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The California Report

Exploring California's Best Kept Secret Spots and Hidden Gems

Sasha Khokha
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Photos of jazz greats including Carmen McRae, Bill Evans and Eddie Jackson line the wood-paneled walls of the present-day Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society concert room in Half Moon Bay.  (Ryan Levi/KQED)

Every summer, we scour the state to find California’s best kept secret spots and hidden gems. It’s a showcase of the special places — and people — who make our state unique.

You don’t have to look far to find special people in Santa Rosa. When the city was devastated by last fall’s Northern California wildfires, Santa Rosa residents rallied to rebuild and restore their community — including their own hidden gems.

We hosted this year’s show in Santa Rosa, finding secret tunnels, playing with bunnies and eating homemade pasta. It was the perfect start to our hidden gems road trip for the ears.

Some of This Year’s Hidden Gems

We’ve already taken you to the small town of Volcano in our A Place Called What?! series, but what we didn’t show you then was the famous cave (and lake!) located 100 feet below the surface.

Helictites line the walls and ceiling of the Landmark Chamber in Black Chasm Cavern. (Bianca Taylor/KQED)

It’s not every day that you can make out with a huge, taxidermied moose. Except if you’re at Foster’s Bighorn in the California Delta.

Part of a wall at Foster's Bighorn, a restaurant and bar in Rio Vista which houses an enormous collection of taxidermied animals.
Part of a wall at Foster’s Bighorn, a restaurant and bar in Rio Vista that houses an enormous collection of taxidermied animals. (Courtesy of Jim Ratcliffe)

Just a few steps from the Pacific Ocean in Half Moon Bay, there’s a music venue with a mysterious name, an explosive history and some of the best live jazz you could ever hope to find.

The Bach Dancing and Dynamite Society in Half Moon Bay grew out of the impromptu jazz concerts Pete Douglas would throw in his living room.
The Bach Dancing & Dynamite Society in Half Moon Bay grew out of the impromptu jazz concerts Pete Douglas would throw in his living room. (Ryan Levi/KQED)

The Valley Relics Museum is a place that celebrates the history of the everyday places and things that defined 20th century life in the San Fernando Valley.

Valley Relics Museum founder and curator Tommy Gelinas. (Peter Gilstrap/KQED)

Take a break from the Central Valley’s summer heat and head underground to the cool (literally) oasis that is the Forestiere Underground Gardens.

One of Forestiere's underground trees.
One of Forestiere’s underground trees. (Courtesy of the Forestiere Underground Gardens)

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