CONTENTS
Marin to the Sonoma Coast
Petaluma-Point Reyes Station
Central Sonoma County Loop
Tomales to Bridge Haven
Dry Creek-Stewarts Point
Cazadero-Fort Ross-Stewarts Point

Wine Country to the Geysers
Napa Valley-Silverado Trail
Mt. Veeder Road-Glen Ellen
Pope Valley-Aetna Springs
Mark West Springs-Petrified Forest
Silverado Mine-Western Mine Road
The Geysers
Chalk Hill Road-Pine Flat Road

Carquinez, the Delta, and Contra Costa
Briones and the Muir House
Port Costa-Crockett
North of Suisun Bay
The Delta
East of Mt. Diablo
Byron-Brentwood-John Marsh House
Altamont and Patterson Passes
Mines Road-Lick Observatory

Santa Cruz Mountains, the Coast, and Old San Juan
The Coast South of San Francisco
The Coast - Tunitas to Santa Cruz
Zayante and Mt. Charlie Roads
East of Route 17
Santa Cruz to Castroville
Highland Way-Eureka Canyon-Corralitos
New Almaden-Mt. Madonna
San Juan Bautista-Fremont Park-San Juan Grade
Books of Interest
Index

 

Take the Long Way Around
I have often thought, while observing the desperate driving maneuvers so many people employ
to gain a few seconds’ advantage over other drivers, that the most crucial lesson of driving
behavior has been forgotten—or, perhaps, never learned. That lesson is: You are almost never
in a desperate hurry. And, if you are not, then why do you hurry? And why, instead of rushing
in order to shorten your trip, shouldn’t you deliberately lengthen it? And if you can do that,
then go one step further and make the trip itself—rather than the end of the trip—your goal.
These back-road tours vary considerably in length. Some, if you did nothing but drive, would
be over in an hour. Others require half a day or a full day. Much depends on how devoted you
are to taking your time about it. If you cannot squelch the urge to “make time,” you may gain
minutes or hours to devote to some other restless activity but you will have gained nothing of
what your tour has to offer.
Some of the tours go to or pass by historic sites or other places of interest. Others are mainly
drives that do not take you to a particular place, but rather are to be enjoyed for the scenery and
for the quiet pleasure of having eluded the madding crowd. Some trips will occupy a day in
themselves, but can also be done in conjunction with other things. For instance, if you are visiting
the wineries of Napa County, you can enhance your wine-tasting by taking the Pope Valley-Aetna Springs
trip, or the Silverado Mine-Great Western Mine Road loop out of Calistoga.
Have you ever wondered how to entertain visiting relatives once they have seen all the standard
tourist sights? Have you ever racked your brain trying to think of a pleasant activity for someone
who cannot do strenuous things? Have you grown bored with driving the same roads over and
over again, and wished there were some new route to arouse your interest and curiosity? If so,
then your troubles are over, for you’re holding the answer to those questions in your hand.
The maps in this book have been made to supplement a California state road map. No other
maps are necessary, though if you have something more detailed you may be able to create
variations on the routes. If you are an AAA member, get their maps; they are the best.
All of these trips were originally made between January and June of 1978. I did them all again
in 1996, and again in 2006. The information in this book was accurate as of that latest time.
Keep in mind that road conditions, hours, and rates and fees do change. If it is essential for
you to visit a particular park, winery, or other attraction, it would be wise to phone ahead for
current information or to check that entity’s website.

I hope that you will be in a relaxed frame of mind while touring. There are many quiet back
roads and many sights to see.

Most of the historical and place-name information in the descriptions of these trips comes
from three books. I highly recommend them to anyone interested in California history—or in
pleasant and informative reading. They are:

Farquhar, Francis P. (ed.). Up and Down California in 1860–1864, The Journal of William H. Brewer.
Berkeley and Los Angeles, University of California Press, 1966. William Brewer was a member
of the original California Geological Survey, under the leadership of Josiah Dwight Whitney.
The book is available in most libraries, and can also be found in paperback in many bookstores.

Hoover, Mildred B., Eugene H. Rensch, Ethel G. Rensch, and William N. Abeloe.
Historic Spots in California. Fourth Edition, revised by Douglas E. Kyle. Stanford:
Stanford University Press, 1990. The only complete guide to the historical landmarks of
California. There is an incredible wealth of information in these 617 pages, making you
wonder how the authors managed to put it all together. The book is still in print, and is
available in most libraries.

Gudde, Erwin G. California Place Names. Third Edition. Berkeley and Los Angeles:
University of California Press, 1969. This book is available in most libraries as a reference work.

Also of interest and value are:

Hart, James D. A Companion to California. New York: Oxford University Press, 1987.

California Historical Landmarks, on sale at most state historical sites and monuments,
and available from the Department of Parks and Recreation for $15.95. Phone toll-free: 1-800-777-0369.
This booklet lists all the state historical monuments by number and has their inscriptions.

I wish you safe and pleasant traveling. Use lower gears on the grades—up and down—stay to
the right on blind curves, keep her between the fences—and you won’t wind up in the ditch.

Peter Browning

 

Index
	A
Aetna Springs, 34
Altamont Pass, 75–77
Annapolis, 15
Aņo Nuevo State Reserve, 92
Aptos, 101 
Armstrong Redwoods, 7–8
	B
Birds Landing, 59–60
Bivalve, 3
Black Diamond mines, 67–68
Bloomfield, 5
Bodega, 11
Brannan, Samuel, 28, 63
Brentwood, 71, 74
Brewer, William H., 9 ,36 ,67, 78, 82
	104, 110, 113, 116
Bridge Haven, 9, 12
Briones Regional Park, 50–52
Butano State Park, 91
Byron, 71
Byron Hot Springs71
	C
Calistoga, 25, 28, 35, 37–38, 42–43, 49
Carquinez Scenic Drive, 54–55
Castroville, 104
Cazadero, 17–18, 23
Chalk Hill, 47
Clarksburg, 65
Clear Lake, 38
Cloverdale, 46
Collinsville, 59
Contra Loma Regional Park, 69
Cordelia, 57–58
Corral Hollow, 77–78
Corralitos, 108
Cotati, 5
Courtland, 65
Crockett, 55–56
	D
Davenport, 93
Devils Slide, 85
	F
Fairfield, 57, 59
Felton, 96
Fisk Mill Cove, 21
Fitzgerald Marine Reserve, 85
Fort Ross, 18–20
Freeport, 65
Freestone, 5, 7
Fremont Peak, 116
	G
Geysers, The, 43–45, 49
Geyserville, 13, 43
Glen Ellen, 29–31
Great Western Quicksilver Mine, 41
Grizzly Island, 59
Guerneville, 7
	H
Half Moon Bay, 86
Healdsburg, 5, 8, 13, 43, 49
Holy City, 105
Howard Landing Ferry, 66
	I
Isleton, 63–64
	J
Jimtown, 43, 49
John Marsh House, 72–73
John Muir National Historic Site, 52–54
	K
Knights Valley, 35–36
Kruse Rhododendron State Reserve, 21
	L
Laurel, 100
Lick Observatory, 82
Litto’s, 34
Livermore Valley, 79
Locke, 65
London, Jack, 29–31
	M
Marconi, 3
Mark West Springs, 36–37
Marshall, 4
Martinez, 54
Millerton, 3
Mines Road, 79–80
Monte Rio, 7
Montezuma Adobe, 60
Morgan Territory Road, 69–70
Mount St. Helena, 38, 40–42, 47
Mountain House, 75, 77
Mt. Hamilton, 82
	N
Napa, 25–26
Napa Valley, 25–29, 34–35, 49
New Almaden, 109–10
North Pacific Coast Railroad, 4–5, 7, 9,
 	12, 17–18
Northwest Pacific Railroad, 13
Nortonville, 68–69
	O
Oakville, 27
Occidental, 7, 11–12
Ocean Shore Railroad, 85, 89
Old Bale Mill, 27–28
	P
Pacifica, 83
Pajaro River, 103
Patterson Pass, 77
Pescadero, 91
Petaluma, 1–2, 4–5
Petrified Forest, 37
Pinole, 56
Plantation, 21–23
Point Reyes National Seashore, 3
Point Reyes Station, 3
Pope Valley, 32–34
Port Costa, 54–55
Princeton, 85–86
	R
Reynolds, 3
Rio Vista, 57, 59–60, 66
Roaring Camp & Big Trees, 96
Rutherford, 32
Ryde, 66
Ryer Island, 65–66
Ryer Island Ferry, 66
	S
Salt Point, 21
San Andreas Fault,  3, 16, 18, 22, 107,
 	111, 115
San Antonio Valley Road, 81
San Gregorio, 89
San Juan Bautista, 113–15
Sanchez Adobe, 83
Santa Cruz, 96, 98–99, 101
Santa Rosa, 47
Sharpsteen Museum, 28
Silverado Mine, 40
Silverado Museum, 27
Skaggs Springs, 13–14
Skyland, 105–7
Somersville, 67–69
Sonoma Valley, 29–30
Soquel, 98, 100–101
South Pacific Coast Railroad, 100
St. Helena, 27, 32, 34
Stevenson, Robert Louis, 37–38, 40
Stewarts Point, 13, 15–16, 20–22
Suisun City, 58–59
	T
Tassajara, 70
Timber Cove, 21
Tomales, 9, 11
Tunitas, 89
	V
Valley Ford, 11
	W
Walnut Grove, 63–65
Watsonville, 112
Western Railway Museum, 57
Wolf House, 31
Woodside, 88
	Y
Yountville, 25, 27