McConnell Arboretum & Gardens Map - Redding, CA - 'You Are Here' Maps on Waymarking.com

This 'You Are Here' map is located just inside the McConnell Arboretum & Gardens Bridge Gate entrance and next to the Quarry Patio Garden. This map displays the many gardens that visitors can visit here with numerous informative signs along the way that educated visitors on some of the local flora and history here.

Turtle Bay Exploration Park expands on both sides of the Sacramento River and the nearby Sundial Bridge is a regionally renowned fixture of the city of Redding, having been completed in 2004. In addition to Sundial Bridge, visitors can also pay an admission fee (too expensive if you ask me) to visit the Turtle Bay Museum and Wildlife Park which gives even more history and examples of real-life flora and fauna that exist here.

Most visitors here don't realize that this area was once a large quarry operation back in the 1940s and nearby gravel from the Sacramento River was excavated then processed in a huge building where it was then passed onto a very long conveyor belt that stretched 10 miles (longest conveyor belt in the world) NW to Shasta Lake in building Shasta Dam, the second largest dam in the U.S. And it all started here. All the vegetation growth that can be seen here has only occurred after the operation was shut down after completion of Shasta Dam.

There are other waymarks within this park to visit and a few that haven't been waymarked yet, so come visit and spend an afternoon here. Activities include an aquarium, hands-on amphibian and reptile exhibits, zoo-like cages of local animals, science and technology games, local historical displays, a butterfly house (in season), an aviary (which allows feeding of lorikeets), a playground for the kids, a boardwalk with opportunities to pet an animal or two, and finally, the regionally renowned Sundial Bridge that spans the Sacramento River and invites visitors to walk the bridge and tour a botanical garden and walking trails along the river.

Visitors interested in this exploration park can click here to visit their website and check current hours and admission fees for the park.

Location Name: Turtle Bay Exploration Park

Visit Instructions:

A photo of either you or your GPS at the site is welcomed but not required.

Recent Visits/Logs:

Date Logged Log   06/26/2023 HikingSeal visited it