Let’s be honest, there is nothing like small town and rural communities here in Northern California. Even those of us who are from a city seem to want to escape to the great outdoors every chance we can get. Those of us lucky to be from these rural areas know there really is no place like home. The cool thing about Northern California is the variations in climate, making our rural areas some of the most interesting and unique places to live.
1. Carriage rides through rustic old towns.
Nevada City is just one of the Gold Rush towns that still hosts carriage rides like this one.
2. Picking blackberries right out of our backyards.
But a drawback to these berries is removing those plants; they grow like weeds!
3. Summers on the lakes with loved ones.
This is Donner Lake in Truckee.
4. Homemade jams and preserves... yum!
El Dorado County's award winners.
5. County fairs and livestock auctions. Raise your hand if this is a hometown staple for you!
This is the El Dorado County Fair Livestock Auction.
6. The beautiful gardens that bloom and grow in the yards in your neighborhood.
Who doesn't love a cheerful sunflower?
7. Speaking of plants and agriculture, our wineries are stunning and we don't hate the vino that comes out of them, either.
Pictured here is Sterling Vineyards.
8. And then there's the Christmas Tree Farms.
There's nothing that says it's the holidays like driving up past the snowline in search of that perfect tree.
9. As well as the rows of produce (this is a field of strawberries that really does go on forever, just like in the Beatles song).
Did you know that Sacramento is the farm to fork capital of the U.S.?
10. All the farmland of Northern California. It's just so rustic and peaceful compared to other parts of the world.
A barn with Hwy 395 in the distance just south of Susanville.
11. The mountains.
This is Echo Lake in Northern California.
12. The beaches.
This fisherman on the Northern California coast looks like he's about to reel something in.
13. The history that we could spend hours exploring.
This is the Old Station Post Office in Shasta County.
14. The many reminders of how life used to be.
This is an abandoned and partially destroyed Tepee Woodchip burner in a field south of Anderson, CA.
15. The endless opportunities for play.
There's fun to be had in any direction if you are looking for a place to explore here in Northern California.
16. The trains that have rolled through some towns for generations.
You can practically hear this train a comin'.
17. The wildlife stuns us every time.
These massive elk are a common sight along the North Coast.
18. There's no other place like rural Northern California for watching the sunset.
This is what it looks like from the Ahjumawi Lava Springs State Park.
19. Or seeing the stars.
Pictured here is the Gerle Creek campground in the Crystal basin region of El Dorado National Forest.
20. The traditions that never cease to delight us.
This is the reenactment of the first ski race in Graeagle. Other traditions include the wheelbarrow races in Placerville and the Jumping Frogs of Calaveras County.
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