What's happening in Northern California right now
Gray whales are heading home past Mendocino. The Table Mountain wildflowers peaked about a week ago and the rim is still painted yellow and orange. The Sierra snowpack is melting fast, so the waterfalls are loud and the trailhead creeks are cold. Dungeness crab season is winding down. The fog is back on the coast by late afternoon.
NoCa is a seasonal almanac: what's in season, where to see it, and what you can actually do about it. We update when the season changes, not when we need pageviews.
This month, shortlist
Table Mountain wildflowers
North Table Mountain Ecological Reserve, east of Oroville. April is the window. Yellow goldfields, orange poppies, purple lupine, vernal pools that disappear by May. Go on a weekday.
Point Reyes: whales and wildflowers at once
Gray whales migrating north pass close to shore in April. Chimney Rock and Tomales Point have both the whales and the wildflowers without the summer crowds.
Mendocino coast: last call for crab, first for whale watching
Commercial Dungeness crab season closes soon. Sport fishing is open a little longer. Charter boats pivot to whale tours as the run wraps.