Things to Do in Chico

Epic voyaging need not be reserved for classical heroes who speak in dactylic hexameter. Just as Odysseus slayed the hurricane from aboard his inflatable raft, you too can conquer vengeful waters with today's Groupon to Gold Rush Whitewater Rafting. For just $50, you'll go on a heart-pumping, rapid-raging tour of the South Fork of the American River (44% off a $90 value).

At various points throughout its history, the cavernous interior of Hermann Sons' Hall has served as a schoolhouse, a roller rink, and a music hall. Today, the echoes of those past incarnations can hardly be heard over the whizzing of paintballs as players take cover from multicolored crossfire behind manmade barriers. Shooters All-Season Paintball’s owners have certainly put their mark on the building, which now joins five outdoor battlefields as part of their sprawling paintball complex.

When they aren’t crouching behind the indoor field’s obstacles, players test their luck against the trees and thickets outside on more than 23 acres, enlisting woodland creatures as scouts and greeting opponents with a barrage of paintballs as they emerge from their leafy hiding places. Shooters is also redesigning their attach & defend field to go along with the newly redesigned and enlarged hyperball field. Showing respect and gratitude to Mother Nature for allowing them to play in her backyard, the company equips players with eco-friendly, nontoxic paintballs and biodegradable BBs. Shaded picnic areas allow visitors a chance to rest and relax after working up an appetite on the fields.

Six-year-old Tammy McDonald fearlessly hops into the saddle for her first horseback lesson, excited to finally follow in her family’s equestrian footsteps with this foray into riding. Fast-forward to 1988, as Tammy––by now an experienced competitive rider and horse trainer–– takes over Willow Lake Ranch from her family and converts it into a horse-training facility of her own. Intent on fully transforming the facility, Tammy has since dappled the rolling ranch’s lush pastures and clusters of evergreens with horse-centric amenities including a covered riding arena, tack rooms, and a wash rack replete with pony-sized shower caps. Over the course of any given week, Tammy and her crew of instructors can be found imparting their sizeable know-how to pupils of all ages and abilities during riding lessons or helping experienced riders hone their skills via intensive clinics held periodically throughout the year. As summer unfurls, full-day riding camps introduce young steed riders to horses via activities such as basic tacking skills and games of MASH with the stallion of their choice.

Since breaking ground for Viña Castellano in 1999, the Mendez family has built an empire of Spanish wines complete with a treasure trove of gold and silver medals. Along with winery foreman Derek Irwin, the family specializes in the complex flavors of Tempranillo, Syrah, and Verdejo grapes. In the tasting room, visitors can sip new pressings and old favorites, and pick up a fine cigar to hilariously slip into a packet of exploding cigars.

Air rushes past you at 120 miles per hour while the California countryside unfolds thousands of feet below. Blue sky and empty space surround you, and the voice of your U.S. Parachute Association–rated instructor is the only sound you can hear above the wind. At 4,500 feet, the instructor pulls the parachute cord, and the two of you gently drift down to land in 32 acres of open, unobstructed grass. This is what divers experience during tandem skydives or jumps as a part of the Accelerated Freefall program at Skydive Sacramento.

Pilots at the helm of a 15-passenger King Air twin turbine, a four-passenger Cessna 182, or a five-passenger Cessna 206 take students to altitudes of up to 13,000 in as few as 15 minutes. Fitted securely with harnesses and chutes, participants can ask their diving instructor questions about the sport before plunging from the plane in a hands-on free fall and canopy flight, during which they learn steering and hot-air-balloon-avoidance tactics. Though the instructors cater to first-time divers, they also coach more experienced students toward their skydiving license. Instructors, many with 2,000 dives under their belt, also teach students to land in a main grass landing area or a high-performance area with swoop pond.

Guided by the watchful eyes of master falconer Kate Marden, West Coast Falconry introduces avian enthusiasts to eagle owls, falcons, and hawks through an apprentice course, educational demonstrations, and aerial displays of predatory birds hunting. Various excursions give small groups of participants up-close interaction with the birds, enabling them to explore natural avian habitats and observe the predatory birds in flight, hunting, and while picking up their dry cleaning. Gloved game chasers can also try casting and calling owls, hawks, and falcons to and from their fists.