Napa Valley, California
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Yountville Arts, Recreation & SightseeingYountville is first and foremost a place to eat and shop, but there's plenty to do, too. You'll find the Napa Valley Museum, historical landmarks, and a variety of events throughout the year. Of course the major event occurs nearly every morning when brightly-colored hot air balloons take off from nearby launching areas. |
Lincoln Theater
Veterans Home of California
Yountville CA 94599
707.944.1300 866.944.9199
The Lincoln Theater has a seating capacity of 1,200, the largest in the valley. It is the home of the Napa Valley Symphony and many other events.
Magical Moonshine Puppet Theater
PO Box 2296
Yountville CA 94599
707.257.8007
Michael and Valerie Nelson—and friends. (Photo courtesy of Magical Moonshine Theatre.)
This is another Napa Valley treasure. Unfortunately, performances are only held sporadically. Fortunately for locals, they're frequent enough to be a favorite, and held at locations throughout the valley. A wonderful experience for kids, no matter what their age.
Ballooning is a special experience in the valley. Most companies start their flights in the Yountville area. For full information, see our Hot Air Ballooning page.
Napa Valley Museum
55 Presidents Circle (in the Veterans Home)
Yountville CA 94599
707.944.0500
Open Wednesday - Monday from 10am to 5 pm. Adults $4.50, Students/Seniors $3.50, Ages 7-17 $2.50, Children under 4 free.
Directions: Take Yountville-Veterans Home exit off Highway 29, turn west onto California Drive. Follow the tree-lined drive to the stop sign and turn right.
The museum is devoted to the land, the people, and the art of the Napa Valley.
Yount Mill Road
A beautiful drive that will take you from Yount Street in Yountville to Highway 29 north of town. You'll pass the site of the original mill built by town founder George Yount in 1836.
Veterans Home of California, Yountville
Yountville CA 94599
On California Drive west of Highway 29
707.944.4600
www.cdva.ca.gov/Homes/Yountville.aspx
The Veterans Home of California, Yountville. Nestled in the hills west of town.
The Veterans Home of California, Yountville opened in 1884. It's open to anyone from California who served in the military and currently has over 1400 residents—and a waiting list. The grounds are open to the public; feel free to wander around. You also might want to visit the museum near the entrance. (The Napa Valley Museum is also located on the Vet's Home grounds.) The Napa Valley Symphony performs in the home's Lincoln Hall, and Fourth of July fireworks are held here every year. In fact, this is probably the most popular place in the valley for fireworks.
Napa River Ecological Reserve
www.bahiker.com/northbayhikes/napariver.html
East of Yountville on the north side of Yountville Cross Road between Highway 29 and the Silverado Trail.
The 73-acre habitat of riparian forest and meadows is a remnant of the riparian habitat that once existed all along the Napa River. The land is managed by the California Department of Fish and Game.
On both sides of the river are large meadows, which are sometimes flooded in winter. The meadows are a favorite place for deer to browse and a home to California quail and many species of finches and sparrows, including Lincoln's sparrow.
The interior forested area is a haven for birds, including breeding, wintering and migrating species. It is the most southerly point in Napa County where yellow-breasted chats breed. Wood ducks nest near the river, and varied thrushes and red-breasted sapsuckers winter here.
Willow flycatchers and several western warbler species settle in for temporary feeding on their migration routes. Acorn woodpeckers, scrub jays, white-breasted nuthatches, Anna's hummingbirds, and dozens of other species live here year-round. A total of 146 bird species have been sighted in the reserve, with 67 species known to nest here.
Other birds that can be seen here include cormorants, herons and egrets, Canada geese, golden eagles, falcons, great horned owls, and woodpeckers.
The reserve is also home to at least 40 different species of butterflies, including swallowtails, whites, sulphurs, coppers, hairstreaks, blues, brushfoots and skippers.
(Thanks to the Napa-Solano Audubon Society for the above information.)
Vintner's Golf Club
7901 Solano Avenue
Yountville, CA 94599
707.944.1992
9-hole, par 34. 4,258/5,573 yards. Three sets of tees. Located just off Highway 29 at the Veterans Home.
Yountville Park
On Washington Street at the north end of Yountville just across the street from the Napa Valley Lodge.
707.944.8851
Children's play area at Yountville Park.
A very popular place for picnics and one of the best parks around for kids, boasting a unique assortment of play equipment. Across the street from the park is Pioneer Cemetery and the grave of George Yount, first settler in the valley and the founder of Yountville. When Yount first saw the valley in 1831, he said: "In such a place I would like to live and die." He did both, dying in 1865.
Bastille Day Celebration
Domaine Chandon
Yountville 94599
707.944.2280
Held every July 14
Farmer's Market
Parking lot of Compadre's Restaurant
6539 Washington Street
707.944.0904
Wednesdays, June - September, 4 - 8 p.m.
Festival Of Lights
Town of Yountville
707.944.0904
December
Beautiful Christmas display, music, entertainment.
Fourth of July Fireworks
Veterans Home
Yountville
707.944.4600
The biggest fireworks display in the valley.
Napa Valley Symphony
2407 California Boulevard
Napa CA 94558
707.226.6872
The Napa Valley has developed an outstanding group of musicians. Although the symphony's office is in Napa, most concerts are held in the Lincoln Theater at the Veterans Home in Yountville. There's also an annual free concert by the river at Veterans Park in downtown Napa.
George Yount Blockhouse (No. 564)
In this vicinity stood the log block-house constructed in 1836 by George Calvert Yount, pioneer settler in Napa County. Nearby was his adobe house, built in 1837, and across the bridge were his grist and saw mills, erected before 1845. Born in North Carolina in 1794, Yount was a trapper, rancher, and miller. He became grantee of the Rancho Caymus and La Jota. He died in Yountville in 1865.
Location: NE corner of Cook Rd and Yount Mill Rd, 1 mi N of Yountville
Grave of George C. Yount (No. 693)
The grave of George C. Yount in the town he founded.
George Calvert Yount (1794-1865) was the first United States citizen to be ceded a Spanish land grant in Napa Valley (1836).
Skilled hunter, frontiersman, craftsman, and farmer, he was the true embodiment of all the finest qualities of an advancing civilization blending with the existing primitive culture. Friend to all, this kindly host of Caymus Rancho encouraged sturdy American pioneers to establish ranches in this area, so it was well populated before the gold rush.
Location: George C. Yount Pioneer Cemetery, Lincoln and Jackson Sts, Yountville
Veterans Home of California (No. 828)
This home for California's aged and disabled veterans was established in 1884 by Mexican War veterans and members of the Grand Army of the Republic. In January 1897, the Veterans Home Association deeded the home and its 910 acres of land to the state, which has since maintained it.
Location: SW corner of California Dr and Hwy 29, Yountville
