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Sailor Bar

 
 

Just off of Hazel Ave, this park has a lot of history. Settled by gold-seeking sailors it was dredged for gold during the Gold Rush. Today, visitor enjoy activities such as rafting, fishing, horseback riding and nature gazing.

A salmon fisherman defies convention while casting beads to chinook at Sailor Bar. [Photo By Ed Homich]

Another day at the office
A salmon fisherman defies convention while casting beads to Chinook at Sailor Bar.

Photo By Ed Homich

How to Get There

From U.S. 50, exit onto Hazel Avenue. Make a left at Winding Way, then another left on Illinois Avenue. The park entrance will be at the bottom of a small hill.

Legend has it that Sailor Bar is so named because a sailor jumped ship to stake his claim during the Gold Rush.

Activities

  • Sailor Bar is a very popular launching spot for small watercraft and rafts. A gravel road provides launch access.
  • An equestrian trail weaves through the park, while access to the Jedediah Smith Memorial Bike Trail can be found across the river.
  • Early fall finds fishing enthusiasts eager to take advantage of both pond and river fishing. A fishing pond near the river offers year-round angling.
  • Also near this pond is a nature trail that leads to riparian (riverside) and historic locations where deer, coyotes, hawks and owls may be seen.

Just upstream from Sailor Bar, a king salmon jumps at the gate near Nimbus Hatchery. [Photo By Ed Homich]
Homeward Bound - Just upstream from Sailor Bar, a King salmon jumps at the weir at Nimbus Hatchery. Photo By Ed Homich
360-degree video: Click in the image and drag cursor left/right and up/down.


The Nimbus Hatchery -At one time, the American River provided approximately 100 miles of stream in which salmon and steelhead could spawn and rear. When the Folsom-Nimbus project was completed in 1958, most of the spawning and rearing areas were cut off. Nimbus Salmon and Steelhead Hatchery was constructed to replace the salmon and steelhead runs that were blocked by Nimbus and Folsom dams.


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