Daffodil Hill
Daffodil Flowers in Bloom for Public Viewing
Mid March
to Early April (Weather Permitting)
Daffodil Hill. Spectacular daffodil blooms
in a beautiful country setting. Shake Ridge
Rd. Rams Hon Grade, Volcano. amadorcountychamber.com or call
209-223-0350 for opening information.
Daffodil Hill flowers bloom each year, to
the joy of those who love these graceful,
springtime perennials. At Daffodil Hill
there are more than 300 varieties of
daffodils, over 300,000 planted bulbs on a property
that sits at 3,000 feet above sea level in
California's historic Old West.
Arthur
McLaughlin and Elizabeth "Lizzie" van Vorst-McLaughlin,
descendents of those who came west and
settled in California,
have planted up to 6,000 new bulbs a year on
their farm that includes a lovely alpine
setting with pine trees, an old barn, wagon
wheels, and rusting mining equipment and
farming tools in addition to roaming fowl
and farm animals such as lambs, chickens and
other birds. This non-commercial tourist
destination and delight is not formally
publicized or promoted, but still hundreds
and thousands of people flock to tiny
Volcano to see the lovely spread of yellow
that sits on a carpet of green.
In the early days of the Gold Rush, Daffodil
Hill was a regular stopping place for
teamsters hauling timber from the Sierras
down to the Kennedy and Argonaut Mines, and
for eastbound travelers heading for the
Comstock Lode on the Amador-Nevada Wagon
Road (Highway 88). The ranch has been owned
by the same family since it was acquired in
1887 by wagon pioneers . In 1887, after
coming west from New York and Ohio, Arthur
and his wife, Lizzie, began to plant the
first daffodil bulbs in their spare time.
The bulbs have since been lovingly nurtured.
|