California makes a great travel destination
By Bob Stickley
One of the most interesting trips I have taken was to Auburn, Calif.
My brother and his wife, who both worked at Stanford University, lived in Palo Alto until they retired. They then moved 140 miles away to Auburn.
It is a quaint little city with lots of old antique stores in what is called old Auburn. The city has grown and grown to where it is now home to many thousands of people.
As is the case with most people, no matter where we reside, when it comes time to retire folks just want to leave the big city life and start anew. But before we know it, that little retirement town is now home to many retirees and is no longer a small place anymore.
While we were visiting my brother and his wife, they took us on a grand tour of some beautiful countryside.
The first day we started out on an upward climb to visit Lake Tahoe. The lake is beautiful and some mountains with elevations and plenty of snow surround the city.
It’s not uncommon in December or January to see two to four feet of snow in a couple of days. As we went to Lake Tahoe we passed several ski resorts with plenty of snow.
The next day was a tour of the 49er highway where the big gold rush took place and a visit to Placerville, where the big strike took place. They had a gold nugget as big as a small soccer ball in a glass case.
The next day we went to the capitol city of Sacramento to visit the California Railroad Museum. There were trains there on display from 1849 up to the present day.
The interesting thing was the state hires all retirees to act as guides to the many thousands of people who pass through the museum each year.
The fourth day of the trip included a trip to Stanford University, which some folks call the Harvard of the west. This is a beautiful school, particularly the old campus, which is all Old Spanish design.
The next day we went to the Redwood forest. The trees are gorgeous and huge, and yes we did see one that you could drive a semi through it.
The final two days were spent at Yosemite National Park. Folks, this is one beautiful place to visit.
I saw several large waterfalls that burst off the sides of mountains. There is also plenty of snow in December.
If anybody wants to take a great trip out west, northern California is beautiful. I guarantee you will have something to share with your kids and grandkids for several years.
