California Parks and Recreation Areas with Kayaking

The fort was designed to mount 126 massive cannon. Rushed to completion at the beginning of the Civil War, Fort Point was first garrisoned in February of 1861 by Company I, 3rd U.S. Artillery Regiment. The fort was occupied throughout the Civil War, but the advent of faster, more powerful rifled cannon made brick forts such as Fort Point obsolete. In 1886 the troops were withdrawn, and the last cannon were removed about 1900. The fort was then used for storage and training purposes for many years.

Phone: (415) 556-1693   Price Range: N/A   Open Season: N/A   Camping: No
Nearest Popular City: San Francisco   Nearest Lake or River: N/A   Park Type: National Historic Site   Activities: Biking / Bicycling, Boating and Watercraft, Fishing, Hiking, Kayaking, Nature Walks, Interpretive Programs   Details Provided By: Fort Point

Redwood National and State Parks are home to some of the world's tallest trees: old-growth coast redwoods. They can live to be 2000 years old and grow to over 300 feet tall. Spruce, hemlock, Douglas-fir, berry bushes, and sword ferns create a multiple canopied understory that towers over all visitors. The parks' mosaic of habitats include prairie/oak woodlands, mighty rivers and streams, and 37 miles of pristine Pacific coastline. Cultural landscapes reflect American Indian history. The more recent logging history has led to much restoration of these parks.

Phone: 707-464-6101   Price Range: $0 - $5   Open Season: N/A   Camping: Yes
Nearest Popular City: Crescent City   Nearest Lake or River: N/A   Park Type: National Park, State Park   Activities: Backpacking, Biking / Bicycling, Birding, Boating and Watercraft, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Kayaking, Swimming, Whitewater Rafting, Wildlife Watching, Auto Touring, Nature Walks, Interpretive Programs   Details Provided By: Redwood National and State Parks

The Golden Gate National Recreation Area (GGNRA) is one of the largest urban national parks in the world. Established in 1972, as part of a trend to make national park resources more accessible to urban populations and bring parks to the people, GGNRAs 75,398 acres of land and water extend north of the Golden Gate Bridge to Tomales Bay in Marin County and south to San Mateo County, encompassing 59 miles of bay and ocean shoreline. These lands represent one of the nations largest coastal preserves and attract 16 million visitors each year, making GGNRA one of the National Park Service most highly visited units.

Phone: (415) 561-4700   Price Range: N/A   Open Season: N/A   Camping: Yes
Nearest Popular City: San Francisco   Nearest Lake or River: N/A   Park Type: National Park   Activities: Biking / Bicycling, Birding, Boating and Watercraft, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Kayaking, Swimming, Wildlife Watching, Auto Touring, Nature Walks, Interpretive Programs, Star Gazing   Details Provided By: Golden Gate National Recreation Area

Lake based recreational opportunities are Whiskeytowns primary focus during the hot and dry summer months. Whiskeytown Lake provides 36 miles of shoreline and 3,200 surface acres of water, and is excellent for most water-related activities including swimming, boating, water skiing, fishing and scuba diving. Personal Watercraft are prohibited on Whiskeytown lake, but are still allowed on Shasta and Trinity Lakes. Whiskeytown Lake has become a popular area for kayaking, long distance swimming and rowing. Ranger guided programs are offered during the summer months and include free kayak tours! Year round activities include picnicking, hiking, mountain bike riding, horseback riding, trail running, photography, bird watching and wildlife viewing on and near the lake, as well as in the mountainous back country. California 1849 Gold Rush history and remains are also found at Whiskeytown.

Phone: 530 242-3400   Price Range: $0 - $5   Open Season: N/A   Camping: Yes
Nearest Popular City: Whiskeytown   Nearest Lake or River: N/A   Park Type: National Park   Activities: Backpacking, Biking / Bicycling, Birding, Boating and Watercraft, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Hunting and Shooting, Kayaking, Swimming, Wildlife Watching, Auto Touring, Nature Walks, Interpretive Programs, Star Gazing   Details Provided By: Whiskeytown National Recreation Area

Yosemite National Park embraces a spectacular tract of mountain-and-valley scenery in the Sierra Nevada, which was set aside as a national park in 1890. The park harbors a grand collection of waterfalls, meadows, and forests that include groves of giant sequoias, the world's largest living things. Highlights of the park include Yosemite Valley, and its high cliffs and waterfalls; Wawona's history center and historic hotel; the Mariposa Grove, which contains hundreds of ancient giant sequoias; Glacier Point's (summer-fall) spectacular view of Yosemite Valley and the high country; Tuolumne Meadows (summer-fall), a large subalpine meadow surrounded by mountain peaks; and Hetch Hetchy, a reservoir in a valley considered a twin of Yosemite Valley.

Phone: 209-372-0200   Price Range: $0 - $10   Open Season: N/A   Camping: No
Nearest Popular City: Yosemite National Park   Nearest Lake or River: N/A   Park Type: National Park   Activities: Backpacking, Biking / Bicycling, Birding, Boating and Watercraft, Cross Country Skiing, Downhill Skiing, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Kayaking, Rock Climbing, Swimming, Wildlife Watching, Auto Touring, Nature Walks, Interpretive Programs, Snowshoeing, Star Gazing   Details Provided By: Yosemite National Park

Beneath Lassen Volcanic's peaceful forests and gem-like lakes lies evidence of a turbulent and fiery past. 600,000 years ago, the collision and warping of continental plates led to violent eruptions and the formation of lofty Mt. Tehama (also called Brokeoff Volcano.) After 200,000 years of volcanic activity, vents and smaller volcanoes on Tehama's flanks-including Lassen Peak-drew magma away from the main cone. Hydrothermal areas ate away at the great mountain's bulk. Beneath the onslaught of Ice Age glaciers, Mt. Tehama crumbled and finally ceased to exist. But the volcanic landscape lived on: in 1914, Lassen Peak awoke. The Peak had its most significant activity in 1915 and minor activity through 1921. Lassen Volcanic became a national park in 1916 because of its significance as an active volcanic landscape.

Phone: (530) 595-4444   Price Range: $0 - $10   Open Season: N/A   Camping: Yes
Nearest Popular City: Mineral   Nearest Lake or River: N/A   Park Type: National Park   Activities: Backpacking, Birding, Boating and Watercraft, Cross Country Skiing, Downhill Skiing, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Kayaking, Swimming, Wildlife Watching, Auto Touring, Interpretive Programs, Snowshoeing, Star Gazing   Details Provided By: Lassen Volcanic National Park

Santa Monica Mountains rise above Los Angeles, widen to meet the curve of Santa Monica Bay and reach their highest peaks facing the ocean, forming a beautiful and multi-faceted landscape. Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area is a cooperative effort that joins federal, state and local park agencies with private preserves and landowners to protect the natural and cultural resources of this transverse mountain range and seashore.

Phone: (805) 370-2300   Price Range: N/A   Open Season: N/A   Camping: Yes
Nearest Popular City: Thousand Oaks   Nearest Lake or River: N/A   Park Type: National Park   Activities: Biking / Bicycling, Birding, Boating and Watercraft, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Kayaking, Rock Climbing, Swimming, Wildlife Watching, Nature Walks, Interpretive Programs, Star Gazing   Details Provided By: Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area

The World War II Home Front is a significant chapter in Americas history. Fully engaged in winning World War II, American women, minorities, and men worked toward a common goal in a manner that has been unequaled since. Women affectionately known as "Rosies" helped change industry and had sweeping and lasting impacts. Richmond, California played a significant and nationally recognized part in the World War II Home Front. The four Richmond shipyards, with their combined 27 shipways, produced 747 ships, more than any other shipyard complex in the country. Richmond was home to 56 different war industries, more than any other city of its size in the United States. The city grew nearly overnight from 24,000 people to 100,000 people, overwhelming the available housing stock, roads, schools, businesses and community services.

Phone: 510 232-5050   Price Range: N/A   Open Season: N/A   Camping: No
Nearest Popular City: South Richmond   Nearest Lake or River: N/A   Park Type: National Park, National Historic Site   Activities: Biking / Bicycling, Birding, Boating and Watercraft, Kayaking, Wildlife Watching, Auto Touring, Nature Walks   Details Provided By: Rosie the Riveter National Historical Park

Comprised of five in a chain of eight southern California islands near Los Angeles, Channel Islands National Park is home to a wide variety of nationally and internationally significant natural and cultural resources. Over 2,000 species of plants and animals can be found within the park. However only four mammals are endemic to the islands. One hundred and forty-five of these species are unique to the islands and found nowhere else in the world.

Phone: 805-658-5730   Price Range: $0 - $735   Open Season: N/A   Camping: Yes
Nearest Popular City: Ventura   Nearest Lake or River: N/A   Park Type: National Park   Activities: Backpacking, Birding, Boating and Watercraft, Fishing, Hiking, Kayaking, Swimming, Wildlife Watching, Nature Walks, Star Gazing   Details Provided By: Channel Islands

Point Reyes National Seashore contains unique elements of biological and historical interest in a spectacularly scenic panorama of thunderous ocean breakers, open grasslands, bushy hillsides and forested ridges. Native land mammals number about 37 species and marine mammals augment this total by another dozen species. The biological diversity stems from a favorable location in the middle of California and the natural occurrence of many distinct habitats. Nearly 20% of the State's flowering plant species are represented on the peninsula and over 45% of the bird species in North America have been sighted. The Point Reyes National Seashore was established by President John F. Kennedy on September 13, 1962.

Phone: (415) 464-5100   Price Range: N/A   Open Season: N/A   Camping: Yes
Nearest Popular City: Point Reyes Station   Nearest Lake or River: N/A   Park Type: National Park   Activities: Backpacking, Biking / Bicycling, Birding, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Kayaking, Wildlife Watching, Nature Walks, Interpretive Programs   Details Provided By: Point Reyes National Seashore