Outbound Escapes

On the Delta

Dip your paddle on a guided canoe tour of the Delta Meadows River Park area near Locke and Walnut Grove.

Tours start at 9 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays through May 18, offered through California State Parks. They last two to three hours. Reservations are required.

The cost is $20. For more information: (916) 777-7701.

Snow-free hikes

More spring hikes are sprouting up:

• Vernal pool walks at Rancho Seco Howard Ranch Trail off Highway 104, hosted by the Nature Conservancy, 9 a.m. March 22, plus April 5 and 19, and May 3; (916) 684-2816.

• Seasonal wetland hike at Stone Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, near the Elk Grove Boulevard exit from Interstate 5, 9 a.m.-noon March 22; (916) 775-4420.

• Wildflower hikes at Deer Creek Hills, hosted by the Sacramento Valley Conservancy, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. March 22, April 26, May 24; $10; (916) 216-2178.

• Sutter Buttes Peace Valley hike, hosted by the Yuba Historical Society, 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. April 5; $15-$30; (530) 846-3024.

Six-week boating course

Before you pilot your boat full speed ahead, take the Boat Smart class offered by the Sacramento Power Squadron.

Classes are 7 to 9 p.m. Mondays. Sessions are March 24 through April 28; July 14 to Aug. 18; and Oct. 20 to Nov. 24 at the Century 21 Select Training Center, 7919 Pebblebeach Drive, Citrus Heights.

The fee is $40, including manual.

For more information: (916) 978-9731 or www.sacramentopowersquadron.org.

Lectures on the Sierra

Two free lectures on "The Artistic Inspiration of the Sierra Nevada," featuring photographer Keith Sutter and Kimi Kodani Hill, granddaughter of Japanese-born Sierra painter Chiura Obata, will be held at 6 p.m. March 27 at the Sierra College Library Learning Resource Center, Room LRC 107, 5000 Rocklin Road, Rocklin. Parking is $1. For more information: (916) 789-2725.

If your travels take you to Jackson on March 27, check out a slide show on the "Rivers of America" presented by photographer-author Tim Palmer, 7 p.m. at the senior center on New York Ranch Road.

Palmer will sign copies of his books, including his newest, "Luminous Mountains: The Sierra Nevada of California."

A $10 donation is requested by the host Foothill Conservancy. For more information: (209) 296-5435.

Become a stargazer

Point out Orion the hunter and Leo the lion at your next campout once you learn the constellations in an astronomy class offered through Sierra College Community Education.

With telescopes, binoculars and star charts, you'll learn the moon, planets, stars, nebulae and galaxies in "Exploring the Night Sky," 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. Fridays, March 28 to April 25.

The class will be held at the Nevada County campus, 250 Sierra College Drive, Grass Valley. Cost is $68, plus a $5 material fee.

To register: (916) 781-0590, or www.sccommed.org.

Go airborne

Whether you're a pilot who would like to learn to fly gliders or you have no experience and are starting from the ground up, let the Silverado Soaring Club introduce you to aerial adventure with a free introductory flight.

The club offers one-hour sessions in Williams and Truckee, and also in Minden, Nev.

To make arrangements: (650) 400-1857.