South Placer: Family-friendly outdoor adventures — with great beer, food
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SOUTH PLACER — You can practically feel summer swooping into the urban corners and stunning geography just north of Sacramento. Winter’s late rains have painted the surrounding landscapes every shade of green, and spring’s balmy temperatures are ticking up, sending families out for sun-kissed adventures of every kind.
Perhaps you’ve always considered South Placer the gateway to Northern California’s historic Gold Country and the High Sierras of Lake Tahoe. It is, but the diverse and burgeoning area from Roseville to Auburn is also a veritable family playground, with hiking trails, stunning waterfalls, gorgeous scenery, kid-friendly breweries and farm-fresh restaurants at every turn.
Most Bay Area families know Roseville for its historic downtown, top-notch shopping and paved trails that wind through ravines and along creeks. But as you head north through Rocklin, Loomis, Newcastle and Auburn, where the north fork of the American River meets the glistening Lake Clementine Dam, you discover all that South Placer has to offer.
For starters, it’s an effortless weekend getaway. Last month, we packed up our 8-year-old son, Ben, and 1-year-old puppy, Cotton, for a two-day adventure that included a few impressive meals, including dinner at the new Oakwater American Bistro in Granite Bay, where the Bouchon-trained chef-owner is growing his own food and showcasing musical talent on weekends.
From there, we ventured to Rocklin, also known as the City of Granite. It’s home to 22 quarries that have provided stone for hundreds of buildings in Northern California, including the State Capitol. Now, Rocklin draws families to Quarry Park, an all-ages adventure park with zip lines, aerial adventures and natural granite climbing walls exposed by the mining practices of long ago.
Up the road lies Loomis, where produce and hops farms dot the rustic landscape — and you can tuck into fresh salads and crisp craft beers at the new Gander Taphouse. It’s located inside the former Blue Goose fruit-packing shed, and even there, our son was in his element, challenging neighborhood kids to shuffle board and foosball.
Ironically, it was along Placer’s ale trail and its farm-to-tap breweries that we realized how truly family-friendly the area is. At Lincoln’s Goathouse Brewing Co., our kiddo fed happy goats tasked with pruning the hops, while we sipped hand-crafted beers; at Hillenbrand Farmhaus Brewery, on a 13-acre farm in nearby Newcastle, the grown-ups enjoyed beer made using fruits and honey harvested on-site while the little ones skipped stones in the serene pond just outside the taproom.
While in Newcastle, we stumbled upon Newcastle Produce, a great spot to load up on salads and deli sandwiches before beginning your outdoor adventures in Auburn, whether you’re exploring the waterfalls and swimming areas of Hidden Falls Regional Park, or the stunning trails along the North and Middle Forks of the American River in the Auburn State Recreation Area.
On our last day, we chose the latter via the Lake Clementine Trail. It’s about five miles round-trip, an easy-to-moderate hike that starts at the small ranger station on Old Forestville Road and ends at the dam, with languid Lake Clementine behind it. After we paid our parking fee, we laced up our kicks and set off on the wide dirt path along the river, which is high and gushing after winter’s rains.
At first, the trail is un-shaded yet cool, due to the brisk air bouncing off the river’s rapids on your left. The first “wow” moment is when you walk under the Foresthill Bridge, with a deck height of 730 feet, it’s the highest in California and the fourth highest in the nation. We snapped as many photos as we could before Cotton bounded ahead, determined to sniff every chaparral and rest in the shade of the conifers and oaks that dotted the trail.
About 2.5 miles into the hike, you hear it: The roar of water blasting from the dam gates and slapping into Clark’s Pool. Another bend and a final incline, no more than a quarter of a mile, gets you up close and personal with the dam: Loud, wild, glistening and strewn with rainbows.
After marveling at it for minutes on end, we scrambled down on the rocks to get closer, feel the powerful spray and snap photos before climbing back up and snagging one of two picnic tables at the lookout. It was time for some well-deserved rest, snacks and family time.
If you go
Oakwater American Bistro: 5540 Douglas Blvd., Suite 110, Granite Bay; www.oakwaterbistro.com
Quarry Park Adventures: 5373 Pacific St, Rocklin; https://quarrypark.com
Gander Taphouse: 3550 Taylor Road, Loomis; www.gandertaphouse.com
Goathouse Brewing Co.: 600 Wise Road, Lincoln; www.goathousebrewing.com
Hillenbrand Farmhaus Brewing: 5100 Virginiatown Road, Newcastle; http://hillenbrandbrewery.com
Newcastle Produce: 9230 Cypress St., Newcastle; https://newcastleproduce.com
Hidden Falls Regional Park: 7587 Mears Place, Auburn. Parking reservations required on weekends and holidays; www.placer.ca.gov/Hidden-Falls-Regional-Park
Lake Clementine Trail: 139 Old Foresthill Road, Auburn; www.parks.ca.gov/auburnsra