This is a really fun day trip, but might require a designated driver to visit all the wine tasting rooms! From Groveland, go down the hill on Route 120 to Highway 49 North, then continue to Angels Camp, about 45 minutes. Turn right onto Route 4 and continue past Murphys and Arnold to Calaveras Big Trees State Park.
If you walk the Sierra side of California, the groves of Big Trees in this park are wonderful, we think they are much better than the groves found in Yosemite. The trees are easily accessible from the parking areas and there are far fewer tourists to contend with for the trails and photo opportunities here. There are miles of trails, and not all of them go up and down hills. We enjoyed wandering through nature for an hour or two before heading back to Murphys for the rest of the day.
When you’re done with a Big Trees adventure, head west again on Highway 4 to Murphy’s. As you enter Murphy’s, you will see a sign claiming to be the “other wine country”. We are totally agreed. Our last trip to Murphy’s we stopped at most of the vineyard tasting rooms, starting with the country setting of Ironstone Vineyards, the only tasting room surrounded by its hillside grapes. To get to Ironstone, turn left at the old Murphy’s Hotel and follow signs another 2 miles.
Once in Ironstone, enjoy the surrounding tasting room and gift shop. Ironstone is a great place to enjoy a nice lunch at the deli counter overlooking the vineyards. We enjoyed the tranquil surroundings along with a glass of the reserve chardonnay. Ironstone is also famous for its 500,000 daffodil bulbs that bloom together in March and its well-kept flower displays throughout the year.
While you’re at the Ironstone complex, take some time to explore the museum and jewelry center. Having done two summer seasons of panning for gold in a life before the inn, we were delighted with his gold specimen, a massive 44-pound flaky nugget found in 1992 at the Jamestown mine and housed in a real bank vault.
Ironstone has loads of regular public events including concert series, black and white movie nights, parking lot wine sales and more. From Ironstone, head back to Murphy’s and explore the many downtown tasting rooms. We always make time for Zucca Winery, which is located just off the main street a little further up the park that goes down into a cave. The atmosphere is warm and the wine very tasteful! We left with a bottle of port.
Next, walk around the corner to Hatcher’s, one of our favorites for both the wine and the charm of Matt and his tasting room team. Victor thinks this year’s Zinfandel is the standout. We bought a magnum. Twisted Oak with its whimsical gift shop and fun approach to everything is another worthy stop and their wines are good too.
Murphy’s is a great walking town with good storefronts. We ventured into various galleries and antique shops and even found a nice sign to use at the hotel: I went fishing carved on the side of a wooden fish. If we ever go out fishing, we are now ready with a proper signal!
Don’t overlook the old fashioned plumbing shop on the left, just past the old Murphy’s Hotel, to worry a bit about old china and plumbing fixtures. Even I had fun here. Surprisingly they have the claw foot tubs on the 3rd floor, how did they get there and why the 3rd floor? Murphy’s Hotel is a true step back in time. Here we sampled an Australian wine and another local wine and enjoyed impromptu guitar singing by some regulars.