Anyone looking to discover all of the nooks and crannies of Sacramento can join the Sacramento Walking Sticks, a 27-year-old club that organizes year-round walks all over Sacramento. There are over 500 members in the Sacramento Walking Sticks, making it the largest walking club in the American Volkssport Association. The AVA is a walking organization with more than 300 clubs in the United States. The Walking Sticks organize walks in the Midtown and downtown areas as well as surrounding areas such as Rancho Cordova and Elk Grove. The walks are non-competitive, and each person can set his or her own pace. People will often walk with dogs and kids in strollers. The distance is typically 5

Hobby artists and painters from near and far are invited to attend a free “Plein Air Day” on Saturday, May 14, presented by the State Indian Museum and California State Parks.  First offered in 2010, the special event will take place on the grounds of Sutter’s Fort State Historic Park (where the State Indian Museum is located) and is designed to provide interested participants an opportunity to join other artists in a hands-on community event that embraces nature and celebrates the beauty of the landscape, historic structures and park-like setting. While there is no cost to participate in “Plein Air Day,” interested artists are encouraged to register early.  Participating artists are enco

InAlliance will host the 2nd Annual Gold Rush Poker Run & Walk on Saturday, October 9, 2010 at the El Dorado Trail in Placerville to benefit programs for people with developmental disabilities. The event is geared for people of all ages and skill levels and features a 10 Mile Run, 10K Run, 5K Run/Walk and 1 Mile Stroll. Registration is now open and space is limited. Like most “fun runs”, participants can expect a beautiful course, ample refreshments, awards ceremony and vendor tables, but here is the twist: as you follow your race you will collect playing cards. These cards will create a poker hand that will be worth raffle tickets at the finish line celebration! The number of raffle tick

 Bugs and children go together well, don’t they? Kids had the perfect opportunity Saturday to find out plenty about insects and arachnids at TrailMix.Net in Old Sacramento. The little hobby shop that specializes in kids’ outdoor activities played host to Tabatha Yang, education and outreach coordinator at the University of California at Davis Bohart Museum of Entomology. She brought many specimens to examine, learn from and, yes, even feel. “Don’t worry!” she told the kids. “They don’t bite, and the stick ones only crawl a bunch!” Lots of children were there, with their parents in just as much awe as they were at the bugs. “They’re cool!“ Josh De La Rocha, 7, said. “I like the dogface

 The 107th Intercollegiate Rowing Association (IRA) National Championships is underway at the Sacramento State Aquatics Center on Lake Natoma through Saturday 8am - 2:15pm. (Fridays events are now closed). This is the first time the competition has been held on the west coast. Participants are:  Varsity Heavyweight Eight 2nd Varsity Heavyweight Eight Freshman Heavyweight EightBoston University Boston University Boston UniversityBrown University Brown University Brown UniversityCollege of the Holy Cross Columbia University Cornell UniversityColumbia University Cornell University Dartmouth CollegeCornell University Dartmouth College George Washington UniversityDartmouth College George Was

As pleasant springtime weather becomes more and more common, many Sacramento residents head outside for relaxation and fun, especially to city waterways. This Friday, April 17, marks the begining of Creek Week, an event intended to make sure those waterways are still serviceable. Creek Week is an event sponsored and organized by the Sacramento Area Creeks Council, to draw attention to the condition of Sacramento's creeks. A week of activities, including tours of the Mather Field vernal pools and a "river-friendly" landscaping workshop, culminates in a day of volunteer cleanup work on Saturday, April 25. The Creeks Council emphasizes the benefits of well-maintained creeks, citing their us

It is spring in Sacramento. Flowers are blooming and the trees have grown back their thick canopy of leaves. Our bodies are feeling the natural urge to be outside in the sunshine to enjoy what nature has to offer, and the greater Sacramento area definitely has a lot of it.   Sacramento and its surrounding areas contain some of the most beautiful landscapes in California. There are hikes and nature walks aplenty in this region that can give a good dose of springtime joy, all of which can be reached with a short drive or bicycle ride.   Following are some classic favorites:   Capitol Park: Downtown, 15th and L Streets — 1.5 mile loop   Not so much a hike as a walk, but beautiful nonethel

Sacramento, CA. – A local outdoor enthusiast decides to send some foster children to summer camp. Despite the negative effects of the economic downturn on charitable causes, contributions currently exceed expectations by 500% for The Power of Motion, a local man’s campaign to give back to the community. Local outdoorsman Jef Spencer decides to give back to the community by creating a charitable campaign called The Power of Motion. This charity celebrates a commitment to giving through the support of keeping in a hiker in motion. Be it on foot or by bike, sponsors contribute for every mile hiked or biked by the creator of the charity throughout 2009. 100% of the proceeds go to sending fost

"2009 rafting flows confirmed!" The American River website (www.theamericanriver.com) boasted the good news on Sat. March 7 following a storm that dropped enough presipitation to guarantee a full and fun-filled whitewater rafting season through the 2009 summer. This is exciting news for thrill-seekers, water sport enthusiasts, and rafting guides (such as myself) alike. The South Fork of the American River is the most rafted river in California, with hundreds of people boating down the Class II and Class III rapids on any given weekend throughout the summer months. It is the historical site of James Marshall's discovery of gold that led to the "Gold Rush" and the eventual statehood of Cal

If you're one of the approximately 100,000 Sacramentans who may have two extra free days a month, thanks to likely furloughs of state workers this month, you're in luck. No, you're not going to get that 10 percent of your income back. But with snow on the way this week, you have another option: Ski Squaw. The Squaw Valley Ski Resort announced today that it is offering furloughed state workers a deal on ski lift tickets - alliteratively known as Furlough Fridays - the first and third Fridays of the month. And the first one is this Friday, Feb. 6. All California State employees affected by the furloughs will be able to ski or snowboard at Squaw Valley for only $30. To purchase the tickets