The Sacramento area is split between two rivers: the American River and the Sacramento River. Much of the recreation in the area centers around the rivers, with hundreds of miles of bike and walking trails lining both. Every river side community has it’s own inlets and parks with their own personality. Some are well-equipped county parks with ample parking, picnic tables and even some sandy beaches. Others are nothing more than trails hidden at the end of a residential street, dropping you down to the water. Sailor Bar is the jewel of Fair Oaks, providing a boat ramp for canoes and fishing boats to access the American River and miles of walking and bike trails with beautiful views.

The Sacramento region is the relatively overlooked capital of California, a poor cousin to San Francisco to the West and Los Angeles to the South. What it lacks in obvious glamour it makes up for in physical beauty. Known as the City of Trees, the region boasts an interesting mix of pines and palm trees, a little bit Pacific Northwest and a little bit SoCal. But most of all, it’s a great place to bring up a family with housing that’s inexpensive by Californian standards and a ton of fantastic places to take your kids for explorations, especially during summer.

A hike and picnic by the river followed by a quick clean-up to head downtown to one of the new bars and farm-to-fork restaurants for a delicious meal.

It’s an inexpensive place for families to enjoy the Northern Californian outdoors.

No beaches. Everyone wants a beach when they think of California. But we’re only 90 minutes from the coast!

How beautiful much of Sacramento is. It has a reputation for being a bit seedy but the reality is that much of Sacramento is covered with trees, gently rolling hills, river trails and natural beauty.

Photographer: Sam Abell
Band: The 1975
Writer: Elizabeth Gilbert