15701 Pioneer Volcano Rd;
tours adult/child from $15/8;
h9am-5pm Jun-Aug, 10am-
4pm Sep-May) has the whiff
of a tourist trap, but
one look at the helictite
crystals – sparkling white
formations resembling
giant snowflakes – makes
the crowds bearable. Two
miles southwest of town
at Indian Grinding Rock
State Historic Park (% 20
9-296-7488; http://www.parks.ca.gov;
14881 Pine Grove-Volcano Rd;
per car $8; hsunrise-sunset
daily, museum 11am-2:30pm
Fri-Mon; c), a limestone
outcrop is covered with
petroglyphs and over
1000 mortar holes called
chaw’se used for grinding
acorns into meal. Learn
more about the Sierra
Nevada’s indigenous
tribes inside the park’s
museum shaped like a
Native American hun’ge
(roundhouse).
4 p235
The Drive » Backtrack along
Pine Grove-Volcano Rd, turning
right onto Hwy 88 for about
half a mile, then turn right
onto Ridge Rd, which winds
through forests and past rural
homesteads for 8 miles back
to Hwy 49. Turn right and head
north about a mile to Sutter
Creek.
5 Sutter Creek
Perch on the balcony
of one of Main St’s
gracefully restored
buildings and view this
gem of a Gold Country
town, boasting raised,
arcaded sidewalks and
high-balconied, false-
fronted buildings that
exemplify California’s
19th-century frontier
architecture. At the
visitor center (%209-267-
1344; http://www.suttercreek.org; 71a
Main St; hdaily, hr vary) pick
up self-guided walking
and driving tour maps.
Nearby Monteverde
General Store Museum
(h209-267-0493; 11a
Randolph St; admission free;
hby appointment only) is a
trip back in time, as is
Sutter Creek Theatre
(%916-425-0077; http://www.
suttercreektheater.com; 44
Main St), an 1860s saloon
and billiards hall, now
hosting live music, plays,
films and cultural events.4 p235
The Drive » Follow Main
St north of Sutter Creek for 3
miles through quaint Amador
City. Back at Hwy 49, turn right
and continue north another few
miles to Drytown Cellars, south
of the Hwy 16 junction.6 Amador County
Wine Country
Amador County might
be something of anunderdog among
California’s winemaking
regions, but a welcoming
circuit of family-owned
wineries and local
characters make for
great sipping without
any pretension. Planted
with California’s oldest
surviving zinfandel
vines, the countryside
has a lot in common with
its most celebrated grape
varietal – bold, richly
colored and earthy. North
of tiny Amador City,
Drytown Cellars (www.
drytowncellars.com; 16030
Hwy 49; h11am-5pm) has a
gregarious host and an
array of rich red blends
and single-varietal wines.
Drive further north to
the one-horse town of
Plymouth, then head east
on Plymouth Shenandoah
Rd, where rolling hills
are covered with rocky
rows of neatly pruned
vines, soaking up gallons
of sunshine. Turn left
onto Steiner Rd towards
Renwood Winery (www.
renwoodwinery.com; 12225
Steiner Rd; h10:30am-5pm)
and Deaver Vineyards
(www.deavervineyards.com;
12455 Steiner Rd; h10:30am-TRIP HIGHLIGHTCHASING THE ELEPHANT
Every gold prospector in the hills came to ‘see the
elephant,’ a phrase that captured the adventurous
rush for gold, and a colloquialism of ’49ers. Those
on the overland California Trail were ‘following the
elephant’s tracks,’ and when they hit it rich, they’d
seen the beast from ‘trunk to tail.’ Like seeing a rare
beast, rushing Gold Country’s hills was a once-in-a-
lifetime risk, with potential for a jumbo reward.
CENTRAL.CALIFORNIA.21
.HIGHWAY 49 THROUGH GOLD COUNTRY