Reviews of Downieville

Downieville is a little slice of California's past with a million things to do for lovers of nature and the outdoors. Our family comes every year in the winter because it feels like we stepped into a postcard-perfect village! We Love Downieville!

Getting a glimpse into wild country from a cozy river front balcony in Downieville CA is life for me. I wake up refreshed after listening to the water rushing by, and I only wish I could stay longer. What a sweet little town filled with charm and good vibes.

Trails. Trails. Trails! The BEST trails are in Downieville.

The town of Downieville was something I had never seen. The history that's there. The people you meet. Basically, it's that time when you sit there and think to yourself 'Where did i grow up? Where did I come from? Why wasn't I born here?

Downieville is a remarkably well-preserved old Gold Rush town, perched at a fork in the Yuba River in remote western Sierra County. History is its pitch to tourists, and it has the feel of a backlot for an Old West movie — in its corner saloon, in the one-lane bridges over the Yuba, and in the second-story offices of The Mountain Messenger [California's Oldest Weekly Newspaper] next to the Fire Department.

In a High cleft of the Northern Sierra, straddling two rivers that once lured gold miners, Downieville, California is enjoying a 21st-century treasure boom in the form of extreme sports.

In the summertime, the population explodes with the infusion of mountain bikers, white water rafters and kayakers, fly-fishermen, people who love to play in the river, bird watchers, and hikers. Basically, anyone who wants to stay in a place out of this world heads to Downieville.