COUNTRY TOWNS OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

by Louis Bignami

From the pastel frosting of Ferdale's gingerbread Victorians to the romantic ruins of Jack Lodon's home in Glen Ellen and the wild gold mining days of Downieville, join Lou Bignami as he explores wonderful Northern California towns.

Visit Angels Camp where you can enter the annual amphibious event, the celebrated jumping frog contest (and hope your entrant doesn't suffer from a bellyful of buckshot like the the hapless contestant in Mark Twain's tale). Wander through the gardens at Locke, America's only rural Chinese town. Try fly-fishing in streams where miners once panned for gold. Houseboat in the Sacramento delta and fish for stripers right from your back porch. Shop, combine a balloon ride with a wine tasting, ride a train through the Sequoias. Visit New England-like Mendocino, with its artists and shops--the site for the "Cabot Cove" of Murder, She Wrote and many movies. Enjoy fifteen intriguing Country Towns of Northern California.

Beautifully illustrated with original pencil drawings by Anne Tatgenhorst. Cover illustration by Victoria Sheridan.

California born and bred, Lou Bignami graduated from the University of California Berkeley, and has spent most of his life exploring the state. A full-time travel writer, his is the author of California: 88 Great Vacations and Easy Outings and 52 Northern California Weekends.

Country Towns of Northern California - 134 pages $9.95. Please add $3.50 priority mail and handling. Foreign shipping $8. E-mail at

Louis Bignami