Photo credit: Krista

In early April we went on a road trip to northern California and we made a pit stop in Sacramento before continuing on to our final destination of North Lake Tahoe, California. The drive from San Diego to Sacramento via Interstate 5 is approximately 505 miles and took us about 9 hours to drive, including a stop for lunch. Sacramento is California’s state capital and there are many places of interest and historic locations to visit. Our brief stop was Old Sacramento, located along the banks of the Sacramento River.

Old Sacramento is a 28-acre historic area located on the Sacramento River waterfront. In January 1848, gold was discovered along the South Fork of the American River about 45 miles northeast of Sacramento. By 1849, the secret of gold was out and prospectors (a.k.a. 49ers) and entrepreneurs rushed to California to find their riches in the Gold Rush. The first stop for many of these newcomers was this riverfront area of Sacramento. Old Sacramento was also the last stop on the Pony Express route and the finishing point of the transcontinental railroad.

Historic Stagecoach on display at Old Sacramento | Photo credit: Krista

Today, Old Sacramento is home to over 50 historic buildings and is a rich backdrop for exploring what life would have been like for the pioneers and California’s early settlers of the mid-1850s. Old Sacramento has museums, entertainment, shopping, services, and a variety of food and beverages ranging from à la carte to full service restaurants. Part of Old Sacramento is a California State Park while the rest of the area is maintained and preserved by foundations, museums, businesses, and individuals.

We mistakenly used the Apple Maps app to guide us to Old Sacramento from Highway 5 and in retrospect there is probably a more direct route. The Maps app took us down a road that is adjacent to the Sacramento River and the I Street Bridge. We spent nearly 15 minutes waiting for the 100 year old bridge to swivel out of the way for a passing boat and then return to its original location before we could continue to Old Sacramento. We found a metered parking spot across the street from the Wells Fargo Museum Building, parked our car, and started exploring.

Old Sacramento – 2nd Street | Photo credit: Krista

Walking around Old Sacramento is like going back in time. There are raised wooden sidewalks and hitching posts for the horses. Many of the buildings are original to the late 1800s and some are replicas. There are also museums that have been added more recently, but the architecture and design of these buildings blend in well with the historic city blocks. One thing I noticed about the architecture of the buildings was the height of the doors and door frames – they seemed to be over 10 feet tall!

We walked along J Street toward Front Street. To the north of Front Street is the California State Railroad Museum. I have visited this Railroad Museum on previous visits to Old Sacramento and if you have the time to check it out I highly recommend it. We turned south on Front Street and walked toward the Old Sacramento Schoolhouse Museum. This one-room schoolhouse is a living replica of California’s early days of education. It is open most weekdays and weekends to the general public and is available for school field trips and special events.

Old Sacramento Schoolhouse Museum | Photo credits: Krista & Lloyd

Heading back to our car, we stopped for a scoop of ice cream and then returned to the corner of 2^nd and J Streets and visited the Wells Fargo History Museum. In front of Wells Fargo, horse and carriage rides were available to tour the area. On this road trip, our traveling mascot, Monkey, was along for the ride and he enjoyed posing for pictures at the Old Sacramento historic locations. You can read more about “How to Add Whimsy to Travel Photos” in this blog post from the archives.

In addition to the Railroad Museum and the Schoolhouse Museum, Old Sacramento is home to the California Automobile Museum and the Sacramento History Museum. For a unique perspective of Old Sacramento, the Sacramento History Museum offers an “Underground Tour” of when the streets were raised in the 1860s and 1870s to protect from flooding. With so many things to do and see, you could easily spend half a day or more exploring Old Sacramento. Since this visit was a “pit stop” for us, we limited our visit to less than an hour. Throughout the year, several special events take place at Old Sacramento, including Gold Rush Days in September. Check the Events section of the Old Sacramento website for a calendar and descriptions.

If your plans include a longer stay in Sacramento, you may want to consider a visit to the California State Capitol and Capitol Museum or Sutter’s Fort. These locations are both educational and interesting and I have visited them on previous trips to Sacramento.

The next time your travels take you to Sacramento, and especially if you are interested in the early days of California’s history, a stop at Old Sacramento should be part of your itinerary. To help with planning your visit and while you are at Old Sacramento, there is a free Old Sacramento phone app available at the Apple Store and on Google Play with a map, list of events, and additional historic information.

Monkey, our travel mascot, had fun exploring Old Sacramento | Photo credits: Krista

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