Nevada City Travel Story
The deep green hillsides, white church steeples and red brick storefronts are the first visible clues that this colorful Sierra foothills Gold Rush town is a different kind of place.
In a stroll though the narrow streets of the downtown historic district, the visitor soon learns there is more to Nevada City than meets the eye. There is, as a Los Angeles Times reporter recently observed, "a Nevada City state of mind. It's a real place where people of different lifestyles manage to coexist sucessfully. Refreshingly, there is a there there."
Nevada City is a place where business is done with a smile and pedestrians acknowledge each other on the street. Even the motorists are laid back. It is a local tradition to wait at stop signs and let the other guy go first.
Like other Gold Rush towns up and down the Mother Lode, Nevada City began in 1849. While other old towns have disappeared or fallen victim to urban sprawl, Nevada City, located 80 miles west of Reno, via Interstate 80 and scenic Highway 20, has managed to retain its old-fashioned charm.
Two factors that occurred in the 1960s and 70s helped save Nevada City. The hippies and back-to-the landers who settled here brought new attention and commerce to a sagging downtown that was half full of empty stores. At the same time, city leaders were early in recognizing that historic preservation could be the foundation of a strong tourist trade.
Today, the hippies who opened head shops, herb shops and health foods stores are established business people, some in more conventional occupations such as real estate, insurance and city government. Nevada City's entire downtown area has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Through the changes, the town has retained an artsy, bohemian flavor that adds to its appeal.
In addition to its 90-building downtown historic district with its many shops, restaurants and bed and breakfast inns, the town is a recognized arts and entertainment center of the Sierra Foothills. It features several galleries and is home to award-winning groups such as Music in the Mountains and the Foothill Theatre Company.
Located in thick pine forests at the 2,500-foot elevation, Nevada City is high enough to offer an escape from valley heat yet low enough to avoid the clouds and thunderstorms and winter snows that often surprise visitors at the higher elevations.
Nevada City is a gateway to the Yuba-Donner Scenic Byway and the rivers and lakes of the Tahoe National Forest. The area is attracting more visitors who are looking for easy weekend getaways from Reno, Sacramento and the Bay Area.
If You Go
Nevada City is a pleasant 90-minute drive from downtown Reno. Summers here are warm and dry with daytime temperatures about 10 degrees cooler than the Sacramento Valley. Winters are cool and wet with average annual precipitation of 55 inches. Beautiful fall colors dominate the landscape in October and November.
Brochures on history, walking tours, dining, hiking, mountain biking and fall colors are available from the Nevada City Chamber of Commerce, 132 Main Street, Nevada City, CA 95959. Telephone (530) 265-2692 or toll-free (800) 655-NJOY.