Redding CA Information - Pictures, Recreation, Real Estate, Neighborhoods.

Redding is one of California's last frontiers As mentioned on the Home page, Redding is the gateway to Northern California. You can see by the map to the right, Redding is surrounded by mountains and is at the northern end of California’s Central Valley. A large portion of the land in Northern California is in National Forests, National Recreation Areas, National Wilderness Areas, and State Parks. Included here is a Photo Gallery in the area labeled Area Photos for you to see the scenery that many people covet. Be sure to check out the Links page, there you'll find an abundance of local information.

North: Mt. Shasta and its 14,162 foot peak dominate the view, and is approximately a one hour drive to see this beauty up close. On your way up Interstate 5 from Redding you would pass by Lake Shasta. Many people mistake this lake for a series of lakes because of its many "fingers" that stretch quite a distance. You would also pass by a turnoff to Lake Shasta Caverns which is an underground cavern system that is easily accessible by guided tour. As you continue, you will see an enormous rock formation called Castle Crags. As you pass by these natural wonders, you would be following the valley that includes the Upper Sacramento River which is one the most notable fisheries in the United States. Much of what you wouldn’t see on this little trip could fill an encyclopedia.

		South: This takes you out of the forest lands and into the serene beauty of rolling hills of ranch and farming properties in the valley. For those who enjoy the sights and sounds of the city, San Francisco and Sacramento are just a few hours away form Redding. East: As we look to the east, the dominating feature is Mt. Lassen and its 10,457 foot peak. This mountain is unique; you can drive your car or truck high enough up so that a "day hike" will get you to the summit and back down, still leaving time to get home in Redding. That isn’t the case with Mt. Shasta, as many experienced mountaineers have fallen victim trying to get to the top. Mt. Lassen and the surrounding forests are one of my favorite areas. They are scattered with alpine lakes and have access roads galore. Burney Falls, just outside the town of Burney is interesting. Much of the water that comes over the falls actually comes out of the rocky base of the falls; the very porous lava rock allows it to flow thru. If you enjoy a little gambling, Reno, Nevada, is about a three and one-half hour drive and can make a nice weekend of indulgence.
If you have the time watch these two nice video's for more Redding area information, you'll be glad you did.

West:
As you head out of Redding, you pass by Whiskeytown Lake and just prior to it and barely outside the city of Redding is the historic gold rush town of Shasta, the roots of our area form the 1800's. Continuing west over Buckhorn Summit and into the Trinity Wilderness Area. The Trinity Alps are reminiscent of the Swiss Alps, but a bit closer to home. Trinity Lake, and the small town of Weaverville are in this direction. Upon leaving the valley where Redding is located you get forest, forest, and more forest all the way to the Pacific Ocean, about a 3-hour drive from Redding. This drive will take you through both Trinity and Humboldt Counties, which are renowned for supplying us with the necessary wood products to build our homes.

Our Community:
Once inside a 30 minute time frame from Redding, the local communities and neighborhoods come into the focus. In Redding itself which is at an elevation of 550 feet, you can travel to the higher elevations of the surrounding foothills ranging to more than 4000 feet. The smaller areas of Shingletown, Whitmore, Oak Run, Round Mountain, French Gulch, or next to Lake Shasta in Lakehead. Within just 10-15 minutes of the center of town, you could be in a somewhat rural setting in Palo Cedro, Anderson, Cottonwood, Bella Vista, historic Old Shasta, or Mountain Gate. All of these smaller areas have a variety of housing options. The variety of housing options and settings appeals to those who relocate, but with Redding being a community of less than 100,000, the number of developed properties available is limited.

Within the subdivision settings are varied in size and price ranges. To see some samples of these, head to the Properties for Sale section. In the first few pages of that section of the site, you’ll see some properties located in various areas for informational purposes. You can click on Current Listings to see all of the active properties for sale by viewing the Redding MLS, you really can see them all. I'd be happy to help you find what you’re looking for.

Health Care:
As times change and the years pass by, the health care centers become more important. With Redding in the middle of this vast area it has become the mecca for the entire area’s heath care needs. The city has two major hospitals, Mercy Medical Center and Shasta Regional Medical Center both offer state-of-the-art treatment facilities. They include the specialties of cancer therapy, cardiac surgery, trauma, laser surgeries, maternity, infertility, reproductive disorders, and others. Each have air ambulance services. There is a specialty hospital and a Veterans Medical Center. You can be well served in this community by the abundance of medical services.

Education:
For detailed information you can click the School Info button to get information on the local elementary and high schools. A very general overview of the higher education options:

Shasta College: A community college with 14,000 enrollment has been here for many years with programs for university transfer and occupational-technical training.

Simpson University: A private fully accredited liberal arts school, offers several Bachelor of Arts Degrees, a Degree Completion Program and some Graduate degrees.

California State University Chico: Many people commute to Chico, which is 75 miles south of Redding and approximately a one hour and ten minute drive. This University also offers some outreach classes in the Redding area.

History:
The community started like many others and was inhabited by the American Indians. The settlers came to Old Shasta during the Gold Rush and started the greater Redding community down the path that it has taken. As the Railroad expanded northward to Redding in 1872, it came to an ending point at the base of the mountains and stopped. The Railroad laid out the town and started selling lots, the first main street was California St where the historic Lorenz Hotel still stands. From the mining boom in the early 1900's to the timber industry in the 1950's and 60's, much has happened to make this area the focal point of the north state. One of the more prominent occurrences is the construction of Shasta Dam as part of the Central Valley Project finished in 1945. You can visit the Historical Society on the web, they are located in the Links section of this site where you can read all about the events that molded this area.

Water:
Oh my! Where would we be without water? With three major lakes nearby: Shasta, Whiskeytown, and Trinity, and four major rivers: the Sacramento, the McCloud, the Pit and the Trinity it makes Shasta County a haven for water lovers. This abundance of water has been used to help make the semi-desert Central Valley one of the most productive agricultural areas in the world. When we consider at our day-to-day use, this abundance makes water much less of an issue than in many areas. In most of the surrounding rural areas it is common for a well to provide domestic water.

I hope this has given you a brief overview of this area and some of its attributes. We who live here are truly the lucky ones. The outdoor lifestyle along with affordable housing, low crime rate, excellent educational system, and enviable climate attract many people from larger urban areas and across the nation. This may be the place you want to call home.