IT'S NOT AUTUMN, ALL YEAR LONG, in Gold Country, but a visitor might be forgiven for thinking the area possesses autumn-like details. After all, the foothills-pretty area can have its cooler, atmospheric moments, even in summer, and the older buildings, and stories of centuries gone by, can add a memorable layer, or five, of wonder to any visit. This is a region of 19th-century landmarks, of a sweet tarantula festival, and of holiday parties that bloom in big fashion, whether it is St. Patrick's Day in Murphys or Christmas in Nevada City. And what of Halloween, and the days leading up to the final day of October? The atmosphere grows glow-ier around beautiful Auburn, where Pumpkin Nights will again lend their seasonal shimmer. Picture...
3,000+ PUMPKINS, some real, some realistically faux, all aglow and displayed in all sorts of witty ways. Those witty ways may mean that the pumpkins are stacked high, like palm trees, or that several of them have been placed together to form some sort of animal. It's a picture-perfect walk-through, for pumpkin people, autumn aficionados, and anyone who digs an after-sundown outing when fall has really ramped up. And fall has a way of really ramping up by the middle of October, when Pumpkin Nights will again return to the 80-adjacent town. Night number one is Wednesday, Oct. 17, but you'll have several more chances to spy this one-of-a-kind, art-cool show. Ticket prices, more nights, family packs, and where to go? Pumpkinists of California, best follow a fabulous trail of pre-Halloween magic in this direction now...
