Turtle Bay Exploration Park

 by Stuart Rawlings

If you’re heading north on I-5 from Sacramento, take some time to stop and enjoy Redding’s Turtle Bay Park, it’s worth a little side-trip or better yet, treat yourself to an entire day, there’s plenty to do.  As you approach Redding traveling north on I-5, watch for the Highway-44 turnoff, as it’s easy to miss.   When traveling south bound on I-5, take exit #678 and pay particularly close attention as for some reason, there are almost no signs.

The Turtle Bay Exploration Park is only two minutes off the highway, and offers 300 acres of hiking, a museum with several large exhibits, an aquarium, children’s playground with slides and a maze, an owl and eagle bird zoo, a huge garden with plants from around the world, and a unique “Sun Dial” suspension bridge across the Sacramento River.  The entrance fee is $12 for individuals age 13 and above, $10 for seniors over 64, and $7 for children 4-12.

During my family’s trip, my 8-year-old son immensely enjoyed the many interactive exhibits; from damming up a small stream, pushing buttons that produced colors, to popping balls up into the air to show the principles of physics.  His strongest memory is of the glass enclosure that housed live rattlesnakes. 

My wife could have easily spent several hours wandering around the McConnell Arboretum with its 20 acres of gardens sporting plants from numerous countries around the world.  She particularly enjoyed several varieties of flowering plants from Chile, Australia, and the Mediterranean area.

My own favorite was the sundial bridge itself.  This impressive structure is 700-foot wide, and has a 217-foot pylon acting as the gnomon of a sundial, casting its shadow on a giant, tile-covered dial deck.  The deck is composed of over 200 tons of glass and concrete.  One then has to wonder, is this a unique massive art structure or an ornate functioning bridge that cost over $23 million to build.  Regardless, its graceful placement over the Sacramento River is a sight I will never forget.

We joined several other visitors and enjoyed listening to the informative talks given by the many docents about the different fish in the large aquarium, the exhibits on distant stars, and information recounting the days of the 1850’s Gold Rush.  I for one, after a half day of exploration and walking, took great pleasure in simply sitting, eating, and relaxing at the riverside café.

This is a very nice side trip, or intended half to full day adventure just north of Sacramento along Interstate-5.  For more information on Turtle Bay Exploration Park, call 1-800-887-8532 or visit Turtle Bay’s informative website at: http://www.turtlebay.org.

Photos courtesy of Turtle Bay Exploration Park


© 10/01/2007 Stuart Rawlings