DISCOVER THE GRANDEUR OF CALIFORNIA’S FALL FOLIAGE

(SACRAMENTO, Calif.) – It’s a patchwork of orange, yellow, rust, copper and red every fall when California’s foliage changes, offering up vibrant colors as part of the state’s autumnal displays from September to November.

“Some of the best fall foliage in the country can be found in California’s foothill and mountain regions,” said Caroline Beteta, president and chief executive officer of the California Travel and Tourism Commission (CTTC). “The crisp weather and relaxed pace, along with the changing colors of the landscape, provide a tranquil setting that visitors can experience throughout the fall season traveling by car, bike or their own two feet.”

The Shasta Cascade Region offers some of the state’s most spectacular displays of colors amid rugged and rolling terrain. Many of the best driving routes, along with leaf illustrations by color, can be found in the self-guided tour brochure Fall Colors of Plumas County, including tours to Lake Almanor, Feather River Canyon, Indian Creek and Davis and Frenchman Lakes. Serious leaf-peepers can plan their foliage trip over the Internet with the help of the “Autumn Awesome” blog on www.plumascounty.org, which is updated daily with photos and on-the-ground reports about best locations of “celebrity” trees.

In Lassen County, biking enthusiasts can take part in the Fall Color Bike Rides, up to 25 miles, available along the Bizz Johnson National Recreation Trail that traverses a remote area inaccessible by cars. Old railroad tunnels and bridges along the trail enhance the beauty of the surrounding area. Some of the most breathtaking fall colors can be viewed in Castle Crags State Park in Shasta County, 6 miles south of Dunsmuir on Interstate 5. Travelers can also enjoy the beauty of the outdoors from the comfort of their vehicles on Highway 299 in Shasta County through the historic town of Old Shasta and down to Whiskeytown Lake. Day hikes are ideal in Tehama County’s Ishi Wilderness Area and its 48,000 acres of changing vegetation. Events celebrating California’s fall foliage and include Autumn in the Alps, taking place from September 28 to October 31 in historic Weaverville.

From mid-October to early November, the Inland Empire Region’s Big Bear Lake mountain region is peppered with changing oaks, aspens and cottonwoods. The most spectacular spot to see fall colors is Big Bear’s Aspen Grove off Highway 38 at the Heart Bar Campground. The quaking aspens display brilliant gold leaves that typically peak the first or second week of October. The remarkable fall colors appear only once a year, and last about three weeks before Mother Nature drops her temperature and blows the leaves away. The Aspen Grove Trail leads to Fish Creek Trail, where travelers can continue a hike in the San Gorgonio Wilderness.

The High Sierra Region of California also puts on a fantastic fall display. The autumn color in Yosemite National Park peaks in September and October, when maples, dogwood, aspen and oak adorn themselves with leaves yielding vivid seasonal hues. In Mammoth Lakes, the leaves begin to change in mid-September. Some of the local hot spots for viewing include the Red Meadows area, with side trips to Rainbow Falls and the Devils Postpile National Monument.

The Highway 395 corridor through Bishop is also magnificent, especially the Owens Valley and the Bishop Creek Canyon. The region’s Eastern High Sierra Fall Color Guide, available upon request from the office of Mammoth Lakes Tourism and the Bishop Area Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Bureau, details the most popular spots for viewing. Visitors can tour the changing colors by bike or on foot in Truckee, northwest of Lake Tahoe, by heading down to the Legacy Trail, accessed through River View Park. The Legacy Trail and its adjacent single track parallel the rushing waters of the Truckee River, extending eastward with willows, aspens and cottonwoods dotting the landscape. For a historical perspective of the area, hikers immerse themselves in fall colors on interpretive tours via the Donner Party Hikes, October 4-5, departing from the Sugar Bowl Lodge on Donner Summit.

Each year, thousands of visitors venture to the historic mining town of Julian, located in the San Diego County Region. Nestled in the Cuyamaca Mountains at an elevation of 4,235 feet, visitors can enjoy the colorful fall foliage while they sample fresh, crisp apples, homemade apple pies and ciders. Set among 1,200 acres within walking distance of downtown San Diego, Balboa Park is a horticulturist’s paradise, featuring eight lush gardens and 350 different species of trees. While San Diego’s temperate climate ensures most of the park is verdant year-round, fall does bring vibrant colors to some special trees throughout the park. September through November, the Chinese Flame Trees are recognizable by their papery, rose-colored seed capsules and yellow foliage. Each summer the 40- to 50-foot-tall trees blossom with large yellow flower clusters that reach 1.5 feet in size. However, it’s the showy, reddish seed capsules following the blooms that give the tree its name and bring fall colors to the park.

In the Gold Country Region, many motorists make the historic gold rush towns of Grass Valley and Nevada City their home base when exploring the colorful forests of the foothills along the Yuba-Donner Scenic Byway, a 130-mile looped route through the Sierra Nevada. For day trips, the Foresthill Divide off Interstate 80, is ideal, particularly Mosquito Ridge Road toward French Meadows. The winding road also affords fantastic views into the Middle Fork American River Canyon. Ebbetts Pass National Scenic Byway, a 61-mile stretch of California’s Highway 4 and 89 between the towns of Arnold in Calaveras County and Markleeville in Alpine County, is one of the most beautiful drives across California’s Sierra Nevada. Visitors can enjoy the fall colors while exploring the rugged landscape once home to native peoples and pioneer emigrants. For travelers itchin’ to participate in a truly unique fall event, the 29^th Annual Poison Oak Show on September 27 in historic Columbia features one of California’s most abundant floras. “Best” awards are given in several categories, such as Best Individual Arrangement, Best Specimens, Best Photograph and Best Poison Oak Dish.

In Northern California, State Highway 299, part of the North Coast Region between Arcata and Willow Creek, offers a natural fireworks display as pockets of maple trees ignite into bright yellows, sharply contrasting with the evergreen forests around them. The area’s mountains are thick with redwoods and Douglas firs. In Southern Humboldt County, a visit to the Avenue of the Giants, a 30-mile stretch of historic Highway 101, is worthwhile to see the largest single stand of old-growth redwoods in the world. In the autumn, the maple trees that line the Eel River add an unexpected burst of color.

In St. Helena, located in the San Francisco Bay Area Region, travelers and local residents escape to the back roads off Highway 128 near Lake Hennessey to explore the autumn colors by bike. Some take to the water as sailing and canoeing are permitted on this reservoir. Those traveling to Napa Valley wineries will enjoy the connecting road from Chiles and Pope Valley, where some of the state’s oldest oak trees can be found. In Calistoga, fall ambience is found in the changing grapevines along the natural hillside vistas best viewed by a morning hot air balloon ride. The San Mateo County coastline is alive with color as yellow sunflowers and vibrant orange pumpkins create a stunning visual effect.

In Gilroy, part of the Central Coast Region, travelers turn east toward Redwood Retreat Road off Highway 152 to tour this picturesque fall route by horseback or even dirt bike. Just north of Santa Barbara, fall foliage surrounds El Capitan Creek, which meanders between groves of oak and sycamore trees. Fall colors are evident throughout Paso Robles’ 26,000 vineyard acres beginning in mid-September, when harvest activities swing into action. Of special interest is Highway 46 West from Paso Robles to the coast, where many vineyards blanket the landscape, offering picture postcard views at every turn as the elevation increases over the lower Santa Lucia mountain range.

In the Orange County Region, head to Caspers Wilderness Park in San Juan Capistrano, O’Neill Regional Park in Trabuco Canyon or Santiago Oaks Regional Park in Orange to view an array of yellows displayed by the native California sycamore trees. During the late fall, the liquid ambers’ leaves turn gold, yellow and red at Craig Regional Park, Irvine Regional Park and Mile Square Regional Park.

Fall foliage in the desert means something unusual. In fact, it’s a lawn phenomenon. In Palm Springs, part of the Desert Region, the Bermuda grass goes dormant in the fall and winter rye takes its place. It usually happens in late September or early October as area golf courses perform an annual ritual, known to locals as the “scalping of the lawns.” Lawn mower blades are lowered and the grass is cut to the ground. A few days of no watering, followed by the sprinkling of winter rye grass seeds and the resetting of sprinklers, results in new grass that turns into Palm Springs’ signature lush grounds. For stunning mountain views of the region and plenty of activities, visitors should head to Borrego Valley and the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.

Fall foliage in the Central Valley Region means one thing – citrus – oranges in particular. Every January through November, Fresno offers the Fresno County Citrus and Fall Foliage Trail where, on a self-guided tour, visitors can explore agricultural splendor and lush orange groves.

In Los Angeles, the Urban Garden, located at the Frank Gehry-designed Walt Disney Concert Hall and part of the Los Angeles County Region, offers spectacular blooming trees. The 1-acre community garden is home to the Chinese Pistache, a 15-ton Delftware, rose-shaped fountain and perennials. Visitors can take to the garden’s path to stroll through the brilliantly colored trees and flowers.

The CTTC is a non-profit organization with a mission to develop and maintain marketing programs - in partnership with the state's travel industry - that keep California top-of-mind as a premier travel destination. According to the CTTC, travel and tourism expenditures total $96.7 billion annually in California, support jobs for 924,100 Californians and generate $5.8 billion in state and local tax revenues. For more information about the CTTC and for a free California Visitor’s Guide, go to www.VisitCalifornia.com.

CALIFORNIA’S FALL EVENTS CELEBRATE HARVEST & HALLOWEEN

(SACRAMENTO, Calif.) – Fall is a special time of year in the Golden State, especially with California’s mix of harvest festivals and Halloween offerings.

“As summer comes to an end, many of California’s regions offer spectacular fall displays as the foliage turns from rich greens to the vibrant shades of orange, red and yellow,” said Caroline Beteta, president and chief executive officer of the California Travel and Tourism Commission (CTTC). “Along with the changing leaves come a variety of harvest festivals that celebrate the season, and annual Halloween events and festivities that spook visitors of all ages.”

Pumpkins reign supreme on the picturesque terrain surrounding the charming coastal hamlet of Half Moon Bay in the San Francisco Bay Area Region. Every autumn, devoted pumpkinheads from around the country make the traditional trek to the “World Pumpkin Capital” for the annual Half Moon Bay Art & Pumpkin Festival. This year, the festivities take place October18-19 and include the super-sized Great Pumpkin Weigh-Off, featuring the “Picasso of pumpkin carvers” sculpting and shaping a 1,000-pound pumpkin, as well as live entertainment and harvest-inspired crafts. Thousands of visitors are expected at the 27^th Annual Harvest Wine Celebration, organized by the Livermore Valley Winegrowers Association, from August 31 to September 1 for its music, food, art and wine. The event has been designated as one of the Top 100 Events in North America for 2008 by the American Bus Association, only one of three events in California to receive this accolade. Hundreds of artisans from around the country will exhibit more than 24,000 American handmade items, including jewelry, toys and gourmet food, at the San Jose Harvest Festival, November 28-30. Ghoulish and giddy behaviors are part of the fun as kids in costumes trick–or-treat throughout PIER 39’s Pumpkin Pandemonium October 26 in San Francisco and enjoy pumpkin carving demonstrations, face painting and photos with frightful characters.

Visitors to the Los Angeles County Region can join 300,000 of their closest friends in celebrating the Halloween Carnaval 2008 on October 31 in West Hollywood. Dubbed the largest Halloween street party in the world, the annual event on Santa Monica Boulevard is free, and travelers can expect to see the most eccentric and imaginative costumes around. Universal Studios Hollywood in Universal City pulls out all the spooky stops with its Halloween Horror Nights every Friday and Saturday and some Sundays in October. Guests ride the Terror Tram, where they can disembark and walk among the historic sets of the Universal backlot that incorporate many Hollywood landmarks, such as Psycho House, Bates Motel and the “War of the Worlds” airplane crash disaster scene. Universal has also partnered with New Line Cinema to bring to life Jason Voorhees, Freddy Krueger and Leatherface from the horror film franchises Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street and The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. In Long Beach, the Aquarium of the Pacific offers a spooktacular educational Halloween event for the whole family on October 25-26 with a costume contest, magic shows, kooky crafts, creepy coloring contest and eerie animals in the Great Hall.

Celebrating agricultural tradition in Kerman, the 64^th Annual Kerman Harvest Festival, held September 11-14 in the Central Valley Region, has a lively county fair atmosphere with food booths, vendors, carnival rides, entertainment and agricultural exhibits, along with a harvest parade that includes farm equipment and equestrian teams. The tradition of hot air balloons floating across the valley skies continues on September 20 at the 34^th Annual ClovisFest in Clovis, along with a car show and live entertainment. Downtown Fairfield is home to the family friendly 8^th Annual Candy Festival on October 11, which celebrates the cluster of candy companies in Fairfield. The centerpiece of the festival is Candyland, where as many as 30 candy companies offer samples and sell delicious treats. Visitors will also find performances from barbershop quartets, clowns and jugglers. In Suisun City, the Western Railroad Museum takes visitors on scenic 5-mile rides via the Pumpkin Patch Trains, every weekend from October 11-26, to Gum Grove Station with its pumpkin patch, hay bales, rides and gentle animals to pet.

They are stomping grapes this fall in the Gold Country Region at the 2008 Calaveras Grape Stomp, scheduled for October 4 in Murphys. Produced by the Calaveras Winegrape Alliance, the event draws large crowds as scores of teams stomp barrels filled with 25 pounds of grapes. The Gold Rush Street Fair on Main Street, also part of the event, hosts 100 vendors that offer knick-knacks, food and arts. Nearby Angels Camp also pays tribute to the grape at the Taste of Calaveras, October 12, which features vintages from Calaveras wineries and gourmet foods from Calaveras restaurants. The emphasis is on traditional American crafts at the Columbia State Historic Park Harvest “Festifall” in Columbia, October 11-12, where historically accurate methods for rope making, weaving, candle dipping and other pioneer crafts are highlighted.

Located in the Orange Country Region, Disneyland Resort in Anaheim celebrates fall with HalloweenTime, beginning September 26 and running through Halloween night. Both Disneyland and Disney’s California Adventure offer spooktacular entertainment, whimsical décor, a variety of festive foods and a lively mix of Disney characters in Halloween costumes. Also returning for the Halloween season is the “Haunted Mansion Holiday,” inspired by the innovative animated film The Nightmare Before Christmas, where Jack Skellington and his friends create holiday mayhem at the Haunted Mansion in New Orleans Square. Mickey’s Trick-or-Treat Party, a private costume party with Disney characters, lets little ones trick-or-treat through Disney’s California Adventure park. Tickets go on sale August 1.

San Luis Obispo County, part of the Central Coast Region, is home to three FallFest Harvest events. The 71^st Annual Arroyo Grande Valley Harvest, September 26-27, celebrates “Planting the Seeds of our Future” with agricultural displays, arts and crafts, farmers market, chili cook-off and scarecrow contest. More than 100 individual events, such as winemaker dinners and barbecues, are offered up at nearly 90 wineries as part of the Harvest Wine Tour Weekend in Paso Robles Wine Country, October 17-19. The San Luis Obispo Vintners Harvest Celebration, November 7-9 in San Luis Obispo and Arroyo Grande, features winemaker dinners and a grand tasting. In locations throughout Monterey County, travelers can attend the 12^th Annual Great Wine Escape Weekend, November 7-9, and enjoy its food pairing sessions, wine country open houses and tours, along with boutique wine tasting and winemaker dinners with renowned chefs.

Celebrating a year’s culmination of hard work with the vines, Temecula Valley wineries host a fun-filled weekend of food and wine on November 1-2, when one ticket price allows wine aficionados access to all participating wineries of the Temecula Wine Valley Winegrowers Association, located in the Inland Empire Region. In addition to their usual selections, wineries are offering selected new and unreleased wines, as well as barrel and tank samples and cuisine created especially to complement the wines at each winery.

Wine is also on the menu at the Lake Tahoe Autumn Food and Wine Festival, taking place September 5-7 outside at the Village at Northstar in Truckee in the High Sierra Region, with its vertical, portfolio and appellation premium wine and spirits tastings, grape stomp, winery dinners and live wine auction. Chef and restaurateur Stephanie Izard, the winner of the fourth season of Bravo TV’s “Top Chef,” recently signed on to host a cooking seminar at this year’s festival, which will also offer cooking and outdoor grilling classes, the Blazing Pans Mountain Chef Cook-Off (“Iron Chef” style) and kids’ cooking programs. In South Lake Tahoe, locals and visitors celebrate the beginning of fall with the annual Oktoberfest at Camp Richardson Resort & Marina, October 4-5, with pumpkin patches, hay rides, hand-crafted items and a visit to the German Beer and Wine Garden, where guests can dine on traditional German cuisine, including bratwurst and polish dogs, as well as favorites such as chicken sandwiches and pretzels.

For a California twist on a traditional harvest festival, travelers head to the North Country Fair in Humboldt County, located in the North Coast Region. The weekend event, scheduled for September 20-21, is held in Arcata around the same time as the vernal equinox, and celebrates diversity within the region and world while showing off the bounty of the area’s organic growing. Taking place Labor Day Weekend, August 29 to September 1, Fort Bragg celebrates its logging heritage with Paul Bunyan Days. Planned activities include the Logger Sup N Stomp (food, drink, music and square dancing), old fashion dress review, horseshoe tournament, pie sale and logging show. Mendocino County celebrates The Day of the Dead (Dia de los Muertos) October 27 through November 1 with a countywide altar trail displayed at wineries, galleries and restaurants.

In the San Diego County Region, visitors to LEGOLAND in Carlsbad enjoy monstrously fun events at the park’s annual Brick-or-Treat, held every weekend in October. The all-new Brick-or-Treat After Dark takes place on Saturdays, when the park comes alive with special kid-friendly activities, such as a nighttime costume contest. Screamin’ good times await visitors in downtown San Diego at the Gaslamp Quarter’s popular annual Haunted Hotel. The Haunted Hotel, located on Market Street, features rooms from Hollywood’s favorite horror films. Also in San Diego, visitors are invited to run for their lives on the Haunted Trail of Terror at Marston Point in Balboa Park, where the trail opens at sundown. A San Diego tradition “as American as apple pie” is the popular Annual Julian Fall Apple Harvest, September 15 to November 15. Each year, thousands of travelers venture to this historic mining town nested in the Cuyamaca Mountains to sample fresh, crisp apples, homemade apple pie and cider.

Visitors can be a part of a rural mountain community at the Mountain Harvest Festival & Beer Tasting October 18 in Quincy, located in the Shasta Cascade Region. Guests sample more than 25 award-winning microbrews and organic and domestic wineries, dance to the Norton Buffalo & the Knockouts, as well as enjoy family friendly activities. On-site camping is available, and the event benefits Plumas Arts.

Whether casually curious or a serious seeker of style and taste, the award-winning Art of Food & Wine Palm Desert in the Deserts Region opens guests’ eyes to the art in everyday life over four days of food, wine and cultural experiences from November 6-9. The two-day Grand Tasting features internationally renowned James Beard Chef Rick Tramonto; chef, author, restaurateur and TV personality David Rosengarten; Food Network stars The Hearty Boys; “Breakfast Queen” Ina Pinkney, and the Godfather of Thai cuisine, Tommy Tang. Crops indigenous to the Coachella Valley, such as dates, are also showcased throughout the event, as are additional elements of cooking and drinking.

The CTTC is a non-profit organization with a mission to develop and maintain marketing programs - in partnership with the state's travel industry - that keep California top-of-mind as a premier travel destination. According to the CTTC, travel and tourism expenditures total $96.7 billion annually in California, support jobs for 924,100 Californians and generate $5.8 billion in state and local tax revenues. For more information about the CTTC and for a free California Visitor’s Guide, go to www.VisitCalifornia.com.

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