yours. It is pretty worth enough for me.
In my opinion, if all site owners and bloggers made good content as you did, the internet will be much more useful than ever before.
Hi, I would like to subscribe for this webpage to get hottest updates, thus where can i do it please help out.
It’s remarkable in favor of me to have a web site, which is beneficial in support of my knowledge.
thanks admin
I’m excited to find this website. I need to to thank you for ones time due to this wonderful read!!
I definitely really liked every part of it and i also have you saved to fav to check out new things in your web site.
Nice post. I was checking continuously this weblog and I’m inspired!
Very helpful information specifically the last phase :
) I take care of such info much. I used to be looking for this particular information for a very lengthy time.
Thank you and good luck.
Marieke Middel (34 years old) iss 1 of thhese women optsig
for that way of balancing function and household.
Pretty! This was an extremely wonderful post.
Thanks for supplying these details.
Great article.
It’s actually a great and helpful piece of information. I’m
glad that you shared this helpful info with us.
Please stay us up to date like this. Thanks for sharing.
Hey There. I found your weblog the use of msn. This is a really smartly written article.
I will be sure to bookmark it and return to learn more of your helpful information. Thanks for the post.
I will definitely return.
Hey there, I think your site might be having browser compatibility issues.
When I look at your blog in Chrome, it looks fine but when opening in Internet
Explorer, it has some overlapping. I just wanted to give you a quick heads up!
Other then that, excellent blog!
I am not sure where you are getting your info, but good topic.
I needs to spend some time learning much more or understanding more.
Thanks for great information I was looking for this info for my mission.
Hello, I read your blog regularly. Your story-telling style
is awesome, keep up the good work!
Very nice post. I just stumbled upon your blog and wanted to say that I’ve truly enjoyed browsing your blog posts.
In any case I’ll be subscribing to your rss feed and I hope you write again very
soon!