One More Reason I Love Chico…

January 22, 2016 by curvylou 8 Comments

… is Bidwell Park.

Bear Hole

Bear Hole from above

Bear Hole closer in

Lizzie at Bear Hole

Bear Hole is the relatively easy-access swimming hole in Upper Park. It’s about nine miles from downtown, an easy bike ride for a twenty-year-old, through the riparian habitat in Lower Park, and on into the oak grasslands of Upper Park.

I used to freeze my half-full water bottles, top them off with fresh water, and ride off with a sandwich and a coke from Frank & Martha’s Deli on Warner Street. At Five Mile I’d stop and top off the water, then go another four miles or so up-canyon to Bear Hole, where I’d swim and cool off, eat my sandwich, and maybe nap in the sun. It was downhill all the way home at sunset.

I made this ride year round, even in rain—I LOVED getting muddy—although during the cold months I didn’t swim in the Sierra Nevada melt-water. No thanks!

Salmon Hole

Canyon edge above Salmon Hole

Trail down to Salmon Hole

Deep inside Salmon Hole

Niece and auntie

Still waters of Salmon Hole through sunlit trees

Still waters of Salmon Hole through sunlit trees. Couldn’t get enough. So beautiful.

A bit of perspective on Salmon Hole.

While I lived in Chico, I never made it up to Salmon Hole, which is up the trail from Bear Hole. Lizzie took me there on our hike, and now I regret not experiencing this place in my youth, when I was local.

Lower Trail

Oak scrublands from Lower Trail.

The landscape of my heart

I could walk in this landscape all day and never be bored. In fact, when I’m in it, I go into a little fugue of happiness, an envelope that feels impervious at the time.

North Rim Trail

Lizzie and camelbak, ready for a hike

Lizzie, North Rim Trail

Even in the rain.