Page 26 - 2017 Travel Guide to California

CITIES
THE SIERRA TAVERN is one of many
historic buildings in downtown Truckee,
right; the Old Church Plaza, Bakersfield,
bottom; tall ship Hawaiian Chieftan with
the Carson Mansion in the background,
Eureka, opposite top.
BAKERSFIELD: Buck Owens & Basques
Calling all honky-tonk angels: Bakersfield
may just be a must-stop. Once home to the
late country-music legends Merle Haggard
and Buck Owens, this San Joaquin Valley
community’s workaday, unpretentious
facade masks a city of surprises. Located
inland and northwest of Los Angeles, Bak-
ersfield is reached via California routes 99
and 58. The city of 347,000 is home to one
of the largest and most vibrant Basque com-
munities in the United States. Family-style
Basque restaurants like Wool Growers
Restaurant and Cocktail Lounge and the
Pyrenees Café add diversity to the down-
home cooking of Bakersfield’s truck stops
and roadside diners. Fans of country music
can drop by Buck Owens’ Crystal Palace,
with its mementos of Owens and his band,
the Buckeroos, and catch a show by con-
24 2017 T R AV E L G U I D E TO C A L I F O R N I A
temporary country musicians. It’s a fine
place to listen to a swooning steel guitar by
the light of the jukebox.
LA QUINTA: Golf, Hiking & Desert Sun
This desert town of 40,000 is a favorite des-
tination for golfers, especially in winter
when La Quinta is winningly warm but not
hot. The combination of golf and fine
weather makes it a strong draw for snow-
birds temporarily fleeing less salubrious
climes. Located 130 miles east of Los
Angeles and 130 miles east of San Diego on
Interstate 10, La Quinta is in the Coachella
Valley, flanked by the rocky Santa Rosa
Mountains. The city offers no fewer than
five public golf courses of championship
caliber and is a host city for the PGA Tour’s
Career Building Challenge, formerly the
Bob Hope Classic. Silver Rock Resort fea-
tures an Arnold Palmer Classic Course,
while refurbished circa-1926 La Quinta
Resort likewise offers a classic course. A
prime getaway for early Hollywood celebri-
ties, including populist everyman film
director Frank Capra, La Quinta Resort is
perhaps the best-known local hotel. Don’t
play golf? Hiking and biking are also pop-
ular choices.
EUREKA: Redwoods & Victorians
In the northwestern corner of California,
Eureka, 270 miles north of San Francisco on
Humboldt Bay, has the largest deep-water
port between San Francisco Bay and
BENNY MARTY/SHUTTERSTOCK; RICHARD THORNTON/SHUTTERSTOCK. OPPOSITE: REDWOOD COAST