Going to Every Brewery in Chico, California

I didn't know I was going to go to every brewery in Chico in a day. Sure, going to a few made sense if I was in town, but as I hitchhiked out of Reno, I didn't even know I was going to Chico.

Sacramento was my destination after a few days in Reno where I'd come to put Zane Lamprey on my podcast. As I stood on the onramp near the casinos, I was aware that Zane and his crew were also heading to Sacramento, or perhaps already had, and he had a comedy show there later this night. The tour manager had offered to give me some free tickets if I made it.

It only took two rides to get to Sacramento - one short ride to the edge of Reno, and the second from a girl heading to the Bay Area that dropped me off along the way.

Off to the brewery I went, along with my friends in town who were also fans of Zane. Many beers, many laughs - you know the score.

I spent a couple days in Sacramento with my friends, and after just some beers and food here and there I was down to single digits in the cash department - less than ten bucks and starting to feel it. This is when Chico popped up, as I had a friend there who usually needed help with one project or another.

I hitchhiked up there with just one ride from a guy who dropped me off at Sierra Nevada Brewery. And no, this is not the day I went to every brewery. In fact, I only had enough money to get a half-pint, which I happily did.

My buddy picked me up there and we headed just out of town to his place where I spent the next few days. There wasn't as much to do as I thought, or at least he wasn't quite organized enough to find things, but I did come out of it with a couple hundred bucks which is a world of difference compared to the few dollars I had before.

Chico is one of my favorite towns. I have a good handful of friends and places that I like and really can't come to town without seeing them. The coast was calling my name, but before I could hit the road, one of my friends suggested I make a Hopping video where I went to every brewery in Chico in a day - so I did.

You can watch the video, I recommend it, but I'll tell you how the day went as well. First, I got another friend on board to come along and do the filming. He'd just been telling me he was getting interested in making some videos, so this was perfect.

We started early at Farmer's Brewery to make sure we'd squeeze in every brewery. There are only six breweries in town, but I know how easily I can get distracted by awesome beer and friendly people. Friends joined us along the day as we went over to Sierra Nevada and the Mulberry Station Brewery.

In the middle of the day, we took a break from beer and switched it up to cider, as I know the owner of Lassen Cider who makes some killer bottles. We continued on to my favorite brewery in town, Secret Trail, then wrapped up by going to Nor Cal Brewing and ending at Allies Pub, which is home to British Bulldog Brewery.

I was pretty well toasted by the end. By my friend's count, I'd tried thirty-eight different beers - and I don't think that counted the half dozen ciders I tried in between. Somehow we rallied out later that night going to a dance party and getting into other shenanigans.

I spent a few more days in town after that, recovering from the day, helping out other friends with yard work and the like, and just enjoying the Chico vibe. Finally, though, it was time to pull myself away from the magnetic town and hitch towards the coast.

A friend living in a mortuary awaited me there, along with another spontaneous mission I hadn't yet thought of: going to every coastal California brewery north of the Golden Gate Bridge. Why not?

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