N. California -Oakland to Grass Valley
 

Any special outdoors must-see recommendations along the way from Oakland by car to Grass Valley area (destination)? We have an extra day to play with.
Melissa

You might try an afternoon stop in Nevada City. Adorable town filled with Colonial, Greek Revival and California Gothic architecture. Quaint shops and restaurants.

Here's a link to check out: http://ncgold.com/

BTW Oakland and Grass Valley there really aren't any scenic areas/"special outdoor must-see's".

You will be driving across the central valley from Fairfield to east of Sacramento, and then you start into the foothills to Auburn and on to Grass Valley.

That is not to say there is nothing to see/do. There is enough to see in Sacramento to fill a day - Old Sac, the Capitol, some good galleries, the American River Parkway that runs from 20 miles from Sacramento to Folsom, Sutter's Fort, and some really good restaurants.

Or you could stop in Benicia - which is just outside of Vallejo. A small town that was once the Capital of CA, the original Capitol Bldg, and some neat galleries, etc.

But if you go past Sacramento and drive down hwy 49 (the same hwy the Grass Valley is on) you will go through several gold rush era towns/villages, a couple of really good wine regions with tasting rooms, Sutter's Mill etc.. Most of these are south of Auburn while GV is north. So you could tour down Hwy 49 and then drive back up to GV. Or you could just go to GV and spend the extra day in and/around Nevada City.

OR - you could even just drive right past Auburn/Hwy 49 and head up into the Sierras. You could easily do a day trip to Tahoe or Donner Lake before taking hwy 20 back down to GV.

Dear Janis,
Ooh, a trip to Taho may just hit the spot. Thanks .
Melissa

Another route suggestion is to go up through the Sacramento River Delta between the Bay Area and Sacramento. It is a much nicer drive than the 580/I-5 route. From Oakland, I would head over to 680 north, and then take Hwy 4 east to 160. Then you just follow Hwy 160 north through the delta. This is a 2 lane road for the most part that follows the river. The route crosses the river several times, go past some old river towns, orchards, and beautiful old homes. It is a really picturesque drive.