Day Trippin' › Northern California › From Grass Valley and Nevada City
Grass Valley and Nevada City share Gold Country's best-kept downtowns and the Empire Mine, with the South Yuba's covered bridge half an hour away, Malakoff Diggins and the Auburn canyons under 40 minutes, and Downieville and Old Sacramento about an hour. The best day trips from Grass Valley and Nevada City, by drive time.
52 places within a 3-hour drive, by real roads.
Historic site · 58 min south
The place in Coloma where the 1848 gold find set off the Gold Rush, with a replica sawmill, a museum and gold panning on the American River.
Lake · 54 min south
A big reservoir with beaches, bike paths and boating close to Sacramento; Beals Point and Granite Bay are the main beaches.
Town · 56 min northeast
A tiny Gold Rush town where two rivers meet, with old brick buildings and summer swimming holes.
Viewpoint · 57 min east
The 1926 Rainbow Bridge on old Highway 40 looks down on Donner Lake, with old railroad snow sheds and climbing walls nearby.
State park · 38 min northeast
Hydraulic miners washed away a mountainside here, leaving eroded cliffs of red and white beside the North Bloomfield ghost town.
Historic site · 57 min south
An 1895 hydroelectric plant that sent power to Sacramento over long-distance lines, with its original generators still in place.
River · 28 min northwest
The longest single-span covered bridge in the West, at Bridgeport, among clear green river pools and gold-panning bars.
River · 38 min south
Canyon trails and swimming holes where the North and Middle forks of the American River meet, under the soaring Foresthill Bridge.
Historic site · 1 hr 6 min southwest
A riverfront district of Gold Rush and railroad-era buildings with wooden sidewalks, under Tower Bridge.
State park · 1 hr 42 min east
Tahoe's most photographed view: a deep green bay with tiny Fannette Island, seen from the roadside overlooks on Highway 89.
State park · 1 hr 2 min east
A museum on the Donner Party and the building of the transcontinental railroad, beside the Pioneer Monument and the shore of Donner Lake.
Town · 1 hr 3 min east
An old railroad and logging town whose Commercial Row is lined with Old West buildings, under Donner Summit.
State park · 1 hr 32 min east
An old-growth pine forest on the west shore with the Ehrman Mansion, a lakefront pier and beach, and groomed ski trails in winter.
Wildlife · 1 hr 15 min southwest
Seasonal wetlands between Sacramento and Davis with a gravel auto tour loop, and summer dusk bat flights under the causeway.
Ski area · 1 hr 14 min east
A large cable car climbs 2,000 feet to High Camp at 8,200 feet, with big Sierra and lake views and a free Olympic museum.
Waterfall · 1 hr 41 min east
A short rocky climb to a cascade above Emerald Bay; fit hikers can go on to Eagle Lake in Desolation Wilderness.
Historic site · 2 hr 38 min south
A whole Gold Rush town kept as it was, with stagecoach rides, gold panning, old saloons and costumed shopkeepers.
State park · 2 hr 55 min southeast
Giant sequoias in the North Grove on an easy, mostly flat loop, where the big trees first became famous in the 1850s.
Landmark · 2 hr 31 min northwest
A glass-decked footbridge over the Sacramento River in Redding that works as a giant sundial, linked to miles of river trails.
National park · 2 hr 38 min north
Boiling mud pots, steam vents, lava peaks and clear lakes along one scenic highway in one of the least crowded national parks.
Scenic drive · 2 hr 12 min southeast
A high meadow on Highway 88 below Carson Pass, with the Carson River winding through and aspen groves that turn gold in fall.
Town · 2 hr 28 min south
A Gold Rush Main Street lined with tasting rooms and old stone buildings, a short drive from the caves and Big Trees.
Lake · 2 hr 51 min northwest
A clear mountain lake ringed by green hills, with swimming beaches, kayaking and paddleboarding just west of Redding.
Historic site · 2 hr 37 min northwest
The brick ruins of a Gold Rush boomtown and a restored 1861 courthouse museum with jail cells and a gallows.
Drive times are by road on a typical day from ZIP 95945 (OpenStreetMap data with the OSRM route planner). Facts checked against official sites; passes and hours change, so check before you go.