Gold Country California has it all except the coastal beaches. Plenty of rivers & waterfalls will satisfy your need for water. Dense forest, recreational activities, gold mining history. Small towns with bed & breakfast, antique shops, restaurants, wineries, give everyone something interesting to visit. Great backroad camping & tons of lodging make this region of the golden state a popular destination point. gold country lakes Bass Lake Cherry Lake Comanche Reservoir Don Pedro Lake Gold Lake Hetch Hetchy Lake Lake Amador Lake McClure Lake McSwain Lake Tulloch New Bullards Bar Reservoir New Hogan Lake New Melones Lake Pardee Reservoir Rollins Reservoir

Sierra highways California State Route 49 - Gold Country Hwy 120 - Tioga Pass, Yosemite NP Hwy 4 - Ebbetts Pass Hwy 108 - Carson Pass Hwy 88 - Sonora Pass Hwy 50 - US Route 50 South Tahoe I-80 - Donner Pass, Interstate California 20, Nevada City rivers, forest and parks American River Auburn SRA Big Oak Flat- Gold Country Calaveras Big Trees State Park California Mining Museum Columbia State Historical Park Consumnes River El Dorado National Forest Empire Mine SHP Indian Grinding Rocks Malakoff Diggins SHP Merced River Plumas National Forest Railtown 1897 SHP South Yuba River SP Stanislaus National Forest Stanislaus River Tahoe National Forest Tuolumne River Yosemite National Park Yuba River

recreation	best area
mountain biking / horseback	Eldorado National Forest
boating / fishing	Stanislaus National Forest
snowmobiling / snow skiing	New Melones Reservoir
backpacking / hiking	Sierra Wilderness Areas
river rafting / kayaking	American River
wine tasting	Gold Country Vineyards
riverside picnics	Consumnes River

Great mellow hikes along American River near Auburn. Mountain bike & hiking trails are everywhere. Stop in to the local ranger station along Hwy. 49 just south of Auburn & ask for maps (or buy them here).	area activities include: American River Camping & Backpacking Caverns& Caves Fishing - Lake, River, Stream Gold Panning Hiking & Sightseeing Historical Tours & Mines Horse Back Rides Lakes & Streams Restaurants & Antique Shops River Rafting Snow Skiing Scenic drives & views
Rafting on the many Rivers in the western Sierra is a popular sport. Guided tours offer mellow floating to extreme adreninaline rushes.

Gold Country Road Trip - Itinerary Ideas:

Scenic and historic highway 49 is Gold Rush Country in the western Sierra Nevada foothills of California. Starting in Sacramento area & then head northeast on Interstate 80 to Auburn. Highway 49 will intersect the interstate in Auburn & this is a great town to start your northbound or southbound journey. On the interstate you will see suburban sprawl and heavy traffic all the way up the hill.

Hwy 49 North eventually leads to more rugged and rural areas like Downieville & Gold Lake (a must see). Hwy 49 South from Auburn, CA will wind you thru American River & Stanislaus River Canyons. Small Gold Rush towns crowd the busy 2 lane thoroughfare. Lots of residential and ranch areas. Yosemite National Park is loacted at the far southern end of this historic region.

Southern Stretch HWY 49 The Golden Chain Highway Northern Stretch expect to see: oak canyons river rafters reservoirs horses & ranches tourist shops expect to see: rivers & creeks fishing & hiking mountain biking lakes & camping pine forest towns along way: Georgetown Placerville Plymouth Amador City Sutter Creek Jackson Angels Camp Columbia Sonora Jamestown Groveland Mariposa Oakhurst Auburn is the unofficial Center of Gold Country Plenty of dirt backroads to explore as well. Stock SUVs will have no problems discovering a perfect spot to picnic, camp or just killing a day trying to find the best swimming hole. Spend a whole day getting lost on purpose! Rivers, streams, waterfalls, pine forest, wildflower meadows, granite mountains, scenic views... it all awaits you in Gold Country California. El Dorado National Forest & Stanislaus National Forest are closeby making the small towns very close to nature. towns along way: Grass Valley Nevada City Alleghany Downieville Sierra City Gold Lake Sierraville