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Twenty-six (26) greater Sacramento area museums will be offering free admission, all day long, during the 12th Annual Sacramento Museum Day. This event is presented by the Sacramento Association of Museums (SAM), and proudly supported by Umpqua Bank. Sacramento Museum Day takes place Saturday, February 6, 2010, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. (all participating museums close at 5 p.m., with the last guests admitted at 4 p.m.).

Museum Day, a Sacramento cultural tradition, invites all members of the community to experience the Capital City’s incredible wealth of art, history, science and wildlife at numerous participating museums AT NO COST.

PARTICIPATING MUSEUMS for SACRAMENTO MUSEUM DAY 2010:

• Aerospace Museum of California*
• California Automobile Museum
• California Foundry History Museum
• California State Military Museum
• California State Capitol Museum
• The California Museum
• California State Indian Museum
• California State Railroad Museum
• Crocker Art Museum*
• Discovery Museum Science and Space Center*
• Explorit Science Center (Davis)
• Fairytale Town
• Folsom History Museum
• Governor’s Mansion State Historic Park
• Heidrick Ag History Center (Woodland)
• Leland Stanford Mansion State Historic Park
• Museum of Medical History
• Old Sacramento Schoolhouse Museum
• Old Sacramento State Historic Park
• Sacramento Zoo
• Sacramento Historic City Cemetery
• Sacramento History Museum
• Sojourner Truth Multicultural Arts Museum
• Sutter’s Fort State Historic Park
• Wells Fargo History Museum (Old Sacramento and Downtown locations).

*Please note that the Crocker Art Museum is under construction for its major expansion. Parking and gallery access will be limited and shuttle service will not be offered to the Crocker Art Museum. Also for Sacramento Museum Day 2010, shuttle service will not be offered to the Aerospace Museum or the Discover Museum Science and Space Center.

My dad and I used to joke about the cyclists who fly around Sacramento area & the American River bike trail, not stopping at stop signs, nearly running people over, etc… Obviously, those people aren’t the majority, but they earned the nickname Tour De Sacramento. Apparently, there really is one… I just received the following email:

This July Dawn Dais, author of The Noncyclist’s Guide to the Century and Other
Road Races, is introducing Sacramentans to the Tour de Sacramento.  The Tour de
Sacramento is a fun way for newbies and cyclists to get in on all that cycling,
and their city, has to offer. The event will coincide with the world’s
greatest cycling event: Tour de France, which runs from July 4th through July
26th. 

Benefiting the local charities Cycles 4 Hope and Big Brothers Big Sisters of
Greater Sacramento the Tour de Sacramento will allow both seasoned cyclists and
noncyclist’s the opportunity to participate in a fun cycling event geared
towards those looking to have some laughs while getting their heart rate up.
Those who sign up for the event will be invited to attend the various fun
cycling activities planned throughout the three week event.

Each week the Tour de Sacramento participants will meet up with Dais and
professional cycle coach, Myron Dong, for one or two rides throughout
Sacramento. These rides will be both challenging and fun, taking cyclists on
standard bike trails and around city streets as well. We’ll scope out all
that our city has to offer, visiting landmarks, local businesses and fun food
establishments (you can’t have an athletic event without a pitstop...or
eight).  

For a small fee every Tour de Sacramento cyclist will receive personalized
training advice, a commemorative t-shirt, an autographed copy of The
Noncyclist’s Guide to the Century and Other Road Races and an adventure they
won’t soon forget. There will be special prizes awarded to those who complete
all the scheduled rides, as well as fun rewards for improving over our three
week event. You don’t have to be an elite athlete to ride in the Tour de
Sacramento you just have to have a bike, a good attitude and a desire to have
some fun on wheels this July.

Please contact me about interviewing Dais, or giving other local coverage to
this fun and fabulous event. This is an easy and inexpensive way for families
and friends to get together and take a tour of their local city. You don’t
need to be an athlete, you just need a bike and a willingness to ride! Check
out the website at www.tourdesacramento.com.

This Saturday, September 27, 2008 anyone can fish for free, without a license! So, grab the kids and the fishing rods & head to the nearest river or pond & drop in a line! This is being promoted by the State of California, Department of Fish and Game as a way to enjoy California’s natural resources. This is open to adults and children. Normal restrictions still apply on size, limit and stream closures.

There is also a “Fishing in the City” event at Elk Grove Park from 8:30am until Noon to welcome newcomers to the sport. Instructions and equipment will be available.

More information

If you’re new to the Sacramento area, one of the first things you’ll probably want to find is where the shopping malls are located. There are several in the greater Sacramento area, from the open-air Downtown Plaza to the expanding Roseville Galleria.

Arden Fair
Location: Sacramento, CA
Anchor Stores: JC Penney, Macy’s, Nordstrom, Sears
For many years, Arden Fair reigned supreme, as far as indoor shopping malls. It’s light, airy, has nice stores, and parking isn’t bad (except for around holidays). Nextdoor is the Marketplace at Arden Fair with restaurants & a movie theater.

Country Club Plaza
Location: Sacramento, CA
Anchor Stores: Bed Bath & Beyond, Gottschalks, Macy’s, Ross Dress For Less, Sport Chalet
Renovated in 2003, Country Club Plaza is the area’s smallest indoor shopping mall. It doesn’t nearly get as much traffic as the other malls, which may be an attraction for many shoppers.

Sunrise Mall
Location: Citrus Heights, CA
Anchor Stores: Albertsons, JC Penney, Macy’s Women’s & Children, Macy’s Men’s & Home, Sears, United Artists 4
With the addition of a food court in 2007, Sunrise Mall is one of the area’s oldest indoor shopping malls. It has the typical stores found in a typical mall, but does have a United Artists movie theater.

Westfield Downtown Plaza
Location: Downtown Sacramento, CA
Anchor Stores: Century Theatres 7, Hard Rock Cafe, Macy’s, Macy’s Mens & Furniture
Downtown Plaza is an open-air mall located near Capital Mall and I-5. It houses a large indoor food court and movie theater, but also has a fair number of vacancies.

Westfield Galleria at Roseville
Location: Roseville, CA
Anchor Stores: Borders Books, Crate & Barrel, JC Penney, Macy’s, Nordstrom, Sears
The Roseville Galleria, located at Hwy 65 and Galleria Blvd, is the gem of the shopping malls in the area. It has many upscale stores and is expanding, but parking can be a major hassle.

The Sacramento River is the largest river in California, stretching 327 miles from Mt. Shasta down to the the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, which empties into the San Francisco Bay. The river snakes its way from Northern to Central California, passing I-5 several times along a path that takes it past Redding, Sacramento and Davis. Sacramento and San Joaquin valley farmers utilize the Sacramento River for irrigation and the Sacramento Valley basin is a major source of drinking water for the state. Ocean going ships are able to navigate up the river from the San Francisco Bay to Sacramento via the Port of Sacramento’s deep water channel.

Beginning in the Sierra Nevada mountains, the American River runs all the way to the Sacramento River, near I-5 and Richards Blvd, where Discovery Park is located. Along the way the American River flows into Folsom Lake, created by the Folsom Dam. Water is released from the Folsom Dam into Lake Nimbus, which is created by the Nimbus Dam. The American River, as it flows toward Downtown Sacramento, is bordered by the American River Parkway and various State Parks.

The Tower Bridge, dedicated by Gov. Frank Merriam on Sun, December 15, 1935, was the first vertical lift bridge in the California highway system, replacing the M Street steel swing span. Originally painted silver, the Tower Bridge was painted a yellowish color in 1976 and then, due to a controversial online vote, it was repainted in 2002. The new color is supposedly gold, but that’s debatable. The Tower Bridge connects Downtown Sacramento to West Sacramento and is frequently used by people attending River Cats games at Raley Field.

Map 1 Northwest - Including: Antelope, Arden-Arcade, Downtown, McClellan AFB, North Sacramento, North & South Natomas, Point West, Sacramento International Airport, Rio Linda

Map 2 Northeast – Including: Carmichael, Citrus Heights, City of Folsom, Fair Oaks, Gold River, Orangevale, Rancho Cordova

Map 3 South Sacramento – Including: Elk Grove, Laguna, Land Park, Meadowview, Oak Park, Pocket Area, Sheldon, South Land Park, Vineyard

Map 4 South County - Including: Delta Area, Galt, Isleton, Wilton

Map 5 Downtown Detail – Including: Central Business District, CSUS, Midtown, Old Sacramento, State Capitol, surrounding neighborhoods

Map 6 American River Bike Trail – Includes restrooms, telephones, parking and access points along this popular bikeway that extends from Old Sacramento to Folsom Lake

Source

The American River Parkway is well known for its bike paths, horse trails and parks. It runs from Old Sacramento, just past Downtown Sacramento, to Folsom Lake in Folsom, CA (about 30mi). There is river access for vehicles along several points where people start or end their rafting trips. If you’re in for a nice bike ride, you’ll pass California State University, Sacramento, Cal Expo, Discovery Park and many more smaller parks and attractions. When the weather is nice, the bike trails can be crowded and some bikers use it as their own race course. Walkers are to stay on the left side, facing on coming bicycle traffic and bikers use the right lane, as on city streets. The parkway is also home to much of the area’s natural wildlife including deer, coyotes, skunks, snakes and the occasional mountain lion. Warnings are usually given by the media when mountain lion sightings occur.

American River Parkway Official Site