The 12 Can't-Miss Towns In California's Sierra Nevada
Angels Camp still celebrates the jumping frog that made Mark Twain famous, with bronze frog plaques set into its sidewalks. Gold Rush main streets like it line the western foothills, and alpine lake towns ring Tahoe. On the eastern side, small desert towns sit in the shadow of the High Sierra. Each of these 12 has a sight that is hard to find anywhere else. Here are the Sierra Nevada towns that deserve a stop on the next trip into the mountains.
Kings Beach
A long stretch of sand with clear, shallow water runs through the middle of Kings Beach, one of the largest public beaches on Lake Tahoe's north shore. The Kings Beach State Recreation Area adds picnic tables and a boat launch, and the water is ideal for wading and paddleboarding.
The small downtown has casual cafes and taco shops steps from the sand. Trails into the hills above town connect to the Tahoe Rim Trail, which circles the entire lake. A short drive across the Nevada line, Sand Harbor's turquoise coves and granite boulders draw photographers and swimmers.
South Lake Tahoe
The Heavenly Gondola climbs from the edge of South Lake Tahoe to sweeping views of the lake. In winter, Heavenly Mountain Resort straddles the California-Nevada border. The town is the busiest on the lake, but it is also the gateway to some of Tahoe's most famous sights.
Emerald Bay lies a few miles northwest, and a steep trail leads down to Vikingsholm, a Scandinavian-style mansion built on its shore in the 1920s. Paddlewheel boat cruises sail across the lake to the bay. Back near town, the Tallac Historic Site preserves grand summer estates from Tahoe's early resort era.
Placerville
At Gold Bug Park, just north of downtown Placerville, visitors walk inside a real hard-rock gold mine. The town itself was once known as Hangtown, a nickname from its rowdy Gold Rush days. Its Main Street still has brick buildings and a historic bell tower from that era.
East of town, Apple Hill's orchards and farm stands fill each fall with visitors hunting for cider, apple pie, and pumpkins. Family wineries dot the surrounding El Dorado County hills, which makes Placerville an easy base for a day of tasting.
Sutter Creek
The Knight Foundry, founded in 1873, is one of the last water-powered foundries in the country and occasionally opens for tours. A few blocks away, the Monteverde Store Museum preserves a general store as it looked in the early 1900s.
Sutter Creek's Main Street follows old Highway 49 past balconied Gold Rush buildings that now hold wine tasting rooms, antique shops, and cafes. The town is one of the best places to sample Amador County's wines, especially zinfandel, and the wineries of the Shenandoah Valley are a short drive away.
Angels Camp
Bronze frog plaques line the sidewalks of downtown Angels Camp, where Mark Twain heard the story that became "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County." The tale made him famous, and the town has never forgotten it. Each May, the Jumping Frog Jubilee at the county fair draws contestants from all over.
The Angels Camp Museum displays Gold Rush mining equipment and carriages. Nearby, Moaning Cavern and California Cavern offer tours into underground chambers. New Melones Lake, a large reservoir just south of town, is popular for boating and fishing.
Jamestown
On select weekends, historic steam locomotives pull out of Railtown 1897 State Historic Park in Jamestown. The working roundhouse and rail yard have appeared in hundreds of films and TV shows, including High Noon and Back to the Future Part III.
The town's Main Street is lined with historic hotels and false-front storefronts, and visitors can try gold panning along local creeks. Columbia State Historic Park, a car-free Gold Rush town, is a short drive away.
Lee Vining
At South Tufa, a short trail winds among towering limestone formations that rise from the water's edge like sculptures. They belong to Mono Lake, the ancient, salty lake on the edge of Lee Vining.
The Mono Basin Scenic Area Visitor Center explains the lake's unusual ecosystem, which supports millions of migrating birds. In summer, the Tioga Road climbs west from town into the high country of Yosemite. The ghost town of Bodie, one of the best-preserved in the West, is a short drive north.
Bishop
The Buttermilks, a field of giant boulders west of Bishop, draw climbers from around the world. In the White Mountains to the east, the Ancient Bristlecone Pine Forest protects some of the oldest living trees on Earth, some more than 4,000 years old.
Bishop is the largest town in the Owens Valley. Erick Schat's Bakkery, a Dutch bakery known for its sheepherder bread, is a downtown institution. Mule Days fills Memorial Day weekend with parades and rodeo events. Just north of town, the Laws Railroad Museum preserves a historic depot and railroad village.
Independence
Just south of Independence, Manzanar National Historic Site preserves one of the camps where Japanese Americans were held during World War II. A museum, reconstructed barracks, and a driving tour tell the story.
The town itself is the seat of Inyo County, and the Eastern California Museum covers the region's Native, ranching, and mining history. West of town, the road to Onion Valley climbs steeply to a trailhead high in the Sierra, a gateway to alpine lakes and the John Muir Wilderness.
Lone Pine
The rounded boulders of the Alabama Hills, just west of Lone Pine, have starred in hundreds of Western films. A short trail leads to Mobius Arch, which frames a view of the Sierra crest. The Museum of Western Film History in town displays costumes, props, and posters from movies shot nearby.
Above it all rises Mount Whitney, the tallest peak in the contiguous United States. The winding road to Whitney Portal climbs to a trailhead, waterfall, and fishing pond at the base of the mountain.
Three Rivers
The General Sherman Tree, the largest tree on Earth by volume, stands in the Giant Forest. The Generals Highway climbs there from just outside Three Rivers. The town sits at the entrance to Sequoia National Park, where the forks of the Kaweah River meet in the foothills.
Artists, ranchers, and outfitters make up much of the community, with galleries and cafes along the river. The Three Rivers Historical Museum covers the area's pioneer history. Lake Kaweah, just downstream, offers boating and fishing.
Kernville
Kernville bills itself as the whitewater capital of California, with rafting trips on the Kern River that range in difficulty for beginners and experienced paddlers alike. Westerns were filmed around the town for decades, and its small downtown keeps a Western-style look.
The Kern Valley Museum shares the area's mining and ranching history. Lake Isabella, just south, is one of the largest reservoirs in Southern California. The river trails north of town lead into Sequoia National Forest.
Twelve Towns, One Mountain Range
The Sierra's two slopes produce very different towns. Placerville and Jamestown grew from Gold Rush camps on the western side, along with Sutter Creek and Angels Camp, and they still trade on that history. Across the crest, Lee Vining and Lone Pine sit in dry country where the history runs toward ghost towns, wartime incarceration at Manzanar, and Western film sets. Tahoe's lake towns lean on water, while Three Rivers and Kernville lean on big trees and whitewater. Passes such as the Tioga Road close in winter and keep the two sides of the range far apart for months at a time.
