One thing not to miss is the redwoods. They are astounding.

We were there a couple of years ago for a few days. I would like to go back again, there was so much to see there. Even just driving into the foothills of the Sierras almost takes you to visual overload.

Go have a look at Nevada City - Utah Phillips's home town now. There's even an old silver mine around there somewhere.

We hired a car with GPS and that system was worth every penny. We stayed in motels - that way we could be more mobile and never found any problem finding somewhere to stay for the night.