Crystal Creamery
Crystal Cream & Butter Company has been manufacturing dairy products in Sacramento, California since 1901. For years they've offered old-fashioned milk delivery to your home, and surprisingly, it's a service they still offer today. We went along for a delivery with Crystal driver Mike Forbes.

For more information visit www.crystal-milk.com

Holbrooke Hotel
Tune in as Jennifer Fischer explores a legendary Victorian Holbrooke Hotel nestled in Nevada County. The Holbrooke Hotel in the city of Grass Valley was built in 1851 and is famous for its Golden Gate Saloon. This establishment is the oldest continuously running saloon on the West coast and is known for its celebrity guests and "ghost" sightings.

The quaint hotel is equipped with 28 guestrooms, a full bar and restaurant, with several banquet rooms all decorated in Victorian era decor.

Holbrooke Hotel
212 W. Main Street, Grass Valley, CA 95945
(800) 933-7077

River Ranch Lodge
We show you the history of the 114-year-old rustic River Ranch Lodge, and see how it has remained a favorite year-round getaway for skiers and rafters. Plus, we ride the rapids with the Truckee Rafting Company.

The River Ranch Lodge is the only lodge located on the banks of the Truckee River. It's over 100-years old and was originally constructed in 1888. Back then, it was called the Deer Park Inn, but was still a hub of activity because of its prime location. When it was abandoned in the 30s it didn't take long before someone else took advantage of this mountain treasure.

In the 1960s the River Ranch Lodge was a tennis camp for its well-to-do visitors from the Bay Area. When the 1960 Olympic Games visited, just down the road at Squaw Valley, the lodge became a haven for foreign diplomats.

Today the lodge is a year-round get away packed with skiers in the winter and rafters and vacationers in the summer. It transforms itself daily from a quick and fast lunch palace to an elegant and romantic dining experience in the evening.

During those hot summer months, the River Ranch Lodge partners with the Truckee Rafting Co. Buses arrive all day long to pick up lodge goers and drive them up the road to Tahoe City so they can board a raft and take a leisurely 5 mile float down the river at their own pace. The end of the line is the patio deck of the River Ranch Lodge making a perfect place to dry off and have lunch.
Both a family retreat and a romantic get away the River Ranch Lodge is definitely the Sierra's best kept secret.

River Ranch Lodge
Highway 89 at Alpine Meadows Road
(530) 583-4264
www.riverranchlodge.com

Truckee Rafting Company
Tahoe City, CA
(530) 583-0123

Garden Artist - Larry Meeks
With every swing of the hammer self-taught artist Larry Meeks feels like he's taking one step closer to immortality. "It will be in the next generation and generations to come so it makes me feel like I am doing something for tomorrow," Meeks said. During his 25 years in state government Meeks sometimes found meaning hard to come by. Even as he rose through the ranks he found his passion competing with his profession for attention. That passion was art-the creation of steel sculptures both for the home and especially for the yard.

In 1992 fate came calling. A new governor was in and Meeks was out. The coast was clear for art all the time. These days he delights in the time spend pounding red-hot steel into all kinds of shapes. "You've got the forges going. You've got a lot of noise. I'm beating, hammering and sweating and at the end of the day I really feel like I've worked," Meeks said.

Meeks' works are located in some pretty public places like the state Capitol Rose Garden and McKinley Park in Sacramento. He's also building up quite a list of private clients who are pleased Meeks' designs adorn their yards. "He enjoys doing something that beautiful and takes great care in everything he does," said client Larry Carter.

Season eight of "Central Valley Chronicles" is underwritten in part by Classic Living.