AgVentures

This is the little museum inside the International Agricultural Center. It's a free museum, free parking and clean bathrooms. There are some interesting old American built tractors including one that was invented and built in California. A few old pickup trucks and other equipment representing farming in the past.A lot simple facts presented and easily understood. California makes a lot of money for the USA in food & agriculture which means a lot of tax dollars. More than $6.5 Billion of California food & agricultural products are shipping around the world - more than any other state in the USA.About 99% of Almonds, Artichokes, Dates, Figs, Raisins, Kiwifruit, Olives, ClingPeaches, Persimmons, Pistachios, dried plums, walnuts consumed in the world are produced in California. Amazing stat. 90% of US wine production is here in California. And a lot of terrific wine is consumed here too. Lol. Trade war on food would really hurt our economic.

Okay, honestly -- agriculture isn't my thing. I had almost zero curiosity about life on a dairy farm or the history of tractors, but the Heritage Complex was on the itinerary of our tour up the 99 to Sacramento, so I shuffled along gamely with the rest of the herd for the educational experience. Moo.Our group sat in the theater and watched a film about dairy cows which was fun and very much geared toward kids. I did learn a lot about the modern dairy industry, and let me say, even this (no doubt) santized version was eye-opening for an adult reading between the lines a bit. No idyllic green hillsides for a pasture, no...I can only hope that those old tv ads for the Happy California Cows represented what cattle would experience on an organic dairy farm (which this clearly was not).But anyway, dairy rant aside: the next part was touring around the Tractor Museum, which was an interesting look back through time. There were a lot of donated antiques, and not only tractors, but items that showed what farm life was like in the last century or so, arranged in some nice scene displays. The tractors were all beautifully restored and the place was pristine. The Valley clearly takes a lot of pride in its agricultural heritage.A more child-centered interactive display section included a tractor driving simulator. This proved to be more popular with the Fourth Graders. There was a "scavenger hunt" list for the kids to do and a clean restroom nearby. Yay!Outside, we had a nice pinic lunch in the park section. This was an unrefined grassy area with huge old trees and several small picnic tables; perfect for the kids to run around and let off a little steam before climbing back onto the bus.Overall, this wasn't an exciting stop for me but it could be for anybody interested in farming or Valley history. At the very least, you could have some colorful photo ops with the family and a pleasant restroom break from your trip. If you travel the 99 now and again, I recommend you try the Heritage Complex at least once.

Good music at times as well.A romantic summer evening well spent.VERY much to be said of the Heritage Complex Center.