Gold Country

Gold Country runs along the western foothills of the Sierra Nevada in California, the rolling oak-and-pine country where the gold rush of 1848–55 transformed the state and the country. Elevations range from about 500 feet at the Sutter and Yuba valley floors to 4,000 in the higher Nevada and Sierra county settlements. Highway 49 runs the length of the region, named for the Forty-Niners. Amador, Calaveras, El Dorado, Nevada, Placer, Sierra, Sutter, and Yuba counties cover the region. Anchor towns include Auburn, Placerville, Coloma (where gold was first discovered at Sutter’s Mill), Nevada City, Grass Valley, Murphys, Angels Camp, Sutter Creek, and Jackson. Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park sits at Coloma; Empire Mine and South Yuba River state parks cover the central stretch; New Melones and Folsom Lake anchor the water recreation. Most trips run small-town and historical: gold-rush mining tours, antique browsing along Highway 49, and rafting on the American and Yuba. The Sierra foothills also hold growing wine regions in Amador and El Dorado, with Zinfandel as the signature grape. Spring and fall are the most comfortable seasons.