Page 109 - 2025-2026 Travel Guide to California

MENKA BELGAL/GOLD COUNTRY VISITORS ASSOCIATION; MYLES MCGUINNESS/GOLD COUNTRY VISITORS ASSOCIATION. OPPOSITE: ANDREW ZARIVNY/SHUTTERSTOCK
SPECIAL EVENTS 2025
PASSPORT TO THE GREAT OUT THERE Around 17 El Dorado County wineries
participate, with a blend of wine tasting, live music, food and literary-themed events.
April 20-21, El Dorado County ElDoradoWines.org/Passport
THE GREAT SUTTER CREEK DUCK RACE Join in cheering on a fleet of rubber ducks
as they race down the creek. Sutter Creek Apr. 26, suttercreek.org/sutter-creek-amador-
county-events
CALAVERAS COUNTY FAIR & JUMPING FROG JUBILEE Wager on a jumping frog as
Mark Twain’s most beloved story is commemorated each year. May 16-19, Angels Camp
frogtown.org
GOLD COUNTRY FAIR This classic county fair features carnival rides, livestock shows,
mixed in with food and more, truly capturing the spirit of Gold Country. Sept. 4-7,
Auburn fairsandfestivals.net/events/details/2025-gold-country-fair
BIG CRUSH HARVEST WINE FESTIVAL Sutter Creek celebrates the grape harvest. See
the harvest in action and enjoy wine samples and food pairings at many of the 45+
Amador Vintners’ wineries. Oct. 5-6, amadorbigcrush.com
MARK TWAIN WILD WEST FEST Angels Camp returns to the days of Samuel Clemons
with period costumes, blacksmithing and saloon dancing girls. Oct. 12
facebook.com/marktwainwildwestfest
Today you can still pan for gold—it’s
often said there’s more left in the ground
than the original 49ers ever took out—but
you can also raft some of California’s
frothiest rivers, explore caverns and
sample Chardonnay and Syrah in
uncrowded, up-and-coming wineries.
City & Town
Sacramento was the terminus of the
Transcontinental Railroad. From there,
passengers completed their journey to
San Francisco by ferry and barge—and the
city still plays a vital role as the jumping-
off point for exploring the Gold Country.
Since the arrival of the 49ers, the small
towns of the Gold Country proper have
morphed through several distinct stages:
from rough-and-tumble boomtowns to
somnolent hamlets, to destinations for
biker rallies and, finally, to genteel
venues for weekend getaways sporting
comfortable B&Bs, sophisticated restau-
rants, antique stores and nearby wineries.
TOWER BRIDGE IN SACRAMENTO AT SUNSET, opposite; zip line fun, below; Sierra Vista Winery,
bottom right.
MUST
SEE,
DO
• COVERED BRIDGE The longest covered
bridge west of the Mississippi stands in Knight’s
Ferry, an old-time motherlode town so picturesque
that scenes from Bonanza and Little House on the
Prairie were filmed there.
• knightsferry.com
• HAVE A SARSAPARILLA Step back into
the 1800s at Columbia State Historic Park, with its
wood-planked sidewalks, historically costumed
shopkeepers and strict “horse-drawn vehicles
only” policy.
• visitcolumbiacalifornia.com
• APPELLATION TRAIL Leave the tippling
crowds behind as you taste rich, jammy Zinfandels
and other wines at dozens of wineries in
California’s up-and-coming wine region: Amador,
El Dorado and Calaveras counties.
• discovercaliforniawines.com
• APPLE WATCH Allow the aroma of freshly
baked apple pies, fritters, turnovers and strudel to
lure you off Highway 50 east of Placerville to a
place called Apple Hill. More than 50 growers
participate in a celebration of the apple harvest—
and of autumn itself—with cider, hayrides,
pumpkin patches, hay mazes and other family fun.
It runs from Labor Day to Christmas.
• applehill.com
• CALIFORNIA UNDERGROUND Rappel
into the darkness and explore a chamber large
enough to hold the Statue of Liberty in Moaning
Cavern near the town of Vallecito.
• moaningcaverns.com
2025-26 TRAVEL GUIDE TO CALIFORNIA 107