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  5. Road trippin': Vacaville to San Andreas

Road trippin': Vacaville to San Andreas

Flowing through the Delta, Bay Area to the foothills

As State Route 12 makes its way from Fairfield to San Andreas, it transitions from pragmatic commuterism to bon-vivant winery exploration to Gold Country-blessed motoring. Ride along as CT News explores another California state highway on an overcast mid-November weekday.

State Route 12

sr12-01 (Screen grab courtesy of Google Maps)
sr12-02 CT News launched its overcast-day trek down State Route 12 by taking this exit off westbound Interstate 80.
sr12-03 This sweet sight is practically the first thing that motorists will encounter as they head east from Fairfield on SR-12.
sr12-04 Bicyclists have a roadway to themselves, at least for a stretch, alongside Highway 12 as it heads toward rural settings.
sr12-05 Interurban cars from the first half of the 20th century clickety-clacked in California cities and are displayed at this fine museum.
sr12-06 A few miles past the Western Railway Museum, motorists can turn north on SR-113 toward Dixon, Davis and Woodland.
sr12-07 On the western edge of Rio Vista, before the Sacramento River, State Route 84 shoots north through the Delta toward Sacramento.
sr12-08 The metallic and historical Rio Vista Bridge towers over the Sacramento River and keeps State Route 12 traffic flowing.
sr12-09 Highway 12 rises high above the South Mokelumne River in the small town of Terminous.
sr12-10 Past the point State Route 12 intersects with Interstate 5, eastbound travelers encounter a bevy of vineyards as they approach Lodi.
sr12-11 A few miles west of Lodi off the north side of Highway 12, this barn makes clear what industry dominates the region.
sr12-12 As tempting as it is to visit charming downtown Lodi, CT News will continue its SR-12 trek by turning toward San Andreas.
sr12-13 Caltrans worker Donald Mark Lichliter was killed on July 23, 2009, when he was hit by a truck as he worked next to his Caltrans vehicle in Lodi.
sr12-14 Vineyards and wineries continue popping up along Highway 12 as the roadway heads east toward the foothills.
sr12-15 State Route 88 eventually becomes one of the state's many scenic mountain roads past Jackson up toward Lake Tahoe.
sr12-16 A couple of miles west of Lockeford, State Route 12 teams with State Route 88 through yet more wine country.
sr12-17 A business owner has a sense of humor that likely tickles a few funny bones for those heading through Lockeford on SR-12.
sr12-18 A few historical markers are scattered beside Highway 12, including this one east of Lockeford.
sr12-19 The historical marker says that lumber from China was used to construct a building in Northern California. There must have been a reason ...
sr12-20 The turnoff for State Route 26 offers a shortcut of sorts to State Route 49 and Mokelumne Hill.
sr12-21 On this mid-November weekday, CT News had seen nothing above but clouds until reaching the eastern terminus of SR-12, near San Andreas.
sr12-22 Less than a mile from the end of State Route 12, San Andreas beckons along State Route 49 (whose name is a nod to the Gold Rush).