Here’s a way to turn the routine roar up I-80 into a jaunt through part of the Mother Lode in Placerville. The route starts with US Route 50, which splits off I-80 just west of Sacramento.

On this trip you stay on 50 to Placerville, then strike north across the watershed of the American River to Auburn, where I-80 is the ridge route to the crest of the Sierra Nevada. With minimal stops it takes a couple hours, but there are lots of places to linger.

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