Daffodil Hill: An Amador County Favorite

The pretty expanse is expecting a mid-March opening.

YOU KNOW A LOT ABOUT AMADOR COUNTY, from the fact that Amador City is the smallest incorporated city in California to the county's historic motto: "The Heart of the Mother Lode." But do you know where to find the brightest, yellow-sunniest flowers in Gold Country, buds that bear the very hue of what the '49ers in the area were looking for over a century and a half back? Of course you do; this isn't a quiz, and we know you know your stuff. And since you know your stuff you know that Daffodil Hill in Volcano takes on a springtime look like few other spots in the region (or even the state). The name is pretty much a solid giveaway as to why: Come March, or thereabouts, daffodils pop up in profusion, creating a painting-like vista that attracts those looking to saunter, stop, and soak up the beauty. But when will all of those lovely daffies get to poppin', as they soon will? The proprietors of Daffodil Hill have named...

MID-MARCH... as the time when a possible opening day will occur. The "amazing weather" in the area means daffodil devotees have been contacting the spot, eager to know what the flower sitch is. And the flower sitch is this: Horses must be held for a few more weeks. But from mid-March to mid-April, or thereabouts, things'll be mightily picturesque 'round the venerable ranch, which has been "owned by the McLaughlin family since 1887." The 1887-ness of the hill may make you feel as though you've stepped into a flower-laden cover of a Laura Ingalls Wilder book, at least for a moment.

OPENING DAYS and info can be found here, and admission? It's free, free like the breeze that makes the pretty daffies bend and sway so gracefully. If you're doing a Gold Country road trip, with your sights on Amador County, and it is the start of springtime, and you don't plan an audience with the famous flowers of Daffodil Hill, well... We can only gently advise you to reconsider that plan. It's one of the plum prettiest and most painterly places around, and, as we all know, the petals, and springtime, have a way of wrapping up sooner than we'd like. Commune with the daffies forthwith, flower fans.
 

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