All Stories from Northern CA

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  Gray's in Fashion

  Built in 1872, Pigeon Point Lighthouse is an iconic mainstay on the San Mateo Coast. Go in winter and get a big bonus: you might spy a gray whale migrating. Pigeon Point Light Station State Historic Park is one of the best places for spying them.

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  SF LED's the Way

  Something very cool is glowing on in San Francisco until New Year’s Day. 35 vibrant light art installations are brightening up neighborhoods throughout the city. Illuminate SF is a

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  Island Tree Topper

  The Christmas light atop Angel Island State Park’s Mount Livermore has long been a cheerful twinkle visible from many cities throughout the Bay Area on holiday season nights. Get i

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  Sponsored

  Holiday Gift Guide: The North Face at Adventure 16

  The North Face and specialty retailer Adventure 16 share something super cool in common: They’re all about getting people outdoors. Their goal: inspire you to push your own boundar

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  Nisene Quiet

  The sublime Forest of Nisene Marks State Park is popular for good reason, but head to its far reaches and you’ll be awestruck by the solitude beneath the looming redwoods. The Loma

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  Oh, Henry!

  Hike through a verdant redwood forest less traveled and get a glimpse into Santa Cruz of old, when oxen, wagons, and miners populated the hills. The Fall Creek Unit in Henry Cowell

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  Sponsored

  Bend Up to Oregon

  Bend just might be the West’s best mountain town: Flanked by the glistening Cascade Mountains and with the famously flowing Deschutes River running right through downtown, this cen

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  Hike to New Lights

  For an enlightening late day hike, catch the San Francisco skyline at sunset from high atop Ring Mountain. The Ring Mountain Open Space Preserve in Tiburon is pretty compact but oc

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  Drake Awakening

  Part salt water, part fresh water, Drake’s Estero is smack in the middle of Point Reyes, and one of only two marine wilderness areas in the entire nation. Yeah, it’s worth a look. Get the extended version by hiking right alongside it.

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  Merry Colorful State Park

  Red, green, and blue are just a few of the holiday hues. Get your Christmas colors and some solitude on a 5-mile (round-trip) hike in Butano State Park on the San Mateo Coast. The

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  Peak Pondering

  Some magical hikes begin like a magic trick: The start is filled with lots of people, and then, within minutes, it's quiet. All you have to do is find the entrance to Narnia—or, in this case, Laurel Canyon Trailhead in the East Bay’s Tilden Regional Park.

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  Headlands Happiness

  One of the many reasons people love the Bay Area is that getting outdoors for a coastal adventure is always an option. And there’s probably no better example than hiking the Marin

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  Sponsored

  Road Trip Less Traveled

  Scrolling through your social media feed looking for quick-trip ideas, and it’s all same old, same old? Time to shake things up! Time for a road trip to the most mountainous state

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  Steep Sleep

  Perhaps the best deal in the Bay Area: an oceanfront cabin at Steep Ravine for $100. The challenge? Actually reserving one of these popular cabins! Don’t be dissuaded; the effort is well worth it.

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  Lighthouse ZZZs

  It’s the closest point of land to the Hawaiian Islands in the continental United States and it might well be the best view on the coast. The historic 115-foot lighthouse tower at P

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  Happy Ending

  Everybody loves a happy ending. And one of the happiest endings in Northern California is where the Russian River empties into the Pacific. Get a front row seat to witness this won

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  Sponsored

  Coast the Holiday

  When you need to break up the holiday routine, just take it SLO. San Luis Obispo is a Central Coast destination that has just about everything for a quick escape: uncrowded beaches

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  Fall-filling Yosemite

  A cool thing is happening in Yosemite National Park right now. The summer crowds are gone and the valley is alive with waterfalls ... and the colors of fall. Time to get out of you

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  River of Bicycle Dreams

  Cycling without having to worry about cars? Hooray! Cycling beside a gently flowing river through fall foliage? Double hooray! The Sacramento River Trail in Redding lives up to its

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  Miley Menagerie

  You’ll need to go up the hill and through the trees to get to the hidden expanse of San Francisco’s Fort Miley. Tucked behind Lands End and with a picnic table and solo grill, the

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