Etna : TINY TOWN IS PROOF THAT GOOD THINGS COME IN SMALL PACKAGES
ETNA » Tiny towns are dotted across the volcanic ranges of Siskiyou County, at the northernmost end of California. They’re tucked into valleys, nestled next to forests and farms, and populated by a mixture of wilderness lovers, ranchers, artists and people hoping to recapture the California that once was — the one without traffic jams, potholes and skyhigh rent.
Siskiyou offers wide-open spaces, glorious views and a slower pace of life, crowned by a mystical mountain and dotted with alpine lakes. And its winding backroads are so perfectly paved, the half-dozen Bay Area guests at our Etna bed-and-breakfast could not stop talking tarmac, being the pothole-plagued people that we are.
The day before, we’d ignored Waze — the navigation app has a penchant for Interstate 5 — and gone backcountry through the beautiful Scott Valley on a two-lane road, which turned out to be a staggeringly lovely drive. The sinuous and oh-so-smooth road curved past forests, rose over peaks and descended into valleys where lush pastures and meadows beckoned.
A final curve brought us to Etna. With a population of just over 700, Etna may not be a bustling metropolis, but it has restaurants, inns and its own distillery. Originally known as Rough and Ready — California has at least three of those — this Gold Rush town was renamed in 1874 with a nod to Sicily’s famous volcano.
Locals describe Scott Valley as a land of cowboys and hikers. They’re right. Ranch land abounds. And Pacific Crest Trail hikers hitch rides down to town from the trail on whatever lumber trucks or delivery vans happen to rumble by the rendezvous point. Many of those hikers are headed for Alderbrook Manor, where innkeepers Dave and Vicki Harrison run a charming B&B in the main house and a bright red hikers hut in the garden, with bunk beds, hot showers, laundry and mail delivery service for Pacific Crest hikers.
There’s a nanobrewery two blocks away, too, where brewmaster Bill Behm and his wife, Debbie, opened their Paystreak Brewing taproom two years ago.
On this particular evening, the Paystreak taps are tapped out, but the Deschutes Mirror Pond Pale Ale is still flowing, a nice match for the menu of burgers and crispy onion rings at this casual, bare-bones hangout that draws locals and hikers. As for the brewery’s name, pay streak is a gold mining term — and it’s for real. The Behms funded their venture from the region’s rivers via sluice box, sweat and glimmers of gold.
Just across the street, the Denny Bar Co. is housed in a 19th-century brick building that once served as a mercantile for Gold Rush-era miners and settlers. These days, it’s a distillery with its own line of vodka and gin — the bourbon will be ready for sipping in 2021. Meanwhile, the Denny Bar Co. bistro, which opened in late 2017, offers gourmet pizzas topped with asparagus, bacon and goat cheese, for example, or Moroccan chicken, spinach and apricots, along with salads, burgers and steaks.
And at the other end of town stands Dotty’s, a colorful diner that serves up burgers made with beef from the Jenner Family ranch — five generations have run the ranch, which also supplies meat for Oakland’s Clove and Hoof — and topped with Dot’s sauce and red onion marmalade, and tucked into Mayor’s Baked Buns.
And those buns? They’re made by local baker Erik Ryberg, who moonlights as Etna’s mayor. You can buy his baguettes, sproutedgrain loaves, challah and croissants at the Etna farmers market on Saturdays and at his new Grain Street Bakery.
Just follow that perfectly paved road.