Day Trippin' › California › From San Jose › Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park
The drive from San Jose to Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park takes about 2 hr 40 min (northeast of San Jose), by real roads from ZIP 95112. Along the way we found 97 stops within a short detour: 23 coffee shops, 3 bakeries, 22 ice cream and treats and 26 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 San Jose) 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: Bobak Ha'Eri, CC BY 3.0
Historic site
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.
Heads-up: November to February the museum is open 9 to 4. The river is cold and fast in spring.
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About 2 hr 40 min by road, heading northeast from the middle of ZIP 95112. Traffic and weather change that.
Good ones to start with: Tower Cafe Sacramento (Sacramento). The page lists 28 in all, in driving order.
Dash Coffee and Bakery in Fremont, Bagel Street Cafe in Pleasanton, Boba Bliss in Dublin and Tal's Patisserie in Danville. Check hours first; they come from OpenStreetMap listings.
Mission Pizza in Fremont, Spices Garden in Fremont, Plucked Chicken & Beer in Pleasanton and Mexico Lindo in Pleasanton.
American Armory Museum in Chadbourne, Pena Adobe Park in Vacaville, Cool Patch Pumpkins in Dixon and Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area in Swingle.
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.