Gold Country
Around Gold Country
Photo: EPoelzl · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons
Countryside and towns · California · 88k people
Gold Country
“Mother Lode”, “The Foothills”
Where the foothills keep their gold
GoldOak GreenEarth Brown
Welcome to Gold Country, where the foothills hold stories of the rush and the rivers still sparkle. Come for the wine, stay for the small-town charm.
Clubs for Gold Country
No clubs for Gold Country yet.
The room
One room for everyone around Gold Country. It never closes; when it's busy it splits into tables. Once you're in, you stay until you leave.
Ask the neighbours
AllA good plumber, the best tacos, a lost cat: nobody has asked yet. Be the first.
Coming up
No events in the next month. Events made in the room show up here.
Marketplace
Things for sale, free and wanted, and rooms for rent, from people around Gold Country. Sign in to sell something.
Things to do
- Calaveras Big Trees State Park Giant sequoia groves and hiking trails.
- Moaning Cavern Limestone cave with tours and zip line.
- Indian Grinding Rock State Historic Park Native American grinding rocks and village site.
- Kennedy Mine Gold mine with tours and stamp mill.
- Preston Castle Abandoned reform school castle in Ione.
- New Melones Lake Reservoir for boating, fishing, and camping.
- Outdoors Hiking among giant sequoias at Calaveras Big Trees
- Outdoors Kayaking on New Melones Lake
- With kids Watching the frog jumping contests at the county fair
- With kids Visiting Daffodil Hill in spring
- Evenings Wine tasting in Plymouth's Shenandoah Valley
- Evenings Live music at Ironstone Vineyards
- Locals love Wineries
- Locals love Farm stands
Through the year
- Calaveras County Fair and Jumping Frog Jubilee May Frog jumping contests, carnival, and local food.
- Amador County Fair July Agricultural exhibits, rodeo, and live music.
- Gold Rush Days in Sutter Creek September Historic reenactments, street fair, and music.
- Ironstone Grape Stomp October Grape stomping competition and harvest celebration.
- Amador Vintners' Harvest Wine Weekend November Wine tastings and winery tours across the county.
Mediterranean climate with hot, dry summers and cool, wet winters. Best times are spring and fall. Best: Spring and fall are ideal.
Talk like a local
- “Mother Lode”
- The region itself.
- “Foothill”
- The area.
- “Zin”
- Zinfandel wine.
- “Gold bug”
- Someone obsessed with gold rush history.
Getaways
- Stockton Big city shopping and events.
- Sacramento State capitol, museums, and Kings games.
- Sonora More gold rush towns and outdoor recreation.
- Modesto Galleria and dining.
Local flavour
Rooting for Sacramento Kings (NBA), San Francisco Giants (MLB), San Francisco 49ers (NFL), San Jose Sharks (NHL), Sacramento Republic FC (USL)
Eat and drink
- Amador Zinfandel The Shenandoah Valley is renowned for old-vine Zinfandel.
- Olive oil Local groves produce award-winning extra-virgin olive oil.
- Sourdough bread A Gold Rush staple still baked in local bakeries.
- Frog legs Served at the Jumping Frog Jubilee in Angels Camp.
Where people go
- Historic gold rush towns Jackson, Angels Camp, Sutter Creek, and San Andreas preserve the Mother Lode character.
- Wineries Shenandoah Valley and Murphys are dotted with tasting rooms.
- Limestone caves Moaning Cavern and Mercer Caverns offer underground adventures.
- Giant sequoia groves Calaveras Big Trees State Park protects ancient trees.
- Lakes and reservoirs New Melones Lake and Lake Amador are recreation hubs.
- Old saloons A few original Gold Rush saloons still operate in the foothill towns.
Make this page better
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Nearby
Every areaStocktonCaliforniaWhere the Delta meets the valley's bounty.SacramentoCaliforniaWhere rivers meet and every meal is from the farm.SonoraCaliforniaGold Country calm, where the Sierra meets the past.ModestoCaliforniaHeart of the Central Valley, where the orchards meet the Sierra.Yuba CityCaliforniaOrchards, river, and a world of flavor.NapaCaliforniaWhere every hill is a vineyard and every glass tells a story.VallejoCaliforniaWhere the river meets the bay, and the ferry hums home.Gardnerville RanchosNevadaWhere the Sierra meets the sagebrush
Calaveras and Amador counties, CA. Areas from the US Census Bureau and Statistics Canada; places from GeoNames. Local flavour was written with a model and may have mistakes. Team names identify teams; no endorsement.