Date: April 9, 2012
Contact: Clinton Kane, (530) 242-3451
Whiskeytown National Recreation Area invites everyone to take the Whiskeytown Waterfall Challenge as part of the larger National Park Week celebration, which begins on Saturday April 21 and continues through Sunday April 29. Designated as a fee-free period, this special event encourages everyone to "Picture Yourself in a National Park" and experience the many significant national treasures and natural wonders throughout the country. Visitors will have a free entrance to any National Park Service site, including Whiskeytown, where they can enjoy a variety of activities during this celebration.
Whiskeytown is offering several opportunities to explore and enjoy your park throughout Waterfall Week. A picture perfect and healthy way to experience the park is to take the Whiskeytown Waterfall Challenge and visit all of the four major waterfalls. To take the Whiskeytown Waterfall Challenge, obtain a free Waterfall Challenge Passport at the visitor center before heading out to one of park's waterfalls. Once at the falls write a personal message in the trail register located at the base of each waterfall, then use the Waterfall Challenge Passport to make a rubbing from a bronze plaque unique to each waterfall. Return the completed passport with all four rubbings from Brandy Creek, Boulder Creek, Crystal Creek and Whiskeytown Falls to the visitor center and receive a special reward, while supplies last!
Ranger-led hikes to Whiskeytown and Brandy Creek falls will also be offered during Waterfall Week. Reservations for the hikes are required and can be made by calling the visitor center at 530-246-1225. In addition, rangers will be available most of the day at Whiskeytown Falls on both weekends during Waterfall Week to provide art supplies for children and their families so they can create a personal and artistic expression of the falls. A Volunteer in the Park will also be on hand to take photos for families and assist them with taking a memorable photo of Whiskeytown Falls.
On Saturday April 21, Whiskeytown Environmental School (WES) is inviting students, friends and families to an open house from 12 noon to 4:00pm. Join the WES staff and park rangers for some hikes, pond exploration, an informal music jam and other activities during this half-day adventure in the park. For more information about the WES Open House, please call 530-225-0111.
Another special activity during Waterfall Week includes a collaborative effort with First 5 Shasta where they celebrate the Week of the Young Child as a time to honor young children and those making a difference in their lives. Little ones ages 3-5 years old and their families are invited to celebrate Earth Day with a park ranger where they can learn how to use their senses to explore and discover the natural wonders of Whiskeytown. Those interested in this unique experience can meet the ranger at the Tower House Historic District parking lot at 1:00 pm on Sunday April 22 for this one-hour presentation.
On Saturday April 28, Whiskeytown will join Lassen Volcanic National Park at the annual Whole Earth and Watershed Festival held at the City Hall in Redding California from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm. National Park Service staff from both parks will join over one hundred local groups and organizations in sharing with visitors ways to live a healthier lifestyle, save money and energy, protect and restore natural resource and discover how the work of many local groups makes communities better places to live. Children can visit the National Park Service booth where they will celebrate National Junior Ranger Day and learn how to become an instant Junior Ranger. For more information about the Whole Earth and Watershed Festival, please visit: http://wholeearthandwatershedfestival.org/.
For additional information about the activities at Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, please contact Clinton Kane at 530-242-3451. To learn more about visiting Whiskeytown National Recreation Area, visit the park's website at www.nps.gov/whis. For more information on National Park Week, please visit: www.nps.gov/npweek or www.nationalparkweek.org.
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