Life is full of exquisite diversions.

I got a card from an old friend today. This is the front of it.

I am absorbing for the first time the fact that that my husband of almost 25 years has the magnificent skill of pivoting from the big picture plan when necessary, whereas I am really great at staying the course while I painstakingly work out the fine points and details. This is a very good combination for us as we move forward for more stimulating, exhilarating and meaningful lives, but these different approaches can seem at odds to each other along the way. This card summed that up and reminded me of the journey! Thanks friend.

“If you like the outdoors…”  This is what everyone we’ve met here says about Redding, almost as an apology. If you like the outdoors, Redding is a great place to live. And many of the people we have met either used to live, or currently live, out of town on a hill or along the river and have land to spare. It is a beautiful place with incredible views.

We are living in the bottom apartment of a beautiful home. Because the home is built into a hill, our apartment has windows and a patio. Right now I am writing with my back to the kitchen window and basking in the sun. From the patio, I can see the mountains including Lassen Peak. From the wall of windows in the yoga studio at the local Y, in any twisting pose, I see the mountains as well.

As far as we can tell, Redding is full of people who like the outdoors. Chris went biking with the Shasta Wheelman on our third day here. One of guys in the group told me about an informal group that hikes every Wednesday morning, and I have joined them 3 Wednesdays in a row. If every muscle in my body did not hurt, we would have joined them at the annual President’s Day pie hike; you hike 4 miles and in the middle, get to eat pie! On our second day here, we hiked in Lassen Volcanic National Park, which is about 1½ hours away. 2 weekends later, we tried to hike at Mount Shasta, where it was snowing (white out conditions), so we opted out and hiked at Castle Crags instead (5.6 miles, 2200 elevation gain, shockingly beautiful).

Mt. Shasta trailhead where we declined to hike in white out conditions.

           

 

My hiking group is mainly older people who are all super energetic. An 82 year old ex-military man who is probably the fastest hiker, the sharpest thinker, and bikes 3 times a week to boot. There are a number of women who taught school, a land planner who worked for the state and a numbers of counties, a historian, and a man who works for the Redding Parks and Recreation department. Many have lived in others places, mostly Southern California. Two grew up in New York state. Many are ex-mountain bikers. Everyone has aches and pains, but there is little conversation about that. Most volunteer somewhere and seem to travel a bit to keep life stimulating. Wendy does volunteer work at the hospital where after a while she took over the information desk portion of the volunteer organization at the hospital. They know all the trails, much of the history, a lot of neat places to visit, a lot about native plants and trees, and history of some of the structures and mines we encounter on our hikes. They have formed a little lovely community of those who like to be outside. Many are retired, many are widowed, and they have each others’ backs. Finding out about a new place gets way easier when you talk in depth to the people that live there!

The downtown is different than what I normally expect. There are shops and restaurants that are isolated on various streets, rather than all grouped together. It it is difficult to see what is here. At some point, a downtown pedestrian mall was created, but it failed and is deserted with few businesses. Turtle Bay Exploration Park and the Sundial Bridge are close to downtown but difficult to get to by bike or walking. At Turtle Bay, there is a museum there with a lovely outdoor café overlooking the river, an arboretum and botanical gardens, and a number of exhibits. The arboretum and botanical gardens are focusing on reclamation of the natural environment and include a pond with otters and beavers. On any beautiful day, there are always people, but on Saturday, it was extremely busy.

If you know where to go, there are hidden treasures. Woody’s Brewery is downtown, has tons of great burgers, homemade garlic tater tots, and a grapefruit tree with ripe fruits in the parking lot. The first time I was there with the hiking group, there was a young man in the tree picking for a woman on the ground. He picked another bag for one of the women in my group when she asked! We also found another restaurant called Moonstone Bistro with fresh food, interesting cocktails, and great service.

The local Y where I work out most days is small but well-utilized. There are a large number of classes and they are all well attended. I take yoga, pilates and when it is cooler than 60 degrees, spinning.

Our time here ends soon and we leave for a couple of months of desert, spring wild flowers, warmer temperatures and even more time outside.