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The Surprising Northern California Town That Makes An Excellent Weekend Getaway
155 Plays7 months ago
Welcome back, everyone, to another episode of Not Your Average Bucket List by OnlyInYourState. Today, we’re going to be talking about Northern California, specifically the historic town of Weaverville. The article we’re focusing on this week is titled The Surprising Northern California Town That Makes An Excellent Weekend Getaway, and it highlights a historic gold rush town in Northern California. Let’s dive in…
Things we’ll cover in this episode:
- What is the gold rush history behind Weaverville, California?
- What are some fun things to do in Weaverville, CA?
- What type of outdoor attractions does Weaverville, California have?
Podcast Timestamps:
[00:04:25] The History of California’s Gold Rush
[00:06:08] How did the Gold Rush influence Weaverville?
[00:13:15] What Weaverville is like today.
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Get In Touch!
If you have personal experiences with any of the attractions mentioned above, call or text 805-298-1420! We’d love to hear your thoughts on these places and maybe even share your clip on the show! You can also reach out to us via email at [email protected].
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Transcript
Introduction & Episode Preview
00:00:06
Speaker
This is Not Your Average Bucket List by Only In Your State, a podcast about exploring the hidden gems right in your own backyard. Welcome back everyone to another episode of Not Your Average Bucket List by Only In Your State. Today, we're going to be talking about Northern California, specifically the historic town of Weaverville. I'm here with my co-host, Sarah. Hi, Sarah.
00:00:33
Speaker
Hey Marissa, how are you? I'm doing very well. It was under the weather last week. That's why we didn't get a new episode out. I sounded pretty gross, so I didn't think anybody would want to hear that. You're sounding great now. Good to go. Thanks.
Why Consider Living in Weaverville?
00:00:49
Speaker
So I just want to start this episode by saying that I think Sarah is moving to Weaverville.
00:00:57
Speaker
Okay, so maybe I ended up on Realtor.com and maybe I found some places I want to. Like honestly, I found that cute A-frame cabin that's like on a two acre lot and it's in California, like California is California.
00:01:11
Speaker
Yeah. I might be packing up. Honestly, just that price point alone, I would say like pretty alluring. Just California, yeah, but also just I feel like very hard to find homes nowadays that are under $200,000. I know. Honestly, I should track that and see where it because it was affordable, but it's probably gonna be like $200,000 over asking all cash.
00:01:37
Speaker
Gotta love the housing market. But anybody that wants to move to Weaverville, check it out. There's an A-frame for sale. We are not sponsored by Realtor.com.
What Makes Weaverville a Great Getaway?
00:01:48
Speaker
But we're going to talk about, there's an article that we have on Only In Your State about Weaverville. The title is the surprising Northern California town that makes an excellent weekend getaway. So before we dive in, do you agree with that title? What are your thoughts?
00:02:07
Speaker
100% out at an addendum, possibly a very peaceful living situation for one of the podcast hosts, if not just a weekend getaway. But no, I agree completely. I think it has that sort of je ne sais quoi that some of these Western towns have, especially with its history and some of the quaint aspects of it. So I would agree. I'm in the agreement column. How about you? Yeah, definitely agree.
00:02:33
Speaker
I think this place, because first and foremost, Weaverville is not big by any means. It's about 3,700 people. So this is considered small town. And while there may not be a ton of things to do, if you're the type of person that likes to travel and you like going places and you like having a packed itinerary, this might not be the place for you because you're not going to have things lined up one after the other to do.
00:03:03
Speaker
I do think this does make for an excellent weekend getaway because there is a lot to do in the area, surrounding area, and especially when it involves nature. Lots of nature here. I think that's the caveat. If you're looking for going out, tons of restaurants, you're not going to get that. However, I am going to touch on this later. There is a small downtown. There are some cute spots to visit. There are some
00:03:27
Speaker
historical spots to visit. And to your point, it's in, you know, at the bottom of the Trinity Alps wilderness, which is by the like Shasta Trinity, I guess, State Forest. Hold on. Yeah, the Shasta Trinity National Forest, which is the largest in California. Tons of stuff to do. Just not nightlife, necessarily.
00:03:50
Speaker
Yeah, which is fine, but perfect for me. I love that. Let me disappear into the mountains for a few days and turn off my cell phone. But that's basically what you'll find here in Weaverville. It is a mountain town. There's an elevation of about 2,000 feet.
Exploring Weaverville's Gold Rush History
00:04:06
Speaker
So you're going to be pretty high up there. And like you said, there's a lot of history here, which I think is, to me, what added to the allure, because I don't know what it is about the gold rush I'm so fascinated by.
00:04:19
Speaker
I know we've talked about it before, but yeah. I had to do a little summary, because obviously I'm aware of the gold rush. I'm like, actually, I need some perspective on when, why, where it happened. So California Gold Rush, I'm just going to dive in real quick. Yes. Just in case. So this happened in early 1848, Reach Peak, 1852.
00:04:42
Speaker
This happened because that Sutter's Mill in California, the owner or an employee found gold in the water-powered sawmill, saw gold in the creek bed. This is what really kicked it off was John Sutter at Sutter's Mill. It's just discovering, oh, there's gold and they try to keep it hush, hush, hush.
00:05:01
Speaker
didn't happen. And this was along the American River outside of Sacramento near Colma, or in Colma. And basically within a year, starting out in 1848, 4,000 gold miners in the area and within a year, 80,000 gold miners, colloquially known as the 49ers because it was 1849, rushed out to the California gold fields and were just
00:05:25
Speaker
having a heyday, and it peaked in 1852, and by the end of that decade, it was over. It was just a flash in the pan, and I think it's fascinating. Interesting. First of all, how'd they get the word out? I was just thinking that. I was like, what the heck, man? Imagine if somebody did in little snitches out there, could've kept all that gold. They're like, oh, we got to get this word back.
00:05:53
Speaker
No, but I think that's really, I think that's really fascinating. You know, just the fact that it was a couple of years and people went crazy because hello gold back then. I mean, wow. And then this is how Weaverville came to be is during this California gold rush that it was founded in 1850. And what I thought was really neat about this is that
00:06:19
Speaker
Weaverville was home to 2000 Chinese gold miners. And it had its very own Chinatown, which I thought was really cool because it wasn't just your Americanized story of gold rush, but these were specifically Chinese gold miners. And then eventually no more gold left to snag, but this town has sustained itself as a historical place. And then also just like a mountain town,
00:06:48
Speaker
that people still live in and love.
Discovering Joss House State Historic Park
00:06:52
Speaker
Yeah. And I do think that the history and specifically of the Chinese miners, I think it's really interesting to me because usually you see, you know, like these Chinatowns, Asia towns, Little Korea towns in major cities because of, I mean, quite frankly, some, you know, darker history because, you know, there was some othering and people were pushed to corners of the cities that they, you know, people said they didn't belong in. However,
00:07:15
Speaker
in this small town of now 3,700 people, there were such a population dense, so population dense of Chinese immigrants and workers. I thought that's really fascinating. And not to this day, it still leaves its footprint and it's celebrated and it's part of the, we'll talk about it shortly, but what they left behind is part of the historic registry and is supported by the state. So I think it's a very unique
00:07:43
Speaker
story to tell about one of these, you know, Chinatowns that have developed in, you know, in the city, well, not really a city in a tiny town. So I thought that was really fascinating in and of itself. Yeah, it is. And there are still a lot of aspects throughout the town that, you know, you can go and explore that are
00:08:03
Speaker
representative still of this Chinese culture in this small town, like the Joss House State Historic Park, home to the oldest continuously used Chinese temple in the entire state of California. So not just NorCal here, but so you will when you visit, you get to kind of get a glimpse into the cultural history of the area, which I think is really fascinating and just adds to the allure of this place.
00:08:30
Speaker
100%. When you talk about Joss House, there's actually a guided tour and display pictures, art objects, mining tools, weapons, a ton of history in this little part of the town. If I visit and or maybe live there, I would absolutely go and visit this place. It's fascinating. Do you think if you were alive back then you would be a gold miner? Would the allure of prospecting gold move you to
00:09:00
Speaker
rush out there. That's a huge risk Marissa. I don't think so. I don't think I'm a gold mining type. Really? No, here's what it'd be. I would have a little cottage in the woods and I'd have like some herbs and chickens. That's what I want to do today by the way, not just back then. But this is what I'm going to do and I don't think I'd risk it to go out west. I'd be interested but also
00:09:24
Speaker
You know, I don't want to get a dysentery. So I think what would happen is that I would just have a little farm in the woods with little chickens and maybe be like an herbalist of some sort. And yeah, I think that's what I'd be doing. What about you? Are you out west, canning the rivers? I probably would just for fun. I don't think I would make it like, you know,
00:09:46
Speaker
cut throat, do or die kind of thing, but I think that stuff is fun. Like just, I remember I was in elementary school and there was a little creek by our school that we would go out to for science class and we would pan the creek.
00:10:03
Speaker
for, you know, obviously not gold, but just like, my science teacher now is a millionaire. Um, no, but it was just like child labor. What a story that would be.
00:10:20
Speaker
Oh, man. I got to check up on him, actually, LinkedIn. But no, I just like that idea. It's kind of like a scavenger hunt, if you will, that you're just panning. And I know that how many people went out there for the gold rush didn't hit big. You would walk away with a tiny little thing and maybe get whatever.
00:10:46
Speaker
That's the thing. I mean, aside from having to cross the country and that this time of the US history, and I would be afraid of actively dying in some sort of, you know, event. Also, it's such a gamble. It's like, am I gonna get, am I gonna hit it big? Am I gonna get the gold? Or is it just slowly sifting to the mud? For hours upon hours. Yeah, I barely played lottery today, so I don't know who I'm fooling.
00:11:13
Speaker
They were being appealed, though, like going out to these Gold Rush towns, maybe running a saloon, you know, if women don't own things back then. But, you know, running a saloon and just be this, like, rootin' tootin', like, no-nonsense kind of town owner. Like, I would like that. Yes, that would be cool. Come to my town, paying for gold, and leave, and you'll be fine. That's great. I love it. Now you're the mayor, and you run the apothecary there. I love this little town. Yeah, that's exactly it. Nail in the head.
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Speaker
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00:12:11
Speaker
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00:12:25
Speaker
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00:12:54
Speaker
but let's discuss maybe a little bit of what people can expect now if they go visit. You mentioned the downtown area in particular. Do you want to touch on that and what's there? Yeah, I thought it was really, you know, for being such a small town and not really being a hub of like shopping or anything like that. They have a few spots I think is really quaint. So they have the Trinity County Brewing Company.
00:13:21
Speaker
They have a cafe on Main. They have a place adorably called Diggins. They also have a diner called, I think, The Nugget, which is very, very much on theme. But there is enough spots in the downtown area that if you were visiting for a weekend and you wanted to go on hikes and you were going to fish and all that stuff, you'd have places to go for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They also have the Jake Jackson Museum, which is a typical local museum that has gold rush memorabilia and history and stuff like that.
00:13:50
Speaker
It also, like we mentioned, the Joss House State Historic Park. They have also the Trinity Heritage National Scenic Byway that runs through the area. If you want to hop in the car, kind of on a tangent from downtown, I was just making a list, but if you wanted to not go up on a hike or something, you want to get in the car, you could also do that, swing through the downtown.
00:14:13
Speaker
I just think even though it's really only busy in the summer in this area, anytime you go, there would be things to do. Yeah, I did like that the town itself hosts a lot of events throughout the year. So they do like an annual 4th of July parade. There's the Trinity County Fair, where a lot of people come together. But yeah, it does seem to be more popular during late spring, summer months.
00:14:42
Speaker
I'm assuming because that's where a lot of people are heading out into nature. They want to go visit the Trinity Alps wilderness and there's a lot of hiking. There's a lot of camping, fishing.
00:14:58
Speaker
It doesn't have the vibe of, you know how sometimes when you go through a small mountain town and you look at the only gas station and it's like 10 bucks a gallon and it's like, oh, this isn't a place anyone lives or functions. It's just a middle point. That's not the feeling I get from Weaverville. It's actually very proud of its history. It's very quaint and like you said, they have events and they really love who they are. Every time that I saw comments, and maybe we'll get to that, but comments about the town,
00:15:25
Speaker
or I even saw this great town video someone did to like kind of like show off the businesses and things. They're all very proud and like happy that they live here and it's just lovely. Yeah, it does seem to me like a really laid back mountain town. It's not a lot of, nobody's really rushing around. It has that, you know, just kind of
00:15:49
Speaker
move at your own pace situation. And then yeah, like the main street area is really cute. It's a lot of small shops. There's like a stoneware hardware store. And then yeah, the Mama Llama Eatery and Cafe.
00:16:10
Speaker
And they do have a saloon, tangle blue saloon. Yeah. And yeah, I just thought that there's a lot to do. I think that's why maybe perfect for a weekend because you can fit everything in the town in and then if you want to, you know, like coming and going from the town driving, you could stop like at nearby Trinity Lake. It looks beautiful. And yeah, there are a lot of things to do in the surrounding area as well if you want to kind of like venture out.
00:16:38
Speaker
Yeah, and I will say that the Shasta Trinity National Forest, like we talked about earlier, it is the second largest wilderness area in California. It is huge. So it has over 600 miles of trails and over 500,000 acres of land. So whenever we are speaking about things to do, you're going to want to actually look near, I don't know why I gave us that attitude, but you're going to want to look specifically near Weaverville and Trinity Lake. So I was pointing out a few examples of trails that you could hit.
00:17:06
Speaker
Lewiston Lake Trail, which is a 3.1 mile easy out and back. There's the East Weaver Creek Trail, which is a 6.8 mile hard trail. So, you know.
00:17:18
Speaker
Take it your own risk. There's a day ranch spur and East river Creek loop 2.5 mile easy loop. And then there is the Mackenzie Gulch loop, which is 3.8 miles moderate loop. So if you look at this area, you can be, maybe this is just me being a Midwesterner. I'm always shocked by how large scale these forests are. So it's not just in the cargo down five minutes. If you want to hit all these other trails in the area, you're going to have to be in the car for quite a while. So those are some spots that are nearby. I thought that looked really cool.
00:17:47
Speaker
Yes, I think that's awesome. Thank you for sharing those hiking trails because I think, you know, what we want to do essentially for this episode in particular is really highlight this area as a travel destination because it is a small town and you might not even know it existed because personally, I love Northern California.
Weaverville: A Hidden Gem for Travelers
00:18:07
Speaker
I've been there many, many times, but I've never heard of this place. Yeah. And it does sound like a place that I would want to visit after kind of just like,
00:18:16
Speaker
you know, researching and hearing these things and especially with just like a handful of nearby hiking trails in this giant national forest. Yeah, I feel like that would make for a really great weekend.
00:18:28
Speaker
Absolutely. It is pretty self-contained and you can, I don't know, just really take it in all the amazing places nearby because in addition to Trinity Lake, it's also close to Lewiston Lake and Ruth Lake. So you can, if you're not into hiking and maybe want to go boating, kayaking, fishing, you can also do that. So there's a lot of options nearby. Yes. And it's also pretty close to Oregon too, which yeah.
00:18:56
Speaker
After you sent me that one listing, I was like, Oh, maybe I'll look in the area and see what's there. And then I went down a rabbit hole. But yeah, I mean, California. Yeah. Way outside of my budget, but
00:19:11
Speaker
It's always nice to dream. You mentioned reading some comments from people about Weaverville, and we did post on our Only in Northern California Facebook page asking people for personal stories. Were there any that stood out to you that you wanted to share?
00:19:32
Speaker
So a few of them that I was very envious of, given our realtor comments, I saw some people were like, I lived there for a few months, loved it, or I happen to live here, and it's great to live where people want to go visit. And I'm like, yeah, OK.
00:19:48
Speaker
It is great to see that people feel really blessed to live there or they're passionate about their town. And there was one more I wanted to call out. Let me scroll through, see if I can find it. How about you? Were there any that stood out to you?
00:20:08
Speaker
I think the majority of the ones that I saw were that people were driving through. It wasn't like their destination, that it was like, yeah, I was driving through. Rick said he was driving on his motorcycle back in the 1970s.
00:20:25
Speaker
you know, people were like, Oh, we were randomly going through and there was an accident. So we were detoured, but we ended up stopping and we stayed at this adorable bed and breakfast. Like, to me, those are the best trips because you it's spontaneous, you know, you end up exploring a place you didn't even know existed. And it's just like happen stance.
00:20:46
Speaker
So I found the comment that I wanted to call out because I thought it was so cute. But Karida said that she grew up growing there. And it's a woodsy town. Shops are amazing. River's cold. But it's like the show Cheers where everyone knows your name, which is just interesting.
00:21:01
Speaker
Um, and I grew up, I actually grew up in a, like a, uh, we call it the twin cities, but as they're not cities, um, and it's not the twin cities, but it was a village in a town and you know, about 2000 people and 3000 people was pretty small. And I feel like if it were in a mountain like this, maybe I never would have liked, cause there is some sort of appeal to that, you know, that sort of like slower living small town life of just. You kinda, I mean, good and bad, if you running uptown, you're going to see five people, you know,
00:21:31
Speaker
I kind of get stuck talking for hours. Oh my gosh, yeah. At least they're not doing the Midwestern goodbye where you're talking all the way to your car and you stand at your car for another hour and you never really leave. Have fun. Another comment that I loved, Mike said that this has been his home since 1996 and he feels absolutely blessed to live where most people want to vacation. Yeah. I thought that was great.
00:22:01
Speaker
word, Mike, word. Yeah. I mean, honestly, though, it's it's great. And it's good to see so many people say there's so much to do. And this is such a small town. And everyone that I've seen in these comments or even just like looking on just like when I was doing my research, there's lots to do. And you wouldn't expect that from such a small town, which, you know, I guess we've kind of hit that note a few times. But I just want to reiterate, it's in such a great location, I think, that you don't want to overlook
00:22:31
Speaker
something like this. Yeah, agreed. I think we are going to round out our show notes with the link to the article that was written, as well as I want to include these hiking trails that you found just we could throw those in for people to just get an idea if they want to, you know, head there and hike
00:22:55
Speaker
Um, I also came up with a couple of, uh, places to stay
Resources for Visiting Weaverville
00:22:59
Speaker
in the area. They do have really adorable bed and breakfast, like Weaverville Whitmore Inn. And there's like a lodge on the outskirts of town that I saw too, that was adorable. So we're going to throw this on the show notes, um, so that everybody can use the, this as a resource if you want to visit. And, um, yeah, anything else you want to add about Weaverville?
00:23:21
Speaker
Uh, come visit me at my new in-frame cabin and I'll turn you around. It'll be, it'll be a good time. Dropping the address in the show notes too, the visits era. Only in Your State is an award-winning travel publisher that uncovers hidden gems and local favorites across the U.S. We have a presence in all 50 states with a passionate following of fellow travelers looking to get out and explore.
00:23:51
Speaker
Head on over to OnlyInYourState.com to find the best attractions in your backyard and beyond.