On The Trail: The Sacramento River Trail Redding, California has aggressively developed recreational trails, including two that have received a National Recreation Trail designation. In September 2000 the city hosted the biannual National Trails Symposium and the National Trails Association has recently moved its headquarters to Redding. The feature trail in Redding is the Sacramento River Trail, a 12-foot wide paved path that rolls along both sides of California's largest river, the lively Sacramento. You will encounter a steep uphill every now and then in the course of the nearly 10 miles of trail but overall this is easy canine hiking. The main loop runs from the Diestlehorst Bridge to the Ribbon Bridge and covers about six miles. The Sacramento River Trail is an ideal hike for studying bridge architecture. Classical arch bridges transport vehicular traffic across the Sacramento and the Diestlehorst Bridge is a prototypical 19th century pier-and-girder bridge. The Ribbon Bridge is the first of its kind in the nation - a 13-foot wide, 420-foot long concrete stess-ribbon structure. The Sundial Bridge at Turtle Bay is the first American project for the celebrated Spanish bridge architect, Santiago Calatrava. The focal point of his design is a 218-foot curved tower on the north bank of the river that doubles as support for the bridge's suspension cables and as the world's largest sundial. The bridge sports a glass decking that enhances the natural light and enables unobstructed views of the mountains at the horizon and the salmon at play below. <<Back To January 2007 Newsletter <<Back To Article Index