Improvements continue at Clear Creek Greenway, the trail system and recreation area located between Redding and Igo.
The Bureau of Land Management recently installed a number of signs to guide people to trailheads and parking areas located along Clear Creek and Cloverdale roads. The BLM is also finishing up work on a new parking lot for the Cloverdale trailhead, located on Cloverdale Road between Placer and Clear Creek roads.
The old parking lot had space for only a handful of cars and one or two horse trailers. The new gravel parking area is probably 10 times larger and replaces an area at the trailhead that BLM Assistant Field Manager Francis Berg described as “soggy flats.” Those who have slogged through that short stretch during the rainy season know what he means.
If you’ve never checked out the Cloverdale section of the greenway, I strongly recommend it. The approximately seven miles of trails provide a variety of loop options for hikers, mountain bikers, horse riders and trail runners. Great views of the dramatic Clear Creek canyon, Shasta Bally and Bully Choop, the Sacramento Valley and Lassen Peak present themselves often. There are four waterfalls or cascades that I know of, although they are drying up quickly. But the wildflowers are really coming on right now.
A few miles away at the Clear Creek Gorge overlook, along Clear Creek Road, Western Shasta County Resources Conservation District is building a pavilion that will house an interpretive display. It will explain the long process of restoring Clear Creek, the creek’s role in the Central Valley Project (which provides water for agriculture in the Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys), and the lifecycle of the salmon that spawn in Clear Creek, according to Mary Mitchell, district manager.
Dunton Construction poured the foundation for the project on Wednesday. Redding artist Paul Rideout is making ceramic panels that will be part of the interpretive display. The whole project should wrap up in a few weeks, Mitchell said.
The gorge overlook has become a popular spot to access the trail and creek, walk the dog, and, during the fall, observe the spawning salmon and steelhead. The area already offers picnic tables, an overlook with artsy touches, a vault toilet, and a map and information kiosk.
“There has been little to no vandalism, because there’s always someone around, and people really appreciate it,” Mitchell added.
District officials are still hoping to build a footbridge across Clear Creek. Currently, trail users must rely on the narrow shoulder of the Clear Creek Road bridge to connect Horsetown and the Cloverdale trail system with the lower Clear Creek Trail that goes to the gorge and the Gold Dredge trailhead, close to town. The district has some money remaining from a state bond fund grant that has paid for many of the greenway’s recreation improvements and ecosystem restoration. However, the district cannot tap the remaining money until the state adopts a budget. Even then, the district may need to do some fund-raising to complete the footbridge project.
For maps of the Clear Creek Greenway, including the Cloverdale section, visit the Horsetown Clear Creek Preserve website.
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• The other basketball playoffs … Friday, April 15, is the deadline for teams and vendors to register for the second annual “The Battle for Nor Cal” co-ed youth basketball tournament. Scheduled for April 30 and May 1 at Shasta High in Redding, the event features a double-elimination tournament and three age divisions for ballers from 9 to 18 years old. There’s also a health fair both days. For team registration or vendor information, contact Danielle Brewster of Local Indians for Education at (530) 275-1513, ext. 105.
• Torn to shreds … Premier West Bank at 880 Cypress Avenue in Redding is hosting a “shred day” from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. this Saturday, April 16. The bank will destroy documents you don’t want anyone getting a hold of for $3 per box. The event is a fundraiser for local Boy Scouts.
• Don’t believe it … The Shasta County Sheriff’s Office is warning people of a scam in which you get a call from some hysterical, crying person who claims to be your child or grandchild. The caller says she (or he) has been arrested but is too upset to talk, so she hands the phone to an alleged attorney or public defender, who then requests several thousand dollars. The sheriff’s office recommends confirming with a law enforcement agency that a family member has been arrested before you start sending money. No one locally has been victimized, but this is a recurring scam, so someone must bite once in a while.
• Another bloody award … Sorry, that was a terrible pun. Anyway, congrats to the Wound Healing and Hyperbaric Medicine Center at Mercy Medical Center Redding for winning a “Front Runner Award” from National Healing Corporation, a network of researchers and specialists. Mercy’s center provides care for patients suffering from diabetic ulcers, pressure ulcers, infections and other chronic wounds that that are no joke.
Paul Shigley is senior editor of California Planning & Development Report, a frequent contributor to Planning magazine and nearly lost a shoe in soggy flats. He lives in Centerville. Paul Shigley may be reached at pauls.anewscafe@gmail.com.
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