Four of us female friends are hoping to plan a trip next year. We originally planned to go to Alaska, but for 2 in our group it is not financially feasible next year.

Our next choice is a trip to CA wine country. I have read that Napa and Sonoma are rather pricey and there are tasting fees at wineries.

I just read an article about wine country in Amador County near Sacramento. The article said there are 35 wineries and no tasting fees. Has anybody been there? If so, what is your opinion?

I also seem to remember that wine country includes the Russian River Valley, which is also a less expensive area. What cities are in this area?

We have 6-7 days for this trip and would like help with an itinerary, budget lodging and dining, and other points of interest in the area we would be visiting.

Thanks for any help that anyone can give.

I live not far from the Amador county wine region and it is wonderful - sort of what Napa/Sonoma was like 30 years ago. Lower key, owners on site, no tasting fees, etc.

There is a lot to see/do w/i a short-ish drive of the Plymouth/Shenandoah Valley area wineries - even Yosemite. Basing in a place like Sutter Creek you could hit Amador country wineries a couple of days, Calavaras County wineries another day, Yosemite as a day trip, Columbia state historic park and lots of antique shops, and a day trip up to Tahoe.

OR - you could also go to the Napa/Sonoma/Alexander Valley/Russian River area - like everyone else

What month are you planning for the trip?

JanisJ,

Thanks so much for your prompt reply. Until reading an article in a travel magazine today I had never heard of the Amador county wine country. Now you have been kind enough to tell me about Calaveras County. What a great forum this is!

I am looking at a map, but can't find Sutter Creek. We would fly into Sacramento. How far is it from there?

I have read about state parks near Sacramento - Gold Rush District, Sutter's Fort & Marshall Gold Discover. Are they worth a visit?

We have never been to Tahoe and might enjoy a visit there. Is a day trip enough to visit this area? Two of us have been to Yosemite, the other two haven't. I have read that spring is the time to visit Yosemite to see the waterfalls. Again, is a day trip sufficient time to visit? We aren't opposed to moving from one location to another. We will probably fly Southwest and might fly into one airport and fly home from another.

We haven't decided on a month and hope you can advise us on when is the best time to visit. One person in our group has to put in her vacation request in January so we need to decide on a time.

Thanks again for all of your help.

It depends on how detailed your map is - I assume it shows State Hwy 49. That is the road that runs N/S parallel to the central valley but just east in the Gold rush foothills. It runs from near Yosemite to north of Grass Valley/Nevada City. In a row south of Placerville are Plymouth, Amador City, and Sutter Creek. Other villages along there include Mokelumne Hill, San Andreas and Angel's Camp. Some or all of those should show on your map.

Meant to add in my previous post - there are also Stands of Redwoods, and caves/caverns you can tour. So all in all there is a LOT to see/do.

Sutter's Fort in in downtown Sacramento and not really all that worth a special trip unless you are staying in Sacramento. It is really quite interesting - but just not better than other things you'd be able to see. Marshall Gold Discovery state park is between Placerville and Auburn on hwy 49. If you end up venturing north of Placerville it is worth a visit.

Sacramento is the best place to fly into - and depending on the time of day/commute traffic, it should take between 50 and 90 mins to get to Plymouth from SMF.

The very best time to visit the area is probably late March through mid May because the hillsides are amazingly green and there are wild flowers everywhere. By late May it is starting to be "summer" and while still pretty, the hills start to get golden. We usually have virtually no rain between about late April and early October so I'd avoid July/August because it can be quite hot/dry. Fall is good though w/ the leaves turning and brisk mornings but still warm afternoons.

We always fly to Sacramento...great airport. May I suggest that you start your trip by going south first to Lodi CA for a couple days. Do you realize Lodi produces twice the grapes of Napa and Sonoma combined? Plus, there are lots of new wineries and places there and there are never tasting fees.Look at this amazing place:
http://www.bergholdvineyards.com/
One of our favorite stops is Michael-David. They have a GREAT cafe for breakfast/lunch and lots of goodies:
http://www.lodivineyards.com/
Harmony Wynelands has an interactive music room/display, beautiful gardens and is loads of fun:
http://www.harmonywynelands.com/

Here's the best part. The Vino Piazza, which is home to many independant growers and bottlers. It also has shops, fantastic restaurants, comedy and music shows and more:
http://vinopiazza.com/


We spent an entire day at the Piazza.There are a couple nice B&Bs there, as well as regular chain hotels such as Holiday Inn Express. There are also some good restaurants there. It's extremely easy to drive the area and there are no traffic woes such as those in Napa.

LLindaC is right that there is some fine tasting in/around Lodi. But I might just do it as a day trip either from Sacramento or Amador county. The tasting is good, but the town itself is not a "destination". Otherwise - 1 night would be the most you'd need to stay.

Maybe I take it for granted because Lodi is so close - and I get there pretty often. But I personally would not stay over night.

And just south of Sacramento - about a 20 min drive you can taste at Bogle Winery tasting room and "The Sugar Mill" where they have 5 different tasting rooms-
we tasted some great wines there
and no fees for tasting.

Dear mlm59:

Again, I agree with janis - great advice. I would plan maybe 3-4 days of wine tasting/ site seeing in the Amador Co. Then finish your trip up at Lake Tahoe. You could fly into Sacramento and out of Reno on Southwest. May would be ideal.

MY

Janisj has given you great advise. The area is beautiful. IMHO better than Napa/Sonoma. (My parents live an hour north of the Sonoma wine areas. I have been visiting that area for over 30 years.)

Fitzpatrick Winery in Fairplay has a wonderful B&B. It is high on a hill and overlooks the vineyards. It even has a lap pool. Check out www.fitzpatrickwinery.com.

Ironstone Vineyards in Murphy is a beautiful place. In the late spring they have gorgeous gardens with all the flowers in bloom. Their wines are great.

Someone on this forum returned recently from this area and did a review. You might search this forum for his/her post.

It is a wonderful area to explore. We have lived here for 13 years and continue to find great wineries and small towns. Late April would be a perfect time to visit.

Thanks to all of you who have given me ideas and advice. I am contacting AAA for a California map. I only have a road Atlas that is not very detailed.

I plan to check out all of the places you mentioned and get information to share with my friends.

I don't think B&B's will work - we need 2 rooms with 2 beds. Are there budget hotels in these areas? We only need a clean, safe place to stay as we plan to see and do as much as possible during our vacation time.

Two of those going have never been to SF and would like to explore the possibility of ending our trip there instead of Tahoe. Is that a viable option?

We are thinking of the last week of April or 1st week of May. Not sure about SF that time of year. I was there in Sept and it was beautiful, but heard the spring can be cold and foggy.

What about flying to Reno and driving (about 45 minutes) to Lake Tahoe for a couple of nights. Condos are not expensive in April/May. We got a really good deal on a condo at Squaw Valley Lodge last June.

Then drive to Amador County wineries for a stay. And on to San Francisco for the rest of your visit.

That would make a nice combination of sites.
>-

If you don't want a B&B, here are some motels in the area:

http://www.theshenandoahinn.com/

book.bestwestern.com/bestwestern/productInfo.do?propertyCode=05399&disablenav=false

There is also a Holiday Inn Express in Jackson, and a Days in in Sutter Creek.

Thanks again for all of your help.

MaureenB - I like your idea. I have never been to Tahoe. Not sure what to do there. Will need to do more research. We are all people who like to be on the go, enjoying new places and experiences.

2 of us have been to SF, but would love to go again. The other 2 are more into wine tasting, but we are all willing to go along and try new wines.

JanisJ - thanks for lodging suggestions. I must work on making this a budget trip so everyone can go and have a good time.

Mim, Tahoe is a beautiful place. The lake is so blue! So much to do there: hiking, boating, tram to the top of the mountain, even gambling on the Nevada side.

If you're interested in the Squaw Valley Lodge condos, let me know and I'll find the phone number of the Squaw Valley reservation person who got us such a good rate there.
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MaureenB - If you have the name of the person to contact for the condo at Squaw Valley Lodge, I would appreciate it. I would really like to go to Tahoe. Of course, it depends on what the group decides.

If they don't want to go there this trip, I would be interested for a future trip.

Mim, her name is Sue, at Squaw Valley Central Reservations, 800 545 4350, 530 583 5585.

She booked us into the Squaw Valley Lodge last June, and we were really happy with that place and the price. (It was much more expensive when I'd called the Lodge directly.)
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MaureenB - Thanks so much for the information. I will definitely call her if the group decides to include Tahoe as part of our trip. If not, I will keep it for reference for a future trip.

Thanks again

You're welcome.
Tahoe is wonderful, so hopefully your travel mates will want to see it, too.
It has a little bit of everything, for everyone.
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We LOVED our trip to California this summer! I just posted a little trip report about our week stay in Angels Camp and Murphy. Click on my name and you should find it.

We went through Sutter Creek and Mokelumne Hill on our way to the Sutter Gold mine. The gold mine was very interesting. The towns didn't really have much to keep you there more than a couple hours.

Murphys is where the winery Ironstone is located. They really have done a good job bringing in excellent restaurants and shops. I saw many girl groups!

JanisJ mentioned that spring would be a good time to go because the grass had not turned "golden" yet. I'm sure the wildflowers would be beautiful, but we loved the "golden" grass! It was very stunning with the bright blue sky and the green trees....To locals it might not be as beautiful!

We also flew into Sacrmento. Not too crowded. Easy to navigate. And not a bad drive to Angel's Camp.

You'll notice in my post that we also went to Napa and Sonoma. Why in the world anyone would go to these overpriced, overcrowded, overstressed areas, when places like Murphys exist?

Have fun!

Napa is a nightmare. Sonoma still has some charm,. but the likes of Francis Ford Coppola are out to ruin that.