Bidwell Park

With so many things to do and places to explore in Upper Bidwell Park, you might have a hard time deciding where to begin. May we suggest Horseshoe Lake? Located less than a mile up Upper Park Road, it’s a great starting point for many popular park activities.

Constructed in the early 1930s as a reservoir for golf-course irrigation, Horseshoe Lake is now strictly for recreation. The land around the lake was the site of several shooting ranges, including one used by the California National Guard and U.S. Army during World War II. A concrete bunker used for target practice still remains by the lake. The other two ranges were used by civilians to shoot skeet. A project to remove the lead from the lake and surrounding area was completed in 2005. A new parking area, picnic benches, trails and portable bathrooms were included in the project that has made the area much more visitor-friendly and accessible to those with limited mobility.

The area abounds with wildlife, including ducks, geese, deer, squirrels, snakes, lizards and a wide variety of birds. It’s surprising what you can see if you take the time to be quiet and observe.

A variety of well-marked trails for hiking and biking are accessible from Horseshoe Lake, including the popular North Rim Trail that runs up and along the top of the canyon and the Yahi Trail that follows Big Chico Creek. Much of the area is environmentally sensitive, so please obey all signs and stick to the trails.

Upper Park Road is open to vehicles past the lake area during much of the year, but it is unpaved and pretty rough going. Several popular swimming holes—including Bear Hole and Salmon Hole—and many more secluded spots are accessible from this road.

Fishing is allowed in the lake, but be sure to check the regulations. It’s fed by runoff, and gets pretty low at times, but still supports a population of bass, bluegill, crappie and catfish. The shoreline is undeveloped except for a platform that extends out into the lake. It’s actually for practicing fly casting, but has become a popular spot for anglers of all types. Horseshoe Lake is also the site of the annual “Hooked on Fishing, Not on Drugs” fishing derby for children.

For those dog lovers out there, the lake and trail system are also favorites of our four-legged friends. Dogs are allowed off leash on the north side of Upper Park Road but must be kept under effective control. If your dog doesn’t come when you call, keep it on a leash. Most dog owners who frequent the area with their pets are responsible, and problems are few and far between.

Across the road from the lake area is Bidwell Park Golf Course. Big Chico Creek runs through this public course, which offers 18 holes set amid some of the North State’s most beautiful natural scenery. There’s also a complete pro shop and snack bar.

For nighttime, family entertainment, try the Kiwanis-Chico Observatory. Located right next to the lake, the observatory is open Thursday through Sunday 45 minutes after sundown and for three hours after.

To get to Horseshoe Lake, turn off of Manzanita Avenue at the fire station and onto Wildwood Avenue, which becomes Upper Park Road. Follow the road as it winds next to the golf course and past the roads that lead to the big cross and the observatory parking area. Either of these are good places to start your hike or bike ride. Continue past the shooting range and you’ll see the newly developed Horseshoe Lake parking and picnic area on the left. If you run out of paved road, well, you’ve gone too far.

Upper Park

Hooker Oak Recreation Area
This popular playing field area is the site of several local softball and baseball leagues and is a favorite spot for kite flying. A nice playground gives the kids something to do. Take Vallombrosa Avenue, turn left on Manzanita; Hooker Oak is on the right.

Five-Mile Recreation Area
At the foot of Upper Bidwell Park, Five-Mile is either a kicking-off point for forays into the canyon or a great destination on its own. Picnic tables, barbecues and ample space make it a popular spot for large group gatherings. Take Vallombrosa east to the end, turn right on Manzanita, left on Centennial, and the area is to the left.

North Rim Trail
This popular biking, hiking and equestrian trail starts at Wildwood Avenue just past the entrance to Upper Bidwell Park. It traverses the north rim of this wild and rugged canyon park. A series of steep but generally well-maintained switchbacks down to Upper Park Road is the payoff for a steep, rocky, uphill mountain bike ride, and hikers enjoy great vistas of the valley.

South Rim Trail
For the adventuresome soul, this lesser-known but highly enjoyable trail is one of the more rugged trails in the park. The trailhead is beyond Five-Mile where Centennial dead-ends at Chico Canyon Road. The trail runs through the old police pistol range, above Bidwell Park Golf Course all the way up into the newly purchased south side of the canyon. A nice, four-hour mountain biking or hiking loop is to go up the South Rim Trail to Bear Hole, lounge a while on the less-populated south side of Bear Hole and then cross the creek for a return on Upper Park Road or the creekside Yahi Trail. (Erosion on the Yahi is a big problem, so only hikers—no bikers or equestrians—are allowed on it. Seriously!)

Designated Trail System
Erosion is one of the biggest problems in a park that hosts tens of thousands of people every year, so several trails have been designated to keep the park healthy. Trails A, B and C run beneath the North Rim and offer various levels of difficulty for bikers and hikers. Going off the trail is in most cases illegal and in all cases frowned upon. All trails are closed when they are very wet. Dogs are allowed off the leash only north of Upper Park Road.

Kiwanis-Chico Community Observatory
Astronomers and amateur stargazers alike were thrilled when donations allowed the observatory to open in November 2001. There’s a huge telescope with which to see the night sky. It’s a great family outing. Open Thurs.-Sun. 45 minutes after sundown and for three hours thereafter, weather permitting.

Lower Park

One-Mile Recreation Area
Soaking up the sun, swimming in the huge Sycamore Pool (open during summer), throwing a Frisbee with a friend, taking a leisurely stroll by the creek or picnicking beneath the towering valley oaks and white-barked sycamore trees is what One-Mile is all about. With its barbecues, horseshoe pits and playing fields, One-Mile is located just a few blocks from downtown and is easily reached through entrances on Fourth or Fifth streets.

Caper Acres
Got kids? Bring ’em here! The Caper Acres fantasy playground is a favorite with the park’s younger crowd. They will enjoy the slides, jungle gyms and fairytale-themed contraptions, and parents will enjoy how easy it is to keep an eye on it all. There’s even a “treehouse” play structure. Next to One-Mile’s Sycamore Field, Caper Acres is open daily except Monday, when it is closed for maintenance.

Cedar Grove
The cedar-shaded site hosts Chico’s Shakespeare in the Park productions every summer. Entrance is off East Eighth Street. It’s a great bike ride to the grove from One-Mile down South Park Drive, which runs the southern length of Lower Park and is closed to automobile traffic.

Chico Creek Nature Center
The Chico Creek Nature Center has been growing, both in size and popularity, since the nonprofit organization was established in 1982. Besides being the interpretive hub for Bidwell Park, the center is home to a living-animal museum and wildlife display, free nature walks and events, year-round interactive exhibits and spring and summer camp sessions and educational programs for children. Enter off of East Eighth Street just beyond Cedar Grove. Call 891-4671 for exhibit hours and other event schedules.