I'm guessing there are other families traveling to this region of CA to learn about history, the Gold Rush, and caverns. The casino was smart to incorporate kid-friendly activities. Overall, it was a nice experience for both adults and kids. As it was getting late, we skipped the bowling that night and headed back to the hotel to prepare for the next day's activities. The kids enjoyed those games that yielded tickets for prize redemption. It was a nice sized room with enough variety. Some of our group then went upstairs to the tables the rest of us went to the arcade. Apparently it was good enough to order a second serving. The teens in our group enjoyed the wings. Some in our group got their orders pretty fast we did not and had to go to the counter and ask. They bring the food to you the service was patchy. We got food at Kingpins, a fast-service place for burgers, etc. The alley looked nice there was neon and glowing lighting in the lanes.

We put our name on the waiting for bowling it was a 2 hour wait (this was about 9pm). We headed downstairs where the family-oriented activities were located. The inside was exactly as one would expect of a casino. We parked and hopped onto the elevator to the casino floor, got out, and stepped in. There were security personnel directing traffic, and the garage was near full, just like Vegas. Directions led us to the parking garage that's when we knew we were at a casino. There is not much activity outside the casino it is not the hustle and bustle of Las Vegas Blvd. Luckily we could see bright lights between the trees in the distance and figured that must be the casino. until we were about a half mile from the casino and in the middle of a dark country road. We were about to return to the hotel when the other van in our party had gps that showed the way and it did. We later learned we had missed a left turn as we got closer to Tuolumne, but the gps directions didn't warn us. Our gps directed us into Tuolumne city in front of some church. While trying to get there, be careful to watch for the road signs and directions and not rely entirely on gps. So it was a perfect time to head for Black Oak Casino during the first evening of our visit to the area.

It seems, during winter at least, that downtown Sonora becomes very quiet after dusk, except for a few restaurants. If you plan to browse the quaint shops in Sonora, be sure to do so before evening. nothing for the kids to do), we would not have gone. We had children in our group, and so the fact that it had an arcade and bowling was the main reason for visiting if it was an adult-oriented gambling place (i.e. We read about this casino when we planned our trip to Gold Country.

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