California Gold Country: An Armchair Historic Tour

Sharon Boorstin traveled to California gold country to research an article for the Los Angeles Times. She discovered more fascinating stories than could fit into 1,500 words.

Join Boorstin for a virtual tour of California Highway 49 in the rolling Sierra Nevada foothills east of Sacramento. Stops include Sutter’s Fort, where gold was first discovered in 1848, and a dozen historic Gold Rush towns including Columbia, Angel’s Camp, Grass Valley and Nevada City. See where prospectors partied when they struck it rich and drowned their sorrows when they didn’t — and what visitors can enjoy there today.

Boorstin is a contributing writer for the Los Angeles Times, specializing in lifestyle, food and travel. In 2019, she won Visit California’s Eureka Award for Best Newspaper Travel Article. In the 1970s and '80s, she was the restaurant critic of the Los Angeles Herald-Examiner, and in the '90s she edited the annual Gayot Guidebooks for Los Angeles and other cities. She also wrote for magazines including Bon Appetit, Smithsonian and Town & Country Travel. 

The Fifty and Better (FAB) program was designed for people 50 years of age and older, seeking intellectual stimulation through university-level courses — without the pressure of grades — for the sake of learning and social engagement.

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Register by 3 p.m. Monday, Dec. 9