Rule of thumb: put your thumb out. If you cover the bear, you’re fine. If you can see the bear around your thumb, you’re too darn close!
Guide Nate Smith is explaining to us the code we should live by in California’s Tuolumne County, as we drive to Yosemite National Park.
Because, away from the lively cities and palm tree-lined beaches that are the trademarks of West Coast USA, there are bears to beware. And this is Bear Country.
Located in the Sierra Nevada foothills east of San Francisco, Tuolumne (it’s pronounced too-all-oh-me; think “you all owe me”) is known for its wildlife.
California’s black bears can weigh up to 300lbs. That’s roughly the weight of a massive fridge-freezer.
Nate, who works for local company Echo Adventures, assures us that the bears are usually gentle giants “more interested in stealing your food than hurting you”.
He tells us stories of the super-intelligent animals breaking into tourists’ cars and sneaking up behind unwitting fishermen to clean their coolers out of fish.
“If you do come face to face with a bear, you wave your arms around, making yourself as big and loud as possible, so the bear backs away,” he adds.
But clearly, the flailing around approach won’t work if they spot a sandwich in my hand.
So it is with sarnies safely stashed in our backpacks that we arrive at Hetch Hetchy, in the northwestern part of Yosemite National Park, ready for a trek through a spectacular valley lined by towering cliffs.
In the midst of picture-postcard splendour, there’s a crystal blue reservoir that supplies water to the San Francisco Bay area 180 miles away.
Tuolumne houses more than half of Yosemite – and it’s the lesser crowded half. Usually there are gushing waterfalls, but we have arrived at the end of a dry summer spell.
No matter, Hetch Hetchy, with its dramatic landscape and rugged terrain, is a good bet for adventurous hikers any time of year, and boasts one of the longest hiking seasons in the park.
There are sadly no bear sightings for us to try out the rule of thumb during our five-mile hike, but the breathtaking scenery is exhilarating, a hidden gem on our whistle-stop Tuolumne tour.
As well as being the northern gateway to Yosemite, the county is the home of the gold rush towns of the High Sierra, which gave California its nickname as the Golden State.
It makes for the perfect road trip. We’d picked up a hire car two days earlier at San Francisco airport and our first stop was Sonora, two and a half hours away.
Named after the Mexican miners who founded it, Sonora rests on Sierra’s western slopes, and is the county’s only city, with a reputation as the liveliest of the gold rush towns.
We get a taste of that as we stop for dinner in downtown Sonora. At the Armory rooftop bar and eatery, we refuel with grilled shrimp and fried white fish-filled tortillas, washed down with beers while savouring the buzzy atmosphere.
From there, it’s a 20-minute drive along very winding roads lined with towering ponderosa pines – quite a foreboding journey in darkness – to reach our accommodation.
Dogwood Digs, the gorgeous rustic log cabin we are staying in, is set in an atmospheric location inside Stanislaus National Forest. This is properly getting back to nature.
The next morning, I get my caffeine fix at Alicia’s Sugar Shack with a four-shot black coffee – I’m given the option, so I take it! – to accompany my Californian eggs Benedict. And I grab some of Alicia’s maple and bacon pastries for later.
Exploring Sonora by foot is a good option. It’s a highly walkable city with a small-town atmosphere thanks to lots of cute shops and independent businesses.
We pick up lunch at one of the best-rated eateries, Emberz. A fisherman’s catch salad – fish of the day, prawns, shrimp and crab meat – makes for a glorious picnic in the sunny apple orchard grounds of nearby Indigeny Reserve.
Indigeny is a cider distillery set in Sonara’s hills – and I can assure you that cider tasting in the Californian sunshine in lush surroundings is not a terrible way to spend an afternoon.
But it’s time for something more intrepid. We head back into Stanislaus Forest where, set against Sierra peaks and trees, Pinecrest Lake is perfect for a host of activities including trout fishing, sailing and swimming. We settle for two fun-packed hours of kayaking.
The next day we time-travel back to the late 1840s to mid-1850s – the height of Tuolumne’s Gold Rush era. First up is Jamestown, where gold was first discovered here.
Downtown Jamestown, on Main Street, looks much as it did more than a century ago and will be recognisable to any Western film fan. Movies and shows filmed here include High Noon, Gunsmoke and Rawhide.
The town’s most famous claim to fame has to be Railtown 1897 State Historic Park, where we marvel at the steam locomotive that features in Back To The Future III.
We later prop up the bar and enjoy a history lesson in Groveland – at the oldest saloon in California, no less. Don’t let The Iron Door Saloon’s iron door and lack of windows put you off – it’s well worth a look inside.
Check out the moose heads mounted on the wall, and the dollar bills hanging from the ceiling, a custom harking back to an old gold-prospecting tradition.
Patrons would write their names on the bills and staple them to the ceiling. If they didn’t find gold, they could return to the bar, still having enough money to get back.
If the miner never returned – the casualty rate was high – or they no longer needed the money, cash was literally left hanging.
Before we fly home, there’s time for one last adventure – Miller’s Off Road Jeep Tour takes us in four-door 4x4 Jeep Wranglers bouncing along rocky paths and splashing through creeks through the Groveland area of the Stanislaus Forest. Tuolumne is definitely a destination to bear in mind – even if you don’t see any!
And who knows, you may just strike holiday gold.
Winery Tri-umph
The Tri-Valley is a perfect stopover on the way to, or back from, Tuolumne County if you want to break up the journey - especially if you like fine wine.
Our final stop before the airport is wine tasting at Darcie Kent, one of the most beautiful wineries in the Livermore Valley. Here, we savour buttery Californian Chardonnay and beautiful panoramic views of wine country.
Who needs Napa?
Star-studded finale
The end of the trip was spent at Rush Creek Lodge on Yosemite’s doorstep by Highway 120. Comprising lodge rooms and villas throughout 20 hillside acres, it’s here I find that true sweet spot of holiday recuperation.
It offers luxurious food and drink, a heated 2,400 sq ft saltwater pool, 24-hour hot tub and a spa.
After hiking in Yosemite, this is just what I need, restoring energy levels and giving me much-needed time to relax and reflect on our time in Tuolumne.
The lodge has a laidback tavern bar offering the same menu as the more formal restaurant, and a terrace where our group witnesses sensational sunsets.
One evening, after a dip in the pool, we enjoy nightcap cocktails before stargazing from our balcony. I feel I could literally reach for the stars.
Book the holiday
- Virgin Atlantic flies from Heathrow to San Francisco from £366 return. virginatlantic.com
- Cabin hire at Dogwood Digs in Stanislaus National Forest, Tuolumne County, California, starts at around £162 a night (two night minimum stay). dogwooddigs.com
- Rooms at Rush Creek Lodge, by Yosemite National Park, Tuolumne County, California, start at £216 a night. rushcreeklodge.com
- More info: visittuolumne.com
