California - 2008 Official State Visitor's Guide and Travel Planner - (Page 26) bird’s-eye view of the many rapids along this famed trout stream. The white roar of the tumbling water permeates the air between the Upper, Middle, and Lower Falls, and the creatures that dwell in this forest have long forgotten the sound of silence. But the residents of McCloud haven’t. Not a tourist was stirring t’s morning in this quiet town of 1,300 people, and Alicia goes looking for coffee while I yak it up with several locals outside the bank on Main Street. Current gossip includes talk of a black bear recently seen strolling through town. Across the street and over a small spread of grass, the illustrious Shasta Sunset Dinner Train L sunset train] [ lies idle in the rising sun, awaiting its evening departure into the woods. The McCloud River Mercantile Company, with its Old West façade and various oddity shops within, is the sort of place you’d expect to be crawling with tourists, but Alicia and I are the only ones here today. About the noisiest thing in town, in fact, resides in Sugar Pine Candy Shoppe: an espresso machine, the first we’ve seen in these parts. The city of Mt. Shasta, near the junction of 89 and I-5, offers a counterpoint of culture, art, food, and hip international spirit, and a walk down Mt. Shasta Boulevard serves up a feast for the senses, but a greater presence dominates everything. You feel it as you look to the west, north, and south; face eastward and you see it, 14,162 feet tall: Mt. Shasta. Alicia and I squander the warm afternoon on the front patio of Billy Goats Tavern, locally famed for its selection of over 100 microbrews, as the volcanic peak towers 2 miles above us. Like Mt. Lassen, Shasta has erupted before and still spews steam on occasion, but for now it’s sleeping. That’s fine, since we’re just settling in ourselves for a good rest. Anyway, our sandwiches are on the way, and I’m planning to savor my beer until sundown. ALASTAIR BLAND I The finest outlet shopping in California. Save 25% to 65% every day CAMARILLO PREMIUM OUTLETS • CAMARILLO • (805) 445-8520 CARLSBAD PREMIUM OUTLETS • CARLSBAD • (760) 804-9000 DESERT HILLS PREMIUM OUTLETS • CABAZON • (951) 849-6691 FOLSOM PREMIUM OUTLETS • FOLSOM • (916) 985-0312 GILROY PREMIUM OUTLETS • GILROY • (408) 842-3729 LAS AMERICAS PREMIUM OUTLETS • SAN DIEGO • (619) 934-8400 NAPA PREMIUM OUTLETS • NAPA • (707) 226-9876 PETALUMA VILLAGE PREMIUM OUTLETS • PETALUMA • (707) 778-9300 VACAVILLE PREMIUM OUTLETS • VACAVILLE • (707) 447-5755 CALL FOR HOURS • PREMIUMOUTLETS.COM • CHELSEA PROPERTY GROUP* A 26 Enter L keyword in Search box at visitcalifornia.com http://PREMIUMOUTLETS.COM http://PREMIUMOUTLETS.COM http://www.visitcalifornia.com
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