Short drive to Virginia City, where we visit the Fourth Ward School Museum, with exhibits focused on the early mining town and its settlers. We will enjoy a tour of the area by a local historian, and then have time to stroll and have lunch in your choice of this compact town’s many restored shops, cafes and fantastic authentic saloons. We return to Reno for time to relax or take in views of the Truckee River from the Riverwalk next to the hotel. If you care to test your luck at a Casino, there are several within a few blocks. An optional activity will be the Reno Automobile Museum, featuring a collection of classic cars that has grown into one of the best automobile museums in the US. Group dinner tonight at a restaurant nearby.

Virginia City elevation: 6,148 feet

Scenic Highway 50 from Reno takes us to the “Jewel of the Sierras” - Lake Tahoe, where we board the MS Dixie II siteseeing boat from Zephyr Cove. We cruise to gorgeous Emerald Bay, a California State Park in the southwestern corner of the lake that offers views of the surrounding mountains and historic Vikingshom Castle and Fannette Island. After our cruise that includes lunch, we head up the western shore to Tahoe City and Truckee. Return to Reno this evening to relax and dinner on your own at a choice of many restaurants nearby.

Lake Tahoe elevation: 6,225 feet

This morning we head to the state capitol of Carson City, where we visit the Nevada State Museum. This museum that once housed the United States Mint features exhibits focused on the history of the mining industry, the mint, fossils and geology, plus American Indian culture. From here we make our way over scenic Carson Pass, through the Sierras to the Mother Lode Gold Country where we visit the Indian Grinding Rock State Park before heading to our hotel in charming Sutter Creek. Dinner near the hotel in Sutter Creek or Jackson, California.

Carson City elevation: 4,682 feet

Sutter Creek elevation: 1,188 feet

We begin our final day with a visit to the nearby historic Kennedy Mine for a private tour. Then we will make a stop at a farm store in the Central Valley before our arrival home in the afternoon at Fairfield and Marin.