Origin
Grass Valley, CA
Morning in Grass Valley on Saturday
Local time
10:36 AM
PDT
Current temp
42°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Trip from Grass Valley, CA to Birchville, CA
Compiled and reviewed by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 18, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
26m
Distance
17.5 mi
28 km
Drive Score
6/10
Good drive
Same Day?
Yes, doable
Fuel Cost
$4
one way
EV Charging
Unknown
Best Time to Leave
4 AM
0h 24m
★
6 AM
0h 27m
8 AM
0h 31m
10 AM
0h 28m
12 PM
0h 28m
3 PM
0h 29m
5 PM
0h 31m
8 PM
0h 25m
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
Grass Valley, CA
Wikimedia Commons
Trip Overview
The drive from Grass Valley, CA to Birchville, CA covers 17.5 miles and takes about 26m behind the wheel. This route is realistic as a one-day drive if you keep your stops efficient.
The route leans on CA 49, Golden Center Freeway, Pleasant Valley Road for much of the mileage, and the overall profile is mostly highway. The longest uninterrupted segment is about 10.9 miles on CA 49. At current regular gas prices, budget about $4.02 one way before food or hotel costs.
Main Roads
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| CA 49 | 10.9 mi | 14m |
| Golden Center Freeway | 3.5 mi | 4m |
| Pleasant Valley Road | 1.8 mi | 4m |
| West Broad Street | 0.4 mi | <1m |
| Broad Street | 0.3 mi | <1m |
| East Main Street | <0.1 mi | <1m |
| Bennett Street | <0.1 mi | <1m |
| Stewart Street | <0.1 mi | <1m |
Longest stretch:
CA 49
— 10.9 mi, about 14m
Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions
Step-by-step road directions between Grass Valley, CA and Birchville, CA.
1
Start on Stewart Street
117 ft
·
6 sec
·
Stewart Street
2
Turn right onto East Main Street
500 ft
·
13 sec
·
East Main Street
3
Turn right onto Bennett Street
497 ft
·
19 sec
·
Bennett Street
4
Take the ramp
0.2 mi
·
14 sec
5
Merge onto CA 20; CA 49
3.5 mi
·
4 min
·
Golden Center Freeway
6
Take the exit
0.2 mi
·
26 sec
Toward Broad Street
7
Turn left onto Broad Street
0.3 mi
·
39 sec
·
Broad Street
8
Continue on West Broad Street
0.4 mi
·
53 sec
·
West Broad Street
9
Turn left onto CA 49
11 mi
·
14 min
·
CA 49
10
Turn left onto Pleasant Valley Road
1.8 mi
·
4 min
·
Pleasant Valley Road
11
Arrive at destination
Pleasant Valley Road
Heads-up: tricky spots
5 of 85 decision points cluster between mile 0 and 4.1 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.
4
0 mi into trip
|
~0m in
|
East Main Street
Turn right onto East Main Street
Navigation decision point
4
0.1 mi into trip
|
~0m in
|
Bennett Street
Turn right onto Bennett Street
Navigation decision point
5
0.2 mi into trip
|
~0m in
Take the ramp
Navigation decision point
4
3.9 mi into trip
|
~5m in
Take the exit toward Broad Street
Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early
Toward Broad Street
4
4.1 mi into trip
|
~5m in
|
Broad Street
Turn left onto Broad Street
Navigation decision point
Fuel & Cost
Regular Gas
$4.02 one way
$8.04 round trip
$5.84/gal
25.4 MPG avg
6 kg CO2
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $6.02 | $4.14 | $8.29 |
| premium | $6.18 | $4.26 | $8.51 |
| diesel | $5.61 | $3.86 | $7.73 |
No toll roads detected on this route.
Drive Cost (one way)
Fuel
$4
Estimated CO2 emission: 6.1 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.
Driving Electric?
About $2 in charging · 0 stops · 67% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 5.3 | 0 | $1.84 | $0.84 |
| Efficient EV | 4.4 | 0 | $1.53 | $0.70 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 7 | 0 | $2.45 | $1.12 |
Gas CO2
6 kg
EV CO2
2 kg (67% less)
This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.
DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.
Travel Intel
Current conditions at both ends of the drive.
Destination
Birchville, CA
Morning in Birchville on Saturday
Local time
10:36 AM
PDT
Current temp
68°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Time zone
Same local time
Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.
Temperature spread
26 degrees warmer at arrival
A meaningful temperature swing is a good cue to rethink layers, water, and how soon you want to arrive.
Road read
26m on the road
Use the two city cards together: check the sky where you start, then compare it with the local time and temperature at arrival.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
What kind of drive is this?
17.5 mi in 26m, mostly highway — 10.9 mi of that is on CA 49.
82% highway — fuel and pacing are the main things to plan.
11 navigation steps total — most of the decisions cluster near the start and finish.
Longest single stretch: 10.9 mi on CA 49.
How Hard Is This Drive?
4/10
This is a straightforward highway drive that stays mostly on CA 49 and Golden Center Freeway. There are only a few real navigation decisions along the way. The trickiest moment comes early in the drive near East Main Street.
Driving Effort
4/10
Easy - simple navigation with a manageable amount of wheel time
Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.
This is a straightforward 26m drive. You will face about 8 decision points, but nothing that requires special attention if you follow navigation.
Where does it get tricky?
The main spots that need attention: near the start (East Main Street): Navigation decision point; at 0.1 miles (Bennett Street): Navigation decision point; at 0.2 miles: Navigation decision point.
About the Cities
Starting in Grass Valley, CA
Full guide →Grass Valley is a city in Nevada County in California's Gold Country.
Top landmarks
- • Empire Mine State Historic Park — state historic park in Grass Valley, California, USA
City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).
Who Is This Route For?
Weekend Trip
Doable as a same-day drive at 26m. Total distance: 17.5 miles.
Family Friendly
Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.
Solo Traveler
26m drive, comfortable solo distance.
EV Driver
0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.
First-Time Driver
Mostly highway driving (82%). Straightforward navigation.
Frequently Asked Questions
The longest stretch is about 10.9 miles on CA 49. The full list of main roads is in the Roads section above.
Yes. At under 2 hours behind the wheel, this works well for families — plan one quick stop if you have younger kids.
The main spots that need attention: near the start (East Main Street): Navigation decision point; at 0.1 miles (Bennett Street): Navigation decision point; at 0.2 miles: Navigation decision point.
Yes. A round trip is manageable in a single day if you plan a break at Birchville, CA before heading back.
How this page is built
Compiled by the Trip.ovh planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, and EIA for fuel prices. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.
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