Colfax California

The nearby town of Colfax remains a quaint, historic railroad town, known as the hidden treasure of the Sierra foothills. It is located in Placer County, on the western slope of the Sierra Nevada Foothills, directly off of Interstate 80 (14 miles from Auburn and 50 miles northeast of Sacramento). The town is nestled in pine trees at an elevation of 2,422 feet, and maintains a rich history connected to the Gold Rush days and building of theTranscontinental Railroad. The town still serves as the Union Pacific mainline through the Sierras. Downtown Colfax, including the area surrounding the train depot and railroad park, has been designated as an Historic District. There is also a Heritage museum in the Depot open daily. The Empire Mine State Historic Park in Grass Valley, the site of the richest, hard-rock gold mine in California, is located outside of Colfax, off of Highway 174. There is also a new Nevada County Narrow Gauge Railroad Museum in nearby Nevada City (check the website ncngrrmuseum.org for Summer and Winter hours). During the Summer you can actually ride on a mini Railbus. This railroad museum is right next to the new, Inn Town Campground (INNTOWNCAMPGROUND.com). Besides the pool at the campground, there are great places to swim along the gorgeous Yuba river which is nearby. The bed and breakfast towns of Grass Valley and Nevada City are only a 25 minute drive along beautiful Highway 174.

Colfax is bordered by the Bear River on the north (a campground is approximately 3 miles outside of town) and the North Fork of the American River (a short drive down Iowa Hill Road). The 4 mile Steven’s Trail begins in Colfax and descends via a beautiful scenic path along the canyon and down to the American River. A short 45 minute hike will take you to an old abandoned miner’s cave on the trail and a scenic spot for viewing the canyon. Lake Rollins is just 2 1/2 miles outside of town and has two, large, separate campgrounds with swimming, fishing, and boating (including paddle-boats) during the late spring and summer months. Even though Colfax is below the heavy snow line, it is only a 35 minute drive up Highway 80 for downhill (Sugar Bowl) and cross-country (Royal Gorge) skiing in addition to sledding and snowshoeing during the winter months. The town of Truckee, Squaw Valley Ski Resort, and Lake Tahoe are only an hours drive away.