249 Outdoors- Other to Explore in California

Baylands Park provides over 70 acres of developed parkland offering active recreation, pathways and picnic areas for families and large groups. It offers biking, hiking, nature trails and access to the San Francisco Bay Trail, which connects 300 miles of trails along the shoreline of San Francisco Bay.

Big Basin Redwoods State Park is the oldest state park in California The park contains almost all of the Waddell Creek watershed, which was formed by the seismic uplift of its rim, and the erosion of its center by the many streams in its bowl-shaped depression. The park has many waterfalls, a wide variety of environments (from lush canyon bottoms to sparse chaparral-covered slopes), many animals and abundant bird life – including Steller's jays, egrets, herons and acorn woodpeckers.

The Big Pine Creek North Fork Trail will lead you to one of Southern California's most colorful gems - the glacier fed, turquoise colored Big Pine Lakes. This is a very popular area for backpacking, camping, and fishing, so you'll likely encounter other people while exploring. There are 7 Big Pine Lakes, numbered sequentially. For this hike, we only visited the first three, as snow and ice were blocking the trail for lakes 4-7.

Sycamore Canyon is situated in the northernmost region of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area below the 3,000 feet peaks of the Boney Mountain State Wilderness Area. The canyon in the park is one of the riparian woodlands along the California coast. It contains a number of California sycamore trees. Big Sycamore Canyon Trail is a popular trail. The sycamore-lined canyon is close to numerous trailheads, including the Backbone Trail.

This Trailhead offers fantastic views nearly all the way, six lakes together with many ponds, streams and floral meadows, and ending by traversing a rocky slope above the final lake and climbing steeply to a saddle along the Sierra Crest at 11,972 feet. The hike begins at South Lake, reached by a paved road off Hwy 168, so the easy access, the relatively gentle elevation gain and the route to the Kings Canyon backcountry with the incredible scenery make the route often relatively busy.

Black Chasm Cavern is a cave nestled in the hamlet of Volcano, located in Amador County, California. It is a dissolution cave, formed by sulfuric acid resulting from Geo-thermal hydrogen sulfide reacting with down-moving oxygenated surface water.

Border Field State Park is a state park of California, United States, containing beach and coastal habitat on the Mexico–United States border. The park is within the city limits of Imperial Beach in San Diego County, next to the suburb of Playas de Tijuana in Mexico. It contains the southernmost point in the state of California.

This historic ranch property is hidden in a pristine valley south of Half Moon Bay. The area offers solitude and a rich assortment of plants and wildlife along the riparian corridor of Mills Creek. The ranch is sheltered from wind and fog and is often several degrees warmer than the town of Half Moon Bay. A trail from the parking area consists of the old ranch road along Mills Creek. After a mile it passes a 1930s bungalow that serves as a park residence.

This is a state park of California showcasing a secluded redwood-filled canyon. The park features miles of hiking trails, 21 drive-in campsites, and 18 walk-in campsites, restrooms and more. Guided nature walk and weekend campfire programs are offered during the summer.

The Butte Creek Ecological Preserve is a 93-acre site along the middle section of Butte Creek. The site was formerly used for gold, sand and gravel mining, and is recovering from those activities. It contains more than a mile of creek frontage, as well as habitat for many species of special status, including the Western Pond Turtle and Yellow-legged Frog. The reserves protect habitat for other species such as bald eagle, Swainson's hawk, beaver and the western pond turtle.

This majestic 4,471 acre park is nestled in the eastern foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. Two distinct areas define this park: Calero reservoir, which offers a host of water-oriented recreational activities, and the adjoining "back country" which reveals to the visitor California Oak woodland, chaparral, riparian plant communities and associated wildlife habitats.The back country offers 18.9 miles of trails available to hikers and equestrians.

Calico is a ghost town and former mining town in San Bernardino county. it was founded in 1881 as a silver mining town, and today has been converted into a county park named Calico Ghost Town.

Castle Rock State Park is a 5,242-acre state park of California, United States, located along the crest of the Santa Cruz Mountains. It embraces coast redwood, Douglas fir, and madrone forest, most of which has been left in its wild, natural state. Steep canyons are sprinkled with unusual rock formations that are a popular rock climbing area. The forest here is lush and mossy, crisscrossed by 32 miles of hiking trails.

Cedar Mountain Winery is a wine and spirits company based out of 7000 Tesla Rd, Livermore, California, United States.Earl and Linda Ault, former mountain climbers, established the winery in 1990. The tasting room is located on the east side of Livermore Valley. Come enjoy our peaceful setting with amazing views of the vineyards, hills, and the occasional herd of cows!

Chase Palm Park along the Pacific Coast, in the heart of Santa Barbara, with its palm trees, is a very pleasent park for walking, running, and biking. This is an extensive park that encompasses much of both sides of East Cabrillo Boulevard and includes a palm tree-lined park adjacent to East Beach. An oceanfront bike path and walkway runs the length of Chase Palm Park from Stearns Wharf along East Beach.

The Chico Seed Orchard is located on 209 acres in Chico, California. Today they produces plants for projects such as reforestation, wildfire recovery, watershed restoration, fisheries, riparian habitat for threatened and endangered species, Native American culture values, oak woodland restoration, mine reclamation, campgrounds and interpretive areas, forest health including research and disease resistance.

A 38,150 acres of Wilderness is situated in the Mt. Pinos Ranger District and is also near the town of Frazier Park. It includes Mt. Pinos which was an integral part of Chumash life and is still extremely important to the local Chumash residents. The vegetation is mainly pine forests in the northern portion and a combination of badlands and chaparral in the south. Hiking and camping are among the many recreational opportunities. Snow in the winter provides opportunities for winter recreation.

Claremont Canyon Regional Preserve is nestled in the Berkeley and Oakland hills behind the historic Claremont Hotel. There are a lot of scenic views in the area, but this one is especially good because it’s high, yet it’s also close to the urbanized flatlands of Berkeley and Oakland. The Preserve is relatively undeveloped and offers almost no amenities to visitors other than two hiking trails: Stonewall Panoramic Trail and Gwin Canyon Trail.

This is a national forest that encompasses around 460,000 acres which is a warm dry Mediterranean climate that prevails over the Forest. It is the southernmost National forest of California. It is administered by the United States Forest Service, which is a government agency.

Coal Oil Point, located just west of the UCSB campus, is an ecologically important area that is home to a number of endangered and threatened species.Largely undisturbed coastal dunes support a rich assemblage of dune vegetation and has become a nesting site for the endangered Snowy Plover.