Lake Tahoe and Tallac Historic Site offers glimpse into fabulous summer retreats of very rich!

 

Period kitchen at Tallac homesite

Lake Tahoe, CA visitors will often cherish memories of Camp Richardson, just 3 miles north on Hwy 89 of South Lake Tahoe – but far fewer will have visited the adjoining Tallac Historic Site.

Until recently, I assumed it was an archeological site, and had never toured off of the highway to find out! Take the time to tour three perfectly preserved grand estates right off Hwy 89, the former lake-front grand homes of the Baldwin Estate, the Pope Estate and Valhalla.

Once regarded as the “Grand Resort of Tahoe”, these beautiful old homes were the entertainment capital of the Tahoe area, with well-heeled guests staying over for grand parties, with fine food, bands, dancing and the like. The Tahoe Heritage Foundation along with the US Forest Service (www.tahoeheritage.org/events-and-programs-2/tallac-historic-site) operate programs and events at both the Baldwin and Pope Estates. The Valhalla property, used regularly as the site for many Tahoe organizations’ events, is run by the Tahoe Tallac Association (www.valhallatahoe.com).

The Baldwin Museum is the place to start your tour. Here you’ll find docents, explanatory videos, the Baldwin Room, the Washoe Room and a recreated 1930’s kitchen. A gift shop sells books and merchandise specific to the history of the home, as well as tickets to events and programs. Tallac Historic Site is next to the shady Kiva picnic area and Taylor Creek Visitor Center.

The many paved walkways are handicapped-accessible, and also offer marvelous opportunities for easy, flat and scenic bicycling. The attractions all offer year-round access, though Tahoe snows may require cross-country skis or snowshoes in winter. Just a mile away is the Fallen Leaf Lake Campground, nearby the scenic lake of the same name.

And, the Tallac site borders Camp Richardson, with store, historic lodging in the old hotel, cabins for rent and a fine restaurant, the Beacon, on the shores of Lake Tahoe. Take the time to explore this hidden gem on the shores of Lake Tahoe; for more options in California, see LittlePlacesIKnow@blogspot.com.


Baldwin Museum is place to begin your Tallac tour



Lake Tahoe offers a number of lakeside dining options, like The Beacon
at Camp Richardson, or Beaches, in S. Lake Tahoe!

Kayakers enjoy Lake Tahoe, with rentals available at Camp Richardson

Weekend get-a-way by bike, or by foot, in Stockton, CA!

Ready for an “in-city weekend adventure”? Dust off those bicycles, and let’s hit the trails right here in Stockton!

Photos, from top down: DeRosa University Center is heart of a UOP biking or walking adventure; depending upon the season, adventurers may see a UOP athletic team in practice or readying for a Big West match (UOP Women's Tennis Team); for explorers to downtown Stockton, tour the Promenade around the Deepwater Channel, home to the new Waterfront Marina and much more!

Center of our focus, the Calaveras Bike Trail and University of Pacific, right in middle of the trail. From home, you can bike (or walk) to the Calaveras Trail, or drive to UOP and park on campus to start your adventure. The Calaveras Trail runs (on the west) from Buckley Cove Park, at end of March Lane, all the way east to Cherokee (overall, about 9.3 miles, end-to-end).

The beautiful UOP campus is right in the center; a pedestrian/bike bridge carries you across the old river to the DeRosa University Center, open most weekends for drinks or lunch. From UOP to Buckley Cove, it is about 4.5 miles each way; to Cherokee going east, about 3.8 miles each way – scenic, quiet, and no traffic, good for newby riders or walkers!

From UOP, riders can also take a route south on Kensington and Baker to reach the downtown Stockton waterfront, the Stockton Ballpark, Stockton Arena and other downtown attractions. These are wide, shady boulevards, with light traffic, and this route shows off some of the city’s finest old residential architecture!

For a good map of these trails and other Stockton “safe routes for cyclists” go to: http://www.stocktongov.com/files/BikewaysExistingMap.pdf. The UOP campus also offers a number or easy biking/walking routes, away from traffic. Lot’s of attractions, and depending on time of year, you might see one of UOP’s athletic teams practicing, or, about to face Big West competition!

And, mark your calendars: the next ‘Second Saturday Family Bike Ride’, Saturday, Sept. 14, 11 AM, starting and finishing at DeRosa University Center at UOP. This event will cover about six miles, heading south on Kensington and Baker from UOP, then west on Rose to Victory Park and the Haggin Museum. Riders should bring a picnic lunch and bike lock; after a lunch discussion of family bike safety, riders will get a tour of the Haggin Museum, with free admission for youth. Before hopping on those bikes, check them for “working order”; helmets for both kids and adults are highly recommended.

Enjoy a scenic, energetic weekend right in Stockton! For more insight, contact Tim Viall of the SJ Bike Coalition, tviall@msn.com, or call 209.969.3875.  And, for more weekend get-a-ways, go to: www.LittlePlacesIKnow@blogspot.com.

Copperopolis, CA offers glimpse of old copper and gold mining in Sierra foothills!

While Copperopolis, CA, just 30 miles east of Stockton on Highway 4 in the Sierra foothills, is best known as a copper producer, gold was discovered here in 1858 - two years before the copper discovery.

By 1974, the Madame Felix Mining District, just north of town, had produced over 200,000 ounces of gold. In the 1980s, the Meridian Gold Company re-started the mining operation, and produced another 300,000 ounces of gold; all told, gold worth $800 million at today’s prices!

Start your tour at Copperopolis Park on the O’Brynes Ferry Road in the heart of old town, with a wealth of old mining machinery from the late 1880s to the early 20th century and outdoor displays that explain the history of the copper and gold mining days. You’ll see old photos and history of the Old Corner Saloon, the Congregational Church, old Armory (now home to Copperopolis Olive Oil), Copperopolis Hotel and other Gold Rush-era buildings, all of them still standing.

At the south end of town (O’Brynes and Telegraph intersection), see massive tailings, the remnants of the huge copper smelter that operated here until 1929. Then take Telegraph Road 3/4s of a mile west to the new Town Center, where a new Town Square commercial center was built five years ago. In the heart of the center is a cute bandstand, surrounded by interesting shops and good food options such as Panini’s Italian, Griff’s BBQ, Cruisers Ice Cream and Snaps Coffee and Wine Bar. This is a great place for kids to play on the village green and adults to window shop!

From town, scenic Lake Tulloch is just six miles south and Saddle Creek Golf Course just four miles for those golfers seeking challenge. For a scenic route back to the San Joaquin Valley, take the Rock Creek Road north to Salt Springs Reservoir, with nice park and picnic area on the west shore, and continue on the road, where a one-lane, bumpy but scenic road drive brings you out at Milton in the low foothills. Watch for wild turkey sightings on this drive, and, maybe bobcats or coyotes if you are vigilant!

For more insights into N. and Central California, go to my blog: LittlePlacesIKnow@blogspot.com.

Copperopolis historic park tells tales of the mines and features old mining equipment, picnic area

Huge old winch once worked in the copper mines around the city

Copperopolis's new Town Center offers quaint shops, fine restaurants and weekend activities in pretty city park in front of the new Town Hall; it's just a half-mile from old Copperopolis!



Wine, beer, classic cars, good eats; it's Lodi, CA

Wine, beer, classic cars, good eats…it’s Lodi, CA, of course.

And, Fall is the perfect time to visit! It’s the wine grape harvest season, the Lodi Road Trip Passport is back for its second year (more, below) and the weather is at its finest! But, add beer, good food and classic cars and you have reason to visit for several days, or several different trips!

Food can include a number of great stops. For breakfast, chose the iconic Richmaid Restaurant on Cherokee, serving Lodians since 1938! For lunch, try Phillips Farms Café and Michael David Winery on Highway 12 just west of Lodi. Lodi Beer on School Street offers a varied selection of award-winning beers and always tasty food for lunch or dinner in a classic brew-pub setting.

If classic cars are your interest, check out the Vintage Reserve Garage on Cherokee, right across the street from Richmaid! This new “Gasoline Alley-style garage” (in beautifully remodeled space, formerly a Salvation Army location) shows off about 50 antique, classic or muscle cars from the 1920s to the 1970s; these stunning specimens like the 1939 Ford convertible pictured are timeless treasures.

The Lodi Road Trip Passport is back for its second year. This September 1-30 event features Lodi Appellation’s vintners with fun activities like cycling and vineyard tours, grape stomps and barrel tastings, live music, winemaker dinners and many more reasons to visit the 45+ participating wineries and a host of restaurants! Passports are currently on sale for $20; visit www.lodiroadtrip.com, or call the Lodi Wine & Visitor Center at 209.365.0621.

Also, download the Lodi Wine app for your smart phone, LoCA, which will feed you steady updates on all the glorious happenings throughout Lodi in the fall. See you at a wine tasting!  For more ideas for getaways in central California, see LittlePlacesIKnow@blogspot.com.

Classic 1939 Ford convertible is typical of 40+ cars at the Vintage Reserve Garage on Lodi's east side

Michael David Winery and Phillip's Farm Cafe are just west of Lodi on Hwy 12

Lodi wine appellations are gaining a world-wide following for quality and tasty wines

Gold Rush history; Jackson and Mokelumne Hill, CA

Looking for a nearby dose of 49er’s history and the Gold Rush?  Take the 1.5 hour drive to Valley Springs, Jackson and south to Mokelumne Hill!

The most scenic way to get there from Stockton: take Hwy 26 east to Valley Springs, then go north on Paloma Road to Watertown Road and turn onto Pardee Dam Road. This takes you right across Pardee Dam, with stunning views of the lake and past a wonderful EBMUD campground (if you are into camping and/or fishing, make a note to return).

Continue on Stony Creek Road, up a beautiful valley and right to the south edge of Jackson. Jackson is county seat and a very vibrant old and new town. Check out old Main Street, deep in Sierra gold history for a variety of cute shops, and stop at the National Hotel at the south end of Main. Built in 1852 and visited by many noteworthy guests over its history, this Gold Rush Hotel was extensively renovated a few years ago; stop in Stanley’s Steakhouse in the hotel’s lower level for libation or lunch. Once refreshed, visit the old Kennedy Mine and the historic Kennedy Mine Tailing Wheel #4, for a short dose of early mining history. And, if you like the casino scene, the Jackson Rancheria Casino is a big part of “new Jackson”. 

Continue south on Hwy 49 to the wonderful old town of Mokelumne Hill. Along the way to “Moke Hill” you cross the Mokelumne River; just across the bridge is a lovely waterfront park where you can get an up-close view of the river. At the top of the hill is the old town, with a variety of well-preserved Gold Rush buildings. Check out the Leger Hotel; a portion of the building served as Calaveras County Courthouse from 1852 to 1866.

When the courthouse was moved to San Andreas, George Leger made it part of his hotel; and when fire damaged the building it was restored in 1879 and renamed the Leger Hotel. Today the Leger offers quaint rooms and delicious meals in its Whitewater Grill. Take the time to walk the four blocks of old Mokey Hill and you will feel the ghosts of Gold Rush days!

Pictured below are diners in Stanley’s Steakhouse, a part of the National Hotel in Jackson, the scenic Mokelumne River off Hwy 49, the historic Leger Hotel in Mokelumne Hill, and the east end of the city, still rich in Gold Rush architecture!

Diners gather at the bar in Stanley's Steakhouse in Jackson's National Hotel

The historic Leger Hotel in Mokey Hill is a gem, dating to the Gold Rush



Mokelumne River is scenic and offers rafting, swimming in season

Historic east Mokelumne Hill retains much of its history, dating to heart of 49ers Gold Rush

Mokelumne Hill's downtown area offers a shady park with activities for the kids!

Virginia City, NV, town built by, and on, the Comstock Lode



Gould and Curry Mining offices, now Mackay House, with St. Mary's Church in distance

Fourth Ward School dates to 1875

C Street is Virginia City's main drag, with quaint shops and restaurants

Silver Terrace Cemeteries, just north of town, are a collection of 11 cemeteries

After silver and gold was discovered in 1859, Virginia City, NV (just 30 miles south of Reno) boomed for over 20 years and was vital in bringing Nevada into the Union. The storied Comstock Lode produced gold and silver valued at $400 million in today’s values; its riches also helped build San Francisco through miners who began their fortunes here like George Hearst.

Seven major mines worked the ore deposits during the boom, from both ends of the lode. Today, mining continues, tied to the vacillating price of gold and silver. Virginia City offers a veritable “living history of mining”. The Comstock Keystone Mine Head Frame, once located on Gold Hill, is now part of a Comstock Lode Park on the city’s C Street (Hwy 341). Between 1933 and 1939, the Keystone Mine produced gold and silver valued at $67 and $7 million in today’s prices, respectively. Then the mine was used by Dayton Consolidated to produce millions more, ceasing production in 1942.

Just south on C Street are blocks lined with quaint shops, restaurants and several more museums celebrating the town’s booming and bawdy history! Established 1859, the Gould and Curry Mining Company would produce over $15 million between 1860 and 1881 (Curry relocated to Carson City, where he is considered founding father). The beautiful mining office, built in 1860, was home to the mining superintendant - the first was George Hearst, who soon moved on to other mining interests – the vast Hearst fortune began here! In 1875, Bonanza King John Mackay moved into the building when his home was destroyed in the great fire of 1875. Today the Gould and Curry Mining Company offices, later called the Mackay House, are a museum with tours of the mining offices.

To educate its burgeoning youth, the Fourth Ward School was finished in 1875; with four stories and 14 classrooms it was both a grammar/high-school combination. The stately school graduated its last class in 1936 after educating thousands!

Vast riches brought the appreciation of God to the population and Virginia City blossomed with churches in its boom years. St. Mary’s in the Mountains, known as the “mother church” of the Comstock Lode, traces its history to 1858 when Rev. Gallagher celebrated the first Catholic mass; his brother opened the first Roman Catholic Church nearby in 1860. This stunning church was finished in 1868, damaged in the great 1875 fire and rebuilt in 1876. St. Paul’s Episcopal Church was established 1861, destroyed by fire in 1875 and rebuilt and rededicated in 1876. It was the first congregation in the diocese of Nevada and stands today as a marvelous architectural treasure.

Of course, the miners venerated their dead. Silver Terrace Cemeteries, just north of the city, is a combination of 11 old cemeteries grouped together. The 30 acre grounds were irrigated and sustained a variety of native and imported plants; a walk through the grounds was meant to be a contemplative experience. Today a local foundation works to reestablish the cemeteries’ grandeur.

For more “Weekend Getaways”, see my blog; LittlePlacesIKnow@blogspot.com!

Travels with...Scotty

In an earlier post, I noted that we had had a June auto trip planned to Gettysburg, for a Civil War bike ride with brother and four pals, I was intrigued to find a "repro Scotty" on eBay, a 1958 Scotty Junior model, built in 2011 by a West Virginia high school shop teacher. It was listed for a good price, looked perfect, so I bought it on-line, picked it up enroute to Gettysburg, and my spouse and I, over three weeks, towed it all the way to Long Island, NY, then back across the US to California. Camping and living out of the Scotty Junior takes a bit of adjustment. Like all the early teardrops made in the 40s and 50s, they were built on a 4'X8' plywood foundation. That makes them 4' wide, 4' tall, and 8' long, with an interior sleeping compartment 6'4" long by a little less than 4' wide. Cozy for two, but we sleep very well! In the back is a small "kitchen hatchback" where we store camping gear, pots and pans and the like. Overall, we have learned to travel pretty light, storing other camp gear like small table, chairs in the interior compartment, and storing "chilly weather gear" in the interior cabinets. We each get a clothing bag, which we toss in back seat of a 2013 Focus Hatchback, our tow vehicle. Barring wet or really cold weather, a very pleasant way to travel (of course, we toss in a stop at relatives/friends or a motel every so often, so we are not camping continuously)! Getting 26 MPG is also likeable, compared to 7 MPG for those diesel pickups pulling giant 5th wheels that we often pass!

California Coast, Bodega Bay north to Mendocino

From Stockton, the N. California coast, from Bodega Bay north to Mendocino, is both easy to reach (about three hours) and offers some of the most stunning waterfront in the United States! We have been there several times, on both day trips, camping trips, even a few motel overnights. This piece of California offers impressive vistas, spectacular food, great camping options and wonderful places to stop for the night, if you are not into camping. 10 days ago, we headed north with our Scotty teardrop in tow. Bodega (the town is different than Bodega Bay), is just off Hwy 116, and offers the old school with the 1963 Hitchcock classic 'The Birds' was filmed. This cute little town is worth the short detour, for both the quaintness of the town and the cinematic history. Just six miles further, one comes to Bodega Bay, on the water, home to a variety of fine restaurants and several nearby beautiful campgronds. Stop at the Tides Restaurant for delicious breakfasts or lunches, and check out a myriad of state parks for tenting or trailering options (our favorite, Wright's Beach State Park, between Bodega Bay and Jenner, is right on the ocean)! Heading north on Hwy 1, one soon crosses the languid Russian River and reaches the cute town of Jenner, where the Russian spills into the Pacific. Stop at River's End Restaurant for great food and stunning views; looking down from their deck above the river, a cadre of harbor seals usaully is visible sunning themselves on a sandy spit near river's end (the restaurant offers a telescope for a closer view. One soon reaches Ft. Ross, the old Russian outpost from the early 1800's, then you will pass through a host of cute coastal towns like Sea Ranch (stop at the Sea Ranch Lodge for breakfast or lunch), Gualala (Bones Roadhouse a fine lunch choice for BBQ or fish dishes, and Gualala County Regional Park just south of town, very pretty and secluded campsites), Point Arena (check out the Point Arena lighthouse, for stunning coastal views). Further north, one passes through Manchester, then Elk, Albion, then Mendocino. Mendocino is the quintessential California coastal town, with trendy shops and several restaurants - but don't miss Mendocino Headwaters State Park, just west of town for superb ocean views and rocky bluffs. If you are camping, Van Damme State Park is just south of the city, with secluded campsites in deep riparian forest, and Ocean beach just steps away, including kayak rentals! Ft. Bragg is just north, if you have time to extend your journey on the gorgeous California coast!

Little places we know, with Scotty trailer in tow...

I am a recently retired fellow whose spouse, Susan, also just retired. We have set our own personal sights on regular travels, targeting the United States and Canada (since we live in the former, and are not that far from the latter), and can reach all those myriad destinations by auto, or, auto and small travel trailer. Small trailer; you may wonder what that means. For us, that means Serro Scotty travel trailers, some of the lightest (read "good gas mileage") and most compact of all the retro travel trailers. For the past six years, we had toured California destinations in a Kit Kamper teardrop, so we knew the simplicity of towing, and living out of, a small teardrop camper. In mid-2012, I decided to upgrade to a slightly larger Serro Scotty, popular in the late 50s to 70s, and found a "rebuildable candidate", a Scotty Sportsman 13 footer, in Oceanside, CA, for which I paid $900 and towed home with my then Nissan 300ZX. That little trailer is tucked into my garage, in process of a complete rebuild (I have purchased virtually all the needed new parts, and have begun the disassembly). After retirement, I had long planned a bicycle tour of the Gettysburg battlefield and other Civil War stops with my brother John and four others, for late June, 2013. While planning for this trip, I saw a beautiful little Scotty teardrop advertised on eBay, and purchased a two-year-old reproduction 1958 Scotty Sportsman Jr., a true teardrop camper, built by a high school shop teacher in W. Virginia. Just before arriving in Gettysburg in June, we picked up and then towed this smaller Scotty all the way to Long Island, NY, then retraced our steps across the US, back to California (that is builder Tom in the photo). With the smaller Scotty, Susan and I can tour (currently targeting California and the West) while I regain enthusiasm for rebuilding the '64! I will plan to post regular updates of our favorite destinations as they unfold for us!