"Gold!" The cry rang out across the Sierra foothills in May 1848, drawing the adventurous to the North Fork Dry Diggins, a mining camp that became the city of Auburn and Placer County. Today, visitors to Placer County still find adventure and riches in many forms, from reminders of its colorful past to almost unlimited recreational opportunities.

Points of interest are easy to reach via Interstate 80, which travels east to west the length of Placer County; or Highway 49, which crisscrosses the county tracing the old gold seekers trails to El Dorado County on the south and Nevada County to the north. Auburn is easily identified by its landmark Placer County Courthouse, dedicated on July 4, 1898. The courthouse, still in use by the Superior Court today, houses one of the county's six regional museums and is home to the Pate Native American Basket Collection and a rare collection of crystalline gold, gold quartz, and gold nuggets. Old Town Auburn offers a colorful array of museums, art galleries, antique shops and restaurants that are housed in historic buildings, many dating back to the late 1800's. Old Town Auburn, which became the fictional town of Harmon for the film "phenomenon," will look familiar to many moviegoers.

The beautiful Tahoe National Forest as well as state and local recreation areas offer hiking, swimming, white-water rafting, wind surfing, camping, fishing, horseback riding, world class downhill and cross country skiing. There's gold to find in the streams along the American and Bear Rivers and another form of gold along the 49er Fruit Trail. Placer County offers something for everyone.