Day One: Northern Tehama, Lower Shasta Counties
We decided to break up the four plus hour drive to our final destination in the city of Mt Shasta by stopping at our first winery, Alger Vineyards & Winery. This is a great little winery located east of Highway 5 between Red Bluff and Redding. We took the road out of Redding, Hwy 44 to get there.
The road starts out through dry rolling oak forest which transitions to scrub brush and pines and then up to the Ponderosa pine belt at about 2500 feet. After about 30 miles we came to the small town of Shingletown and turned right on Wilson Road. The road winds quickly down to a valley in the distance with great views of cinder cones and distant vineyards on the way down. The road is fairly narrow and steep in stretches, so it took longer than expected. When we got to the winery the deer gate was closed but the sign said they were open and instructed us to make sure to close the gate behind us. We did and drove on to the winery.
The spot is beautiful with views in almost every direction. There is a picturesque pond near the road that takes you to the tasting room surrounded by vineyards on the top of a knoll. When we entered the tasting room we were enthralled with the view of a distant cinder cone past the vineyards through the west facing windows. John Alger was pouring that day and what a treat. We spent about an hour talking about his winemaking and vineyard philosophy and tasting his great Petite Sirah and Syrah. The tasting costs $5, but comes with a commemorative glass, cheese and crackers and a bit of chocolate. Not a bad deal. Make sure to check out our Shasta Winery page for more information on the winery.
It was soon time to head on to Mt Shasta so we back tracked the way we had come to Highway 5 and the 70 mile or so trip north. Although Hwy 5 to this point had been pretty unexciting, that all changed when we began to head north of Redding. It passes by Lake Shasta and then into the eastern edge of the Trinity Mountains, past Castle Crags and then on to some absolutely breathtaking views of Mt Shasta itself. We reached our rental house late in the day. There are some really good deals to be had on daily rentals in the Mt Shasta area and the town is really a great place to stay. The town is small, the residents friendly, it has good stores and very nice restaurants. The hiking, fishing and bike riding are endless in the area and there is just some downright incredible scenery. If you decide to stay there we recommend checking the Chamber of Commerce website for information on rentals and other activities. Continued ...
