Columbia Municipal Airport has just high enough elevation that it isn’t encumbered by morning fog so familiar to Bay Area pilots. Columbia is near Sonora, just a little northeast of San Francisco and Modesto. It is located in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
Columbia’s history is steeped in the rich tradition of the California ‘Gold Rush’ days. It is one of the areas tread by author John Steinbeck, as he was researching background for his many novels.
One place time has stood nearly still since the 1850’s is the Hidden Treasure gold mine. Visitors turned students can time travel a couple centuries and learn gold mining first hand. Kids especially enjoy being able to take a screen into the stream and pan for their own gold nuggets.
Also frozen in time is the Columbia State Historic Park, the best preserved California Gold Rush town, if only the gold had been preserved. The Park boasts a rare blend of displays, shops, museums and live theatre performances.
If you’re an adventurer, and avid sport enthusiast, you might just get into white water rafting, and that is one exciting highlight of Columbia. There are several excursions to Yosemite, Lake Tahoe, Kings Canyon and Sequoia National Parks, and some of the most raging white water rapids trips available. The largest white water outfitter company is Zephyr and they still have 2010 start dates available. You can reach Zephyr at 1-800-432-3636.
The Sierra Repertory Theatre in Columbia and Sonora has one acting company, but two theatres. The famed Fallon House is in Columbia, and East Sonora is located where the name implies. Both playhouses offer annual theatre schedules. You can also find a wide selection of car rental cars at Columbia Airport and they include car rentals from companies such as Dollar, Thrifty, Alamo, Budget and others.
California’s oldest RV campground is also located nearby, and advertised to be in the middle of the Sacramento, Lake Tahoe and Yosemite triangle. The park offers stage coach and steam train rides, cavern exploring, old ranch hospitality and an Indian casino
for that gambler spirit in each of us.