Another Fun Downtown Walk

Over the Labor Day weekend, there were a few things happening in downtown that I wanted to check out - Chalk it Up Sacramento at Fremont Park and Gold Rush Days in Old Sacramento. So I put on my walking shoes and completed a 7 mile hike around the downtown area.

Here are some pics from my little walk:

Sponsors buy panels of sidewalk surrounding Fremont Park for artists to paint murals with chalk.

Artists completing works in progress

Artists resting under the park's great oak

Across the street from the park is Hot Italian, the newest hip pizza parlor in town

The snazzy Italian designed bike rack

Another hip joint across the street is the Naked Lounge Coffee House

Artist with the Dragon Tattoo

The dog days of summer

Good Eats!

BBQ chicken for hungry fun seekers

Cool restored and tricked out '55 Schwinn Cruiser

The 3 day event had a great line-up of live music

After checking out Chalk It Up, I walked through Capitol Park to Old Sacramento and stopped to take pics of two memorial statues - one modern and other traditional. Capitol Park is a pleasant place to stroll on a weekend.

I swung by Crocker Park to see the major addition to Crocker Art Museum with the grand opening scheduled on 10/10/10

The juxtaposition of old and new.

The new addition on right triples the size of the existing museum. The building was designed by the firm of Gwathmey, Siegel and Associates, architects from NYC.

A large patio and cafe (behind wall) connects the new museum with the existing Victorian museum building

Exterior of museum composed of zinc and brushed aluminum panels punctuated by windows. The new building will house more than 3,000 pieces of art.

View of museum from O street overpass. The rounded corner facade and sawtooth roof-line which incorporates skylights adds architectural panache to the new building.

Another major addition to the riverfront is the new ped/bike promenade bordering the Sacramento River

The Riverfront Promenade extends from Capitol Mall to R Street

Many folks strolling the Promenade and checking out the river - a fine addition to city's open space

Another neat juxtaposition of old and new - Tower Bridge in front

The new STRS Building sits across the river from Old Sacramento

The annual Gold Rush Days was taking place in Old Sacramento, an end-of-summer family event which drew thousands into Old Town

Civil War encampment

City streets were blocked to auto traffic and turned into Old West venues

Grizzly old cowboys . . .

. . . offers a great photo opp for visitors

A parade of horse drawn wagons clunked around the streets of Old Sac

The water wagon kept the dust down

Another photo opp time for kids

Big crowds kept the riverfront eateries busy

The beautiful people cruising the river . . . plenty of action on the river

The Promenade bike path follows the tracks to R Street and continues into the city over the R St. bridge

Decorative pavers and bollards mark the crossing of Front Street

Access from downtown to the riverfront has been linked with the conversion of the abandoned R Street rail bridge to bike/ped facility

Bike path open to cowboy tandem

A boat sculpture which incorporates a misting system is located in a mini-park at the R Street junction . . . a refreshing treat on a hot Sacramento day

A historic passenger train chugs by the mini-park

Walking down R Street and by the new CalPERS building with a glass tower

The glass jewel box entry into the building

Another interesting addition to the downtown skyline - the State Central Heating and Cooling Plant tower

The tower is a impressive piece of architecture. I wonder what happens inside?

The hole in the wall where you order up snow
cones

On my way home, I swing by Osaka-Ya on 10th Street, a popular spot on a hot day to pick up Hawaiian-style snow cones - Sacramento's answer to Matsumoto's

They come in four sizes

Young patrons hangin' out in front

Oh Yummie!!

My watermelon cone!!
A refreshing way to end a hot day hoofing around town . . .