#1 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Silverado Museum
Saint Helena CA
~0.60 miles from Saint Helena city center
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Silverado Museum hosts an exhibit of Robert Louis Stevenson ephemera such as 8,000 manuscripts, photos, letters and the like. It is in fact the largest collection of Robert Louis Stevenson's works outside of Scotland and a must-see for fans of his work. Virtually all of his first editions are here. Stevenson spent his honeymoon in the area and wrote The Silverado Squatters.
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#2 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Downtown St. Helena (Neighborhood)
Saint Helena CA
~0.75 miles from Saint Helena city center
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#3 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Culinary Institute of America
Saint Helena CA
~1.21 miles from Saint Helena city center
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The Culinary Institute of America is the culinary college to fuel your passion for cooking or baking. Since 1946, the college has set the standard for education excellence in the culinary arts and the baking and pastry arts. Here you'll develop a broad base of knowledge and a confidence in your skills, preparing you to move successfully into the career that's absolutely right for you.
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#4 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Calistoga Hot Springs
Calistoga CA
~7.69 miles from Saint Helena city center
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Calistoga Spa Hot Springs is the perfect place for an enjoyable stay in the Napa Valley. Located just a block off the main street, it’s just a short walk to Calistoga’s many excellent restaurants and shops, ballooning, cycling, jogging, tennis, golf and much more.
SPECIALS & PACKAGES
We provide a setting in which you can make your visit as restful or as active as you like. We’re close to Napa Valley’s many attractions, including wineries, a restored 1886 railroad depot, the Petrified Forest, the Old Faithful Geyser of California and two state parks. Stop by the Sharpsteen Museum, which depicts the Calistoga of over a century ago.
Facilities include separate men’s and women’s Spas, four outdoor Mineral Water pools, Exercise and Aerobics rooms as well as our Accommodations, equipped with kitchenettes.
The Palisades Conference Room, which seats forty, is a beautiful upstairs meeting room with wet bar, kitchen, Swedish fireplace and outdoor deck with a spectacular view of the Palisades high rocks overlooking the city.
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#5 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Downtown Calistoga (Neighborhood)
Calistoga CA
~7.76 miles from Saint Helena city center
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#6 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Sharpsteen Museum
Calistoga CA
~7.83 miles from Saint Helena city center
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1311 Washington St, Calistoga, California, 94515
707/942-5911
www.sharpsteen-museum.org
Suggested donation $3 adults, free for children under 12
If you walk around Calistoga long enough, you’ll eventually stumble upon the unassuming museum. Like the town itself, this charming collection of local history, Indian artifacts and Disney cartoons (you’ll see) hasn’t yet polished away all traces of quirkiness. A 32-foot-long diorama depicts the town’s early vacationers at play, when Calistoga was known as the Saratoga of the Pacific.
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#7 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Napa River Ecological Reserve
Napa Valley CA
~8.86 miles from Saint Helena city center
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A very special place lies within the wine-growing region of the Napa Valley. Surrounded by vineyards, the 73-acre Napa River Ecological Reserve (NRER) retains a remnant of riparian forest, with both an ecological and historical perspective. Just east of the town of Yountville and minutes from the Central Coast Region office, NRER is the last sizable section of riparian vegetation left in the Napa Valley and provides habitat for approximately 150 species of birds, numerous butterflies and various mammals. It also supports a diversified plant community of 238 plants, including the federal and state endangered Sebastopol meadowfoam (Limnanthes vinculans).
A human community of private and public owners gives NRER a one-of-a-kind story. Its riverine components brought it statewide attention, and the Wildlife Conservation Board purchased the Napa River Ecological Reserve in 1976. Since more than 90 percent of California riparian habitat has disappeared, the Fish and Game Commission gave it ecological reserve status to protect these plant communities. NRER has a long human history, dating from when the native Wappo tribe used it as a hunting and gathering area. Later, these riverside woodlands became part of George C. Yount's Mexican land grant, "Caymus Rancho" in 1836. The present location of the Yountville Cross Road, the southern boundary of NRER, also served as the southern perimeter of Yount's 11,900-acre holding. During the years 1858 through 1879, annual church gatherings took place with an estimated 4,000 people in attendance, within an open grassy area known as the "Yountville Campgrounds." These participants brought cattle, chickens, sheep and other livestock to sustain their stay. Many brought their own camping equipment; those who didn't borrowed materials for tent cabins from local merchants. The last organized religious gathering took place in 1974, while the property was still in private ownership. That gathering site is located in the interior portion of NRER, just off the trail where you can find a small bench facing the area.
Instead of grazing cattle and campfires, resident acorn woodpeckers swoop from oak to oak, nesting communally or defending territory. Follow them with your eyes as they fly to "granary trees." These are storage places, usually within snags or dead limbs in which the woodpeckers have drilled holes and placed their collected acorns. At times, the acorns themselves may attract predatory insects that offer opportunistic foraging by the birds. Other species like the Stellar's and western scrub jays bury acorns in the fertile soil litter. When these acorns go unretrieved, the birds' benign neglect is NRER's gain: the acorns grow long tap roots, generating future oak trees. Another avian seed collector, the white-breasted nuthatch, caches seeds within the oak's rough bark and branches. Its sharp, curved claws help it move about the tree and around limbs, challenging gravity as it searches for food. Overall, the oaks provide many elements critical to NRER's aerial inhabitants.
Hosting resident, wintering and fall migrant species, NRER is well known to birders from as far away as Europe. The warm summer months typically attract locals with the cooler temperatures vegetation and hydrology provide. The Napa River flows through the area, supplemented by Conn and Rector creeks. Conn Creek was dammed to create Lake Hennessey, which is part of City of Napa's water supply. By late summer, it typically does not have visible flows but does support various species of willow trees that may reveal a Wilson's warbler, or Annas' and Allen's hummingbirds in the spring.
Large valley and coast live oaks and California bay trees dominate NRER. Some valley oaks have been aged between 250 to 280 years. Many are mantled with grayish-green lace lichens, which are not actually plants but a symbiotic combination of fungus and algae. Several species of willow including sandbar, polished and arroyo, are found along the banks and provide important habitat for insects, birds and necessary shade elements for fish. Other trees include white alder, Fremont's cottonwood and Oregon ash. Wild rose, common snowberry, Santa Barbara sedge, poison oak and both native and non-native blackberries primarily compose the understory. Large, twisting native grapevines (Vitis californica) wrap sinuously around the larger trees.
The word "riparian" alone cannot describe the diversity of the Napa River Ecological Reserve. This riparian habitat ranges from oak woodland, grassland and swale-type habitats. Given the structure and ecological aspects of riparian vegetation it's no wonder that approximately 70 species of birds nest within NRER including the yellow-breasted chat, a Department of Fish and Game (DFG) "Species of Special Concern." The area is accessible during late spring, summer and fall seasons. With high seasonal rainfall, the river may rise and inundate NRER's interior during the winter. It is a natural cycle, given the vegetation is well adapted to flooding and gives NRER a well deserved rest. At times, during El Niño years, the river has breached its western levee, imprinting a high-water mark evident within the lower canopy.
NRER remains a place where communities converge. It draws a large following in terms of its public and wildlife use. Although owned and managed by the DFG, NRER has welcomed assistance from public agencies, non-profit organizations and private citizens. Management activities focus primarily on habitat conservation, exotic vegetation control and managing public use. Through a cooperative agreement, Napa County Public Works helps with the maintenance of the area by picking up accumulated trash within the small parking lot area and provides assistance with special projects. It remains the responsibility of visitors to pack out what they pack in. In 1989, Napa's Jared Young Boy Scout Troop built a footbridge to help the public access NRER's interior portion. A small oak restoration project receives the support of local school children, while educating them about conservation and the importance of land stewardship. Recently, a kiosk was installed to help educate the area's visitors about its unique resources. The project was funded by a cooperative federal grant through "Partnerships for Wildlife," a three-party grant program with participation from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and DFG. The local Napa-Solano Audubon Chapter helped fund the project as well as produce brochures on NRER's plants, birds and butterflies with a local grant. (The various brochures are available from DFG's Central Coast Regional office or may be found on-site in limited quantities.) They also have been instrumental in re-establishing the one-mile interpretive loop trail and its companion trail guide. The pedestrian trail is maintained annually by the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and Department of Corrections inmate fire crews.
Whether you are birdwatching, hiking, fishing or just appreciating a piece of local history, the Napa River Ecological Reserve is a worthwhile visit. NRER continues to provide an opportunity to showcase the state's overall natural diversity, and to educate visitors about the importance of riparian habitats.
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#8 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Old Faithful Geyser
Calistoga CA
~9.51 miles from Saint Helena city center
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Traveler Description:
Like its more famous Yellowstone counterpart, this Napa Valley geyser erupts at regular intervals - every forty minutes, in the case of the Calistoga gusher.
Attraction type: Hot spring/geyser
Activities: Picnicking
Address: 1299 Tubbs Lane Calistoga, CA 94515
Tel: 707-942-6463
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#9 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Napa Valley Museum
Napa Valley CA
~9.78 miles from Saint Helena city center
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This is an intriguing collection, rooted in Napa's pioneering and wine making history but ranging as far afield as the Andes (an upcoming temporary exhibit displays Bolivian textiles). The Napa Valley Museum is housed in fashionably deconstructed quarters of recent vintage, with lofty, open interiors. The exhibit spaces are intelligently arranged and well lit, making good use of Napa's abundant natural light. Its educational programs, particularly strong hands-on art training for kids.
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#10 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Petrified Forest
CA
~9.97 miles from Saint Helena city center
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Transport yourself back more than three million years in time and follow the trail of majestic petrified redwood giants displayed before you in a fascinating grove in breathtaking Calistoga. Geologists call this place one of the finest examples of a pliocene fossil forest in the world. The park itself is privately owned and has been since its first proprietor started excavating the large petrified trees in 1871.
Giant redwood trees turned to stone attract thousands of visitors each year to this park in the hills. Rich in history from the late 1800s, the Petrified Forest is a showpiece of explosive volcanic activity.
Redwood trees of up to eight feet in diameter and hundreds of feet high were blown down like toothpicks in the flow of ash from a major volcano to the north and east. Then they were deeply buried by ash and preserved by replacement of organic material by fine-grained silicon and oxygen. Modern uplift and erosion has exposed the tips of the trees, and the final excavation by man results in the forest we see today.
The park itself was established in 1910 by Ollie Bockee and her family. The Petrified Forest grounds include a great museum devoted to the origin of the fossils and geology of the area. The gift shop features crystals, petrified wood and books. An admission is charged for a 20 minute walk through the natural displays. Interpretive signs at major points help visitors understand the processes that result in the preservation of these magnificent fossils. There are also picnic areas available.
THE PETRIFIED FOREST
4100 Petrified Forest Road
Calistoga, CA 94515
707-942-6667
Hours: 9 am to 6 pm daily, except during Winter
Winter: 9 am to 5 pm
http://www.petrifiedforest.org
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#11 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Quarryhill Botanical Garden
Glen Ellen CA
~9.99 miles from Saint Helena city center
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The Quarryhill Botanical Garden is a research botanical garden housing one of the largest collections of temperate Asian plants in North America. Quarryhill is located near Glen Ellen, in the Sonoma Valley of California, USA, and is open to the public.
The garden is devoted to plants from temperate China, Japan and the Himalayas, with more than 90 percent grown from wild-collected, scientifically documented seed. The collection includes rare varieties such as Acer pentaphyllum, Cornus capitata, Holboellia coriacea, Illicium simonsii, and Rosa chinensis var. spontanea, all native to Sichuan, as well as extensive collections of various wild Asian dogwoods, lilies, magnolias, maples, oaks, roses, and rhododendrons.
The Arboretum can be traced back to 1968, when Jane Davenport Jansen purchased 61 acres (247,000 m²) for vineyards. In 1987, she started a garden on 20 acres (81,000 m2) of this property, among hillsides consisting of old rock quarries. In that year, Quarryhill representatives made their first seed collecting expedition to Asia. A nursery was established in 1988, and planting began in 1990.
Annual Quarryhill expeditions have collected seeds and herbarium specimens from the following Asian regions to date: China - Hubei, Sichuan, Taiwan, Tibet, Yunnan; India - Himachal Pradesh; Japan - Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu, Shikoku, Yakushima; and Nepal. Other expeditions have collected from North America. The garden also receives wild collected seed courtesy of Index Seminum publications from Japan, Taiwan and South Korea, as well as Asian seed and plants from North American gardens.
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#12 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Jack London State Historical Park
Glen Ellen CA
~11.71 miles from Saint Helena city center
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Jack London State Historic Park, also known as Jack London Home and Ranch, is a California State Historic Park near Glen Ellen, California, United States, situated on the eastern slope of Sonoma Mountain. It includes the ruins of a house burned a few months before Jack London and family were to move in, a cottage in which they had lived, another house built later, and the graves of Jack London and his wife. The property is a National Historic Landmark.
The Jack London home, called the Wolf House, is a sizable stone structure, which was destroyed by fire and whose ruins are visible within the state park property. The sloping terrain of the park has a considerable occurrence of Goulding clay loam soils, particularly in the lower reaches
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#13 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Little Ocmulgee State Park
80 Live Oak Trail Helena GA
~13.03 miles from Saint Helena city center
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This park features many amenities. Golf,a 2.6-mile Oak Ridge Trail winds through scrub oaks and pines towards a buzzard roost and boardwalk. During summertime children enjoy the park's Splash Pad. There is a 60-room lodge with hotel-style guest rooms, meeting facilities and a restaurant with golf course view. The facilities are available for meetings, reunions, weddings and other group gatherings.
Little Ocmulgee State Park is a 1,360-acre (550 ha) Georgia state park located 2 miles (3.2 km) north of McRae on the Little Ocmulgee River. Part of the park was initially built by the CCC during the Great Depression, around the natural diversion of the Little Ocmulgee into a lake. This is a 256-acre (104 ha) lake with beach, and the park includes a 60 room lodge, and a championship 18-hole golf course plus pro shop. The soil around the Ocmulgee River and the Little Ocmulgee is a fine white sand, and therefore the lake has its own "beach sand." Also within the park is the 2.6-mile (4.2 km) long Oak Ridge Trail, allowing visitors to see native wildlife and plants. http://www.gastateparks.org/LittleOcmulgee
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#14 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Fountaingrove Country Club
1525 Fountain Grove Pkwy Santa Rosa CA - 707-544-5100
~14.07 miles from Saint Helena city center
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Nestled in the heart of Sonoma County Wine Country is Fountaingrove Golf & Athletic Club, a family-oriented private club featuring an award-winning Ted Robinson Sr.designed golf course, 10,000 sq. ft. state-of-the-art Athletic Facility, Tennis Program, and Dining & Social Events.
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#15 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Heald College of Bus and Tech
2425 Mendocino Ave Santa Rosa CA - 707-525-1300
~14.31 miles from Saint Helena city center
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#16 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Santa Rosa Junior College
1501 Mendocino Ave Santa Rosa CA - 707-527-4011
~14.40 miles from Saint Helena city center
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Santa Rosa Junior College ("SRJC") is a community college located in the city of Santa Rosa in Sonoma County, California. Founded in 1918, it is the tenth oldest community college in the state. Santa Rosa Junior College was modeled as a "junior" version of nearby University of California at Berkeley. It was intended to be a feeder school for the U.C. system, and still is to this day, with a special program designed for the direct transfer of students to various campuses in the U.C. system upon the completion of certain prerequisites.
It has a remarkable number of accomplished professors for a community college, and is consistently ranked as one of the top community colleges in the nation. The school also has an unusually large grant and scholarship system that is the legacy of the Doyle family, resulting in one of the largest trusts for any community college in the nation. http://www.santarosa.edu/
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#17 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Downtown Santa Rosa (Neighborhood)
Santa Rosa CA
~14.54 miles from Saint Helena city center
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#18 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Empire College Business School
3035 Cleveland Ave Santa Rosa CA - 707-546-4000
~14.80 miles from Saint Helena city center
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Empire College, located in Santa Rosa, California, is just one hour north of the San Francisco Bay Area in the heart of the wine-growing region of Sonoma County. We feature a variety of career training programs such as business administration courses, medical assistant courses, information technology classes and a top-ranked Juris Doctor program.
Since 1961, the School of Business has dedicated its resources to providing quality career education that gives graduates an advantage in the job market. Over the past five years, Empire graduates have been placed in over 1,500 companies, earning a combined income of more than $200 million! We are extremely proud of our high-quality programs in:
Accounting
Information Technology
Paralegal
Medical Assisting
Office Administration
Tourism Management & Hospitality http://www.empcol.com/
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#19 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Santa Rosa Conference and Visitors
9 4th St Santa Rosa CA - 707-577-8674
~14.99 miles from Saint Helena city center
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Santa Rosa offers a cornucopia of activities, epicurean delights and scenic vistas. It is the largest city in Sonoma County and occupies the very heart of the world-famous Sonoma Wine Country. This warm and friendly city, an urban blend of art and culture, food, wine and recreation, is the perfect location for families and all travelers to stay for a relaxing and adventurous vacation.
Just 55 miles north of San Francisco, a vibrant city overflows with all you love about California.
Visit the Conference and Visitors site for more details.
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#20 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Ca Northwestern Railway Museum
50 W 6th St Santa Rosa CA - 707-575-7874
~15.06 miles from Saint Helena city center
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#21 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Charles M Schulz Museum Center
1 Snoopy Pl Santa Rosa CA - 707-579-4452
~15.17 miles from Saint Helena city center
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The Charles M. Schulz Museum and Research Center is a museum dedicated to the works of Charles Schulz, creator of the Peanuts comic strip. The museum opened on August 17, 2002, and is located in Santa Rosa, California.
The Great Hall: portions of the wood sculpture on the left, the strips mural in the center
The museum is home to many of the original Peanuts strips, as well as other artwork by Schulz. Two works by Japanese artist Yoshiteru Otani dominate the Great Hall: a 3.5 ton wood sculpture depicting the evolution of Snoopy and a 22 ft (6.7 m) high ceramic mural made of 3,588 Peanuts strips which combine to form the image of Lucy van Pelt holding the football for Charlie Brown to kick it. Among the museum's permanent exhibits are a work by Christo which depicts Snoopy's doghouse wrapped, Schulz's personal studio, tributes to Schulz from other artists
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#22 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Sonoma Presidio
Sonoma CA
~15.21 miles from Saint Helena city center
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El Presidio de Sonoma, or Sonoma Barracks, was a military outpost established in Alta California in 1836. It was built to house troops under General Mariano Guadalupe Vallejo, the Commandant of the Northern Frontier, as part of Mexico's strategy to subdue the Native Americans of the Sonoma Valley and halt Russian incursions into the area.
The structure still stands at its original location (38.2937°N 122.4566°WCoordinates: 38.2937°N 122.4566°W) which is now the corner of Spain Street and First Street East, on the Sonoma Plaza in the city of Sonoma, California, United States. The building is located in the watershed of Nathanson Creek, which drains to Schell Creek.
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#23 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Mission San Francisco Solano
Sonoma CA
~15.22 miles from Saint Helena city center
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Mission San Francisco Solano was founded on July 4, 1823 and named for a missionary to the Indians of Peru born in Montilla, Spain, known as the "Wonder Worker of the New World." Originally planned as an asistencia ("sub-mission") to Mission San Rafael Arcángel, it is the northernmost Alta California Franciscan mission (an attempt to found a twenty-second mission in Santa Rosa in 1827 was aborted). The mission is located in present-day Sonoma, California at 114 East Spain Street, Sonoma, California 95476.
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#24 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Sonoma Plaza
Sonoma CA
~15.28 miles from Saint Helena city center
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The historical downtown plaza of Sonoma features the home of General Vallejo and the spot where the Bear Flag revolt took place. See his mansion, the barracks, and the first church (Sonoma Mission) in Sonoma. After visiting these three historic spots, walk around this beautiful square for fine restaurants and shops. The park in the middle offers a weekly farmer's market that is one of the best in the country, and even has an open container law - you can bring any type of booze to the park year round to enjoy.
The plaza is located between First and Second streets, not between second and fourth as is on the map.
***As a best guide, just go to the park. The plaza surrounds the park.***
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#25 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Sonoma Town Hall
Sonoma CA
~15.28 miles from Saint Helena city center
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#26 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Sebastiani Theater
Sonoma CA
~15.32 miles from Saint Helena city center
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Rent the Sebastiani Theatre!
The Sebastiani Theatre is available for use as a unique training site, a beautiful setting for special presentations such as employee recognition.
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#27 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Downtown Sonoma (Neighborhood)
Sonoma CA
~15.33 miles from Saint Helena city center
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#28 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Lake Sonoma Resort
2875 Santa Rosa Ave # D Santa Rosa CA - 707-526-7272
~15.47 miles from Saint Helena city center
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#29 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Ca Indian Museum
5250 Aero Dr Santa Rosa CA - 707-579-3004
~16.39 miles from Saint Helena city center
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The California State Indian Museum is a California State Historic park located in Sacramento, California. The museum exhibits traditional items illustrating the varying cultures of the State’s first inhabitants. The native population of California, one of the largest and most diverse in the Western hemisphere, was made up of over 150 distinct tribal groups who spoke at least sixty-four different languages. Prior to the arrival of the first European explorers, the native population is estimated to have been in excess of 500,000 people.
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#30 of 30 Things To Do in Saint Helena
Westwood Hills Park
Napa Valley CA
~16.59 miles from Saint Helena city center
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Traveler Description: 98-acre public park with a children's nature library and wooded trails with a view of Napa Valley.
Attraction type: Park
Address: Browns Valley Road and Laurel St
Napa, CA 94558
Tel: (707)-257- 9529
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