Mariposa Museum | The best little museum in the Sierra

Mariposa Musem History Center

Mariposa Museum & History Center
The Best Little Museum in the Sierra

Founded in 1957, the Mariposa Museum & History Center houses a large array of exhibits interpreting Native American, Spanish Settlement, California Gold Rush, Yosemite, and Mariposa County History. Our World-Class Vault contains a large archive of photographs and special collections.

Our volunteers and staff are ready to show you why we've been deemed "The Best Little Museum of its Size West of the Mississippi" by the Smithsonian Institute!

The museum also has a large collection of DVDs & photos of early California. You will find children's toys, maps, and handmade gifts for all ages at this museum. In addition, they have a blacksmith shop with lots of items from early California. At his museum, you will also find jewelry and other souvenirs to suit all ages. When in Mariposa, do not miss the Mariposa Museum & History Center.

For more information, contact the museum direct. Please give us a call or email us if you have any questions. The museum is open from 9:00 AM to 4:00 PM daily. They represent the history of Mariposa and the gold rush life and times of early California.

Grape Days of Summer | A two-day wine tasting event

by Writers Workshop

Grape Days of Summer
August 07 - 08, 2021 - 12:00 pm -5:00 pm

Grape Days of Summer is an annual Placer County Wine Trail is a two-day event and is an open-house event hosted by Placer County Vintners Association. Enjoy wine tasting, food, music, and educational experiences at participating wineries along the trail.

Celebrate local wine, local food and local agriculture! Take a self-guided tour of the Placer Wine Trail, taste foothill wines and small bites of food and enjoy a unique and educational experience at each stop on the Placer Wine Trail. For more information, contact the Placer County Wine Trail Associations.

Barbera Festival 2023 | Return to Amador County

by Writers Workshop

Amador Vintner Association Event

The Annual Barbera Festival
Saturday, September, 9th, 11:00 AM - 4:00 PM

The Barbera Festival is scheduled to return to Amador County and announced by the Amador Vintner Association. The festival is one of the top five wine festivals in California. As a result, the festival has cultivated newfound Barbera devotees from all over the world. They are passionate about Barbera and appreciate how well it pairs with a variety of foods.

At the 2023 Barbera Festival, top-area restaurants and caterers will present the perfect culinary pairings while local musicians fill the air with live music.

General admission tickets include wine tasting with Barbera producers, live music from multiple artists, interactive experiences and entertainment, more than 20 local artisans to shop with, and a commemorative wine glass to take home! Food is available for purchase separately using “Barbera Bucks”. *(Barbera Bucks are scripts you purchase at the event.)

For more information, contact the Amador Vintner Assocation.

Featured Wineries

Mountain Home Gifts | Gifts for your cabin and mountain life

by Writers Workshop

The Crest Café & Catering | A love for great food and catering

by Writers Workshop

The Crest Café & Catering
"A love for great food"

If you are looking for a unique restaurant just off Highway 89 visit The Crest Café & Catering. Located on the West Shore of Lake Tahoe and overlooking the Truckee River their friendly staff will greet you and provide a backdrop for mouth-watering food and atmosphere.

The Crest Cafe offers fresh baked muffins & croissants, egg sandwiches & burritos, lunch menu items that include paninis, quesadillas, personal pizzas, salads and more. Have a hankering for sushi? Take advantage of “Sushi Thursday” by pre-ordering prior to 1pm each Thursday and pick up your order between 3:30 and 7pm. They also provide take-out meals (ready in 24-48 hours) and full service catering.

In additional to their delicious food, The Crest also has an assortment of beers on tap, in cans & in bottles, along with wine by the glass, half bottle and full bottle.

Need some eggs, coffee, beverages or other grocery items for your stay in the area? The Crest has a small mini market as well.

Currently open daily between 8:00 AM - 3:00 PM, Thursdays for Sushi pre-orders between 3:30-7PM. Call to place orders at 530-581-3037. For catering questions please email [email protected].

Butterfly Festival | For the entire family

by Writers Workshop

Monarch Butterfly

Mariposa Butterfly Festival
Feathered Events and more at this years

The Mariposa Butterfly Festival is on is on May 4th & 5th, 2024. The festivities begin Saturday morning with a patriotic parade through downtown Mariposa at 10:oo am for the parade. Following the parade, you may wish to stroll through historic downtown to shop or dine, take a walk over to the courthouse built-in 1850, or check out the Mariposa Museum and History Center just a few blocks away.

The gates at the fairground will open at 10:00 am for the long-awaited Mariposa Butterfly Festival. The the festival has become so large that it was moved to the Mariposa County Fairgrounds just down the road on California Highway 49 where a lot of activities are being planned for you.

There will be food, music, a car show, butterfly releases rides ad much much more. Four thousand butterflies will be handed out to guests on orange slices so they may get to know their very own butterfly. The Annual Mariposa Butterfly Festival Classic Car Show are to taking place on the Front Lawn of the festival from 12 noon to 3 PM on Saturday.

The Lions Club is hosting the "Big Cornhole Competition" on both days of the festival. Films will be playing on video walls in the Virtual Zone building. Children, through the magic of film, will be able to take home a video flying around the world on a butterfly. Pony rides, a bounce house, a rock wall, and a water slide will keep the kids busy and a little damp on a warm day.

Over ninety artisans will show off their creations for sale and California Mining and Mineral Museum is open in the Fairgrounds. Here you can watch and dance to the best of Mariposa bands at the Amigo Stage. You can try your very popular Indian Taco made by Mariposa’s very own Southern Sierra Miwok Tribe.

Walk along Habitat Row where you can learn the importance of butterflies to our ecosystem. There will be a beer and wine garden with music for adults only to enjoy some calm time. And lastly, take advantage of our free busses between downtown Mariposa and the Fairgrounds on Saturday.

You can leave the car at the Fairgrounds, take the bus to downtown for dinner and shopping, return for the music and dancing in the evening. The dates and hours for the Mariposa Butterfly Festival are Saturday, July 3 for the parade that is scheduled to start at 9:15 AM. The Festival will start at noon and run until 8 PM. Sunday, July 4th, the gates open at 10 AM and run until 4 PM. Parking is $5, but the festival is free. Contact Mariposabutterflyfestival.net for more information.

Josephine Restaurant | Fine dining

by Writers Workshop

Josephine Restaurant

Tucked into the historic Odd Fellows No. 7 Lodge, Josephine Restaurant embrace the Sierra Foothills' rich history and bring a bit of Old World charm to "Midtown Auburn."
The restaurant takes its name from two special people.

The logo features the signature of Eric's Lithuanian great-grandmother. She is also the namesake of Eric and Courtney's daughter, Josie. The border of the restaurant's logo was inspired by Eastern European paper cutting, and the hens are a nod to Josie's home flock of egg layers.

In the kitchen, Josephine is a seasonal reflection of all the food we love to eat. The food is a blend of French bistro classics with Eastern European flavors, whether you are looking to slurp oysters before your steak fries or to choose from their daily chalkboard menu inspired by what's available from our local farms.

In the bar, you will find zinc, marble, hand-carved wood, and brass to create a perfect setting reminiscent of the 1920s Paris mixed with gold rush-era Auburn. You will find that their bar menu features the comfort of classic cocktails while inspiring you to try new, seasonal libations created in-house. Contact the restaurant for their Take-Out menu at (530) 820-3523.

Rainbow Poster | The Tahoe Rim Trail Contest Winner

by Writers Workshop

A Rainbow Poster with a Golden Message

If you are hitting a Tahoe Rim Trail this summer, be sure to keep an eye out for this colorful design by Amahla Stosic in grade 3 at Mt Rose Elementary School.

As the first prize winner of the 2021 TRTA Poster Contest, her creative spin on the Seven Leave No Trace Principles will spend the trail season displayed around the rim to educate trail users about how to be responsible when recreating outdoors.

The Tahoe Rim Trail Association is thanking everyone who participated in the contest. "We are thrilled to see youth engaging in our initiative to spread stewardship ethics" reported the association. Check their webpage to see the winners of the contest and more of their favorite designs.

Groveland Fly-Over | See downtown Groveland from the air

by Writers Workshop

Bicycling | Where to ride in the Sierra

by Writers Workshop

Bicycling in the Sierra

Safe Bicycling in the Sierra

The California Bicycle Coalition, will partner with several county to promote safe bicycling in our region. They will identify and analyze priority routes for enhancing bicycle tourism, with an eye to improving travel conditions for all modes, and for residents’ travel needs as well as those of visitors. They will make an annotated map and list of recommendations for priority improvements, basing these recommendations on expert analysis as well as on extensive community outreach to diverse area residents, including business and property owners, travel bureaus, local policy makers, bike shops and bicycle clubs, and other stakeholders. They will also identify strategies for promoting the region’s bicycle tourism opportunities and encouraging economic development around tourism.

This project will cover the counties of Tuolumne, Calaveras, San Joaquin, Stanislaus, and Alpine. The total combined population of these counties is 1,364,141. With the exception of parts of San Joaquin county, all these counties are rural.
These counties have active transportation plans, but these plans do not take full advantage of the opportunities for bicycle tourism to enhance the economies of these communities, nor of improved inter-city bicycle routes to improve the health of residents.

These counties cover a range of terrain ranging from the flatlands up into the Sierras, with a large cultural and economic range from farmlands and wine country to mountain towns that rely heavily upon tourism. All five counties, however, have great possibilities for improvement of existing bicycle tourism infrastructure, and an increased understanding of the opportunities for boosting local economies and health through more opportunities for people, whether locals or tourists, to ride bicycles.