The Interstate 5
freeway crosses the state line from Oregon to California in majestic
fashion. The stretch from Grants Pass, Oregon to Redding,
California is the most scenic and beautiful area of the entire I-5
corridor from Canada to Mexico. Of course, this isn't saying
much, since so much of the corridor is at least uninspiring, if not
boring. However, this stretch of freeway will make you wake up
and take notice, particularly in the winter months when the mountain
passes, cut through the Siskiyou Mountain Range, are covered with snow
(also making for some treacherous driving conditions - bring chains if
traveling during the winter months) - this xx mile stretch also
includes the highest point on Interstate 5, Siskiyou Summit, at xxxx
feet.
From the freeway, you
gaze out over seemingly endless fir-covered foothills, inspiring the
outdoorsman in all of us. You'll pass over the Pacific Crest
Trail, that stretches from Canada to Mexico - perhaps the greatest
trail in the United States (Appalachian Trail fans, I did say
perhaps). As you make your way past a few small towns such as the
interestingly, but aptly named Weed, the mammoth expanses of Mt.
Shasta now loom over the horizon. The largest (by mass) mountain
in the United States, Mt. Shasta towers over the freeway at xxxxx feet
high, simply a monumental peak. It is breathtaking as the
mountain's double peaks grow larger and larger, so perfectly framed in
the pine and fir forests that surround it.
You pass Mt. Shasta
City, population xxxx, whose moniker has origins you might be able to
guess, and are met with open road for quite some time, with only the
resort community of Shasta Lake to remind you of civilization.
Shasta Lake is seen beautifully on your left - inspiring you to find
somewhere to stop to gaze at it's brilliant blue reflecting into the
hazy spring sky. Continuing on the long, downhill run, the
mountain now overlooks small farms as you exit Siskiyou National
Forest and drop down toward the city of Redding, population xxxx, the
largest city in what is really northern California (The Bay Area is
called No-Cal, but only to differentiate it from So-Cal).
As you near Redding,
the foliage starts to die out, the mountains start to fade, and you
feel like you're entering a whole new country. Redding isn't
much to see - feels like an overgrown truck stop - and we keep on
driving. The mountains fade out, and give way to countless dairy
farms, stretching from horizon to horizon, intersperced with a few
rivers running high on their banks. There are a few truck stops
along this stretch of freeway, and dairy farms turn into sheep farms,
then to olive orchards and later to xxx fields, now covered with
standing water from the heavy rains of the past week.
This seemingly endless
stretch of agricultural lands runs for hundreds of miles of central
California highway, all the way to the metropolitan expanses of
suburban Los Angeles. As you approach the big town of Williams,
population xxx, you begin to notice a few small mountains lining the
horizons on both sides of the freeway, providing a backdrop for the
fertile valley. This also signals the beginining of grain
country - grain silios start to become common sightings, and livestock
is a thing of the past. Fields now are filled with irrigation
trenches, alfalfa, and other crops - pesticide and fertilizer sprays
fill the air over the vast expanses of plowed fields. This scene
continues for a good 80 miles or so before reaching the capital city
of Sacramento, at about milepost xxx south of the Oregon border.
