May 23-24: Redding, California

May 23-24: Redding, California

May 24, 2012

Elks Lodge, Redding, CA

Another easy drive; another 2-night stop; more nice weather.  What’s not to like?

We started out Wednesday at our (new) standard departure time of 10:00 (+/-).  We easily cut across town in Chico and were soon back on CA-99 headed North.  It didn’t take us long to reach CA-36 which connected us with I-5 in Red Bluff.  Continuing North, we were soon exiting in Redding and made our way to the local Elks Lodge.

As with most Lodges, parking is first come-first served, so we selected a space, unhooked, backed in and hooked up.  I’d selected this Lodge over the one in Red Bluff since all their sites are 50 Amp (plus water and cable TV), and we’d need the extra power if it was warm enough to need the air conditioning.  We didn’t, but it was nice to have it just in case, as it gets pretty warm in Redding.

I checked in and then headed off for a walk.  Fortunately, the Lodge is located right on the Sacramento River and there’s a very good walking/biking trail along the river.  Actually, it goes for over 40 miles, way more than I needed on foot!  Heading west, I was able to cross the river (the trail uses both sides of the river) and make the walk into a loop as opposed to an out-and-back.  To the suspension bridge and back was just about 6 miles, a nice hike.  Later in the afternoon, we headed into the Lodge and had a glass of wine.  It’s another rather large facility, but not quite as active as Chico.

Today, I went for another walk along the Sacramento River, this time heading east to the Turtle Bay area.  I saw the turtles and the Sundial Bridge before retracing my route back.

In the afternoon, we did some shopping, since this will be the last “big city” we’ll see until we’re in Oregon in early-June.  We also did some preparations for tomorrow’s travel day, even though we don’t have far to go.