Spring Break in The Mother Lode

April 2, 10:46 PMBay Area Getaways ExaminerHeather Barnes

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 How about an adventure to Gold Country for this year’s Spring Break.  Just a short drive from San Francisco are attractions so multi-faceted that it is hard to nail down an itinerary. Yet, two days is plenty of time to take in an array of caves, mines, and town-hopping all within comfortable distances of one another.

THE SPOTS

  Black Chasm Cave  -- Inspiring rooms of stalagmites and stalactites.

Peer down into an ominous lake within this deep

abyss, and gaze upon some of the most captivating formations that the Gold Country has to offer.  Above ground, pan for gold and shop for gems. Before you leave, take a crack at a geode.

Daffodil Hill --.Take Pine Grove – Volcano Road until it turns into Rams Horn Grade. Bring your camera for a family portrait amidst some 300,000 daffodils.

Sutter Creek -- Once a booming gold rush community, it is now a serene historical landmark.  Imagine the main street as dirt rather than cement, and imagine horses sauntering by with tired miners. Don’t miss the Monteverde General Store Museum – an emporium from 1898 to 1971 Take in the authentic hardware, groceries, candy, pharmaceuticals, clothing, and miner supplies.

Sutter Gold Mine -- Each visitor will "tag in,” don their hard hats and hop into the Boss Buggy Shuttle for a long journey below.

Chaw'se Indian Grinding Rock State Park located in Pine Grove  -- Native American history -- a touch away.  The grounds are scattered with actual "grinding rocks," and a ceremonial roundhouse as well as a museum.

Moaning Cavern -- Descend down a 100-foot spiral staircase. Some of the oldest human remains in America have been found in Moaning Cavern. View one gallery that is large enough to hold the Statue of Liberty. Stand at the base of the cave, and allow the guide to shut off the lights. Listen. Does the cave really moan? Prepare for a hefty hike back to the top.