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Free Traveling Guides » States » California » Wine Country
Guerneville
Guerneville is located along the Russian River on Route 116 between Monte Rio in the West and Forestville in the east in western Sonoma County. Guerneville is just 18 minutes west of Highway 101. This small tourist town is situated between the Russian River and surrounding hills in the Russian River Valley.
Guerneville is just next to the Russian River and according to a local lore, Redwoods grew in such mass in the riverbed that until a few centuries ago, the valley had the greatest biomass density on Earth.
The local Pomo Indians called the place Ceola and it was used by them as a summer camp. Ceola means a “shady place”. However, many of the Redwoods in this area were logged in the 1800s and that is how the town got its first English name -- Stumptown. Guerneville has an annual town parade to commemorate the old name and the parade is aptly called the Stumptown Days.
The name Guerneville was introduced to honor a local businessman of the 1800s, George Guerne, who was the owner of the town’s sawmill. One can see a forest of Redwoods in the surrounding mountains which were planted to make up for the logging that was done in the 1800s. These Redwoods are less than 200 years old. The only expanse of the old Redwoods remaining is in Fife Creek watershed which now the major attraction in Armstrong Redwoods Park.
Guerneville became popular with people from San Francisco in the late 1800s with the Northwestern Pacific Railroad providing access to it. The railroad stopped operating in the 1930s but it did little to stem the flow of vacationers. However, in the 1960s the popularity of Guerneville declined and the floods in the winter of 1964 did not help. In the late 1970s, Guerneville started getting popular when the gay and lesbian crowd from San Francisco started coming down for weekends and once again the businesses in this charming small town began to thrive.
The town center is dotted with permanent chess tables and there is a public beach area in the heart of the town along the Russian River, which is a popular destination for boating, sunbathing, fishing and swimming. When you enter Guerneville, you can see the town plaza and just off the plaza is the historic bridge across the Russian River and the visitor’s center.
If you drive just 20 minutes past Guerneville, you will arrive at the mouth of the Russian River and the beautiful and spectacular Sonoma Coast. Armstrong Redwoods Park is just 5 minutes outside Guerneville and the famous Korbel Champagne cellars is 3 minutes. Another 50 wineries are some 20 minutes drive from Guerneville. The Blues and Jazz festivals are held at Guerneville and well worth the trip to this small yet delightful town.
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