Day Trippin' › California › From Fresno › Empire Mine State Historic Park
The drive from Fresno to Empire Mine State Historic Park takes about 3 hr 35 min (north of Fresno), by real roads from ZIP 93721. Along the way we found 95 stops within a short detour: 25 coffee shops, 3 bakeries, 23 ice cream and treats and 27 places to eat.
The list below is the best few of each kind, in driving order, with how far into the drive you reach each one (counted from Fresno) and the detour it adds. Stops marked Our pick are chosen by us; the rest come from OpenStreetMap listings, so confirm hours before you count on them.
Photo: Beej71, CC BY 2.5
Historic site
One of California's richest hard-rock gold mines, with a stone owner's cottage, formal gardens and the old mine yard.
Heads-up: Grounds open at 10 and close at 4 in winter and 5 in summer; closed on major holidays. No dogs in the buildings.
First third Middle third Last third Empire Mine State Historic Park
About 3 hr 35 min by road, heading north from the middle of ZIP 93721. Traffic and weather change that.
Good ones to start with: Palm and Pine (Irrigosa), Cinnabon (Borden), Di Ciccos (Madera), The Vineyard (Madera) and Cake Shop by Jill & Jill (Madera). The page lists 27 in all, in driving order.
Cake Shop by Jill & Jill in Madera, Starbucks in Madera, Cornaggia's Bakery in Chowchilla and Sueño Coffee Co. in Livingston. Check hours first; they come from OpenStreetMap listings.
Di Ciccos in Madera, The Vineyard in Madera, Farnesi's Steakhouse in Chowchilla and Tacos el grullense, Jal 2 in Chowchilla.
Palm and Pine in Irrigosa, Madera County Fairgrounds in Madera, Livingston Historic Museum in Livingston and Skydive Lodi Parachute Center in Collierville.
Drive times are by road on a typical day from ZIP <class 'zip'> (OpenStreetMap data with the OSRM route planner). Stops come from our own picks and OpenStreetMap listings; hours and detours change, so check before you go. We do not store anyone's location.