Rocky and Bullwinkle

 

I left Oregon House on Monday and drove about 80 miles south east to Yuba Gap. This is right off Interstate 80, 75 miles east of Sacramento. There were 6 campgrounds I wanted to photograph in this area.

The first two I visited on Tuesday were Whitecloud and Skillman Horse Camp. They are 15 miles north east on CA 20.

Both of these campgrounds are on the Pioneer Trail, which is extremely popular for hiking, biking, and horseback riding.

From the web: “The Pioneer Trail is a twenty-five mile long non-motorized trail that parallels the route of State Highway 20 from the western edge of the Tahoe National Forest to near the center of the Forest. At the eastern terminus the trail links to the Spaulding Lake Trail providing access to the Grouse Lakes Area and a 41-mile non-motorized trail system.”

Skillman also has two group sites.

Next up were two PG&E campgrounds within three miles of Yuba Gap. I went there on Wednesday.

The lake is very beautiful when it is full. By late August it had been drawn down and the boat ramp was almost high and dry.

The other PG&E campground in the area is called Lodgepole, one of the prettiest campgrounds you will find.

It is very well kept up and has a delightful stream meandering through the campground. There is also a nice big green meadow to play in.

I spoke with a gal who told me she has been going there for 50 years. I completely understand that.

The last two campgrounds are located about 5 miles east of Yuba Gap right next to Interstate 80. I checked them out on Thursday. You can hear and sometimes see the traffic whizzing by. So why are they so popular you ask?  It’s the water, baby. An hour and a half’s drive east let’s you escape the summer heat of Sacramento and swim in the cool clear water of the South Yuba River.

Several campsites are right on the river and have their own beach area. Numbers 5, 6, 7, and 8 to be precise. The photos below were taken from #5.

My friend Marilyn is probably drooling while looking at those photos. She loves swimming holes. Honey, you ain’t seen nothing yet.

This place has the best swimming hole I have seen so far. I spoke with the camp host and he said the same thing as the gal from Lodgepole. He knows people who have been coming here for decades. Every regular campsite was reserved for the holiday weekend. Only a couple of walk-ins were available as of Thursday.

Oh, I almost forgot to post the swimming hole photos. Check these out Marilyn.

Yeah.

Friday I drove 80 miles south to Colma on CA 49. It’s 15 miles south of Auburn, a little farther north of Placerville. I didn’t much care for the  Thousand Trails campground I just left at Yuba Gap which is why there are no photos from there. Their Ponderosa campground is another story. It is situated on the South Fork of the American River which is the most commercially rafter river west of the Rockies.. There is so much to see and do in this area that a weekend would just scratch the service.

Here is some information about the Coloma-Lotus Valley that you might find interesting. It’s the birthplace of the California gold rush. On January 24, 1848, James Marshall saw something gleaming in the tailrace of the sawmill he was building for Sacramento land baron John Sutter. That little glitter turned out to be gold and in the next few years over 300,000 people showed up looking to strike it rich. This resulted in California becoming a state two years later in 1850. At least that is what I remember from school.

Back to Ponderosa. Little Joe is complaining to Ben that Hoss is…wait, wrong Ponderosa. I set up my tent next to the river and wound up having two great families camping next to me.

There is a beach a few hundred feet away where I took this photo Saturday morning.

The water level fluctuates. High during the day and varies at night. This is what the beach looked like Saturday afternoon.

Going back to my stay at Yuba Gap, there was two interesting things that happened and that is why I called this post Rocky and Bullwinkle. Old people like me remember the cartoon. Rocky was a squirrel and Bullwinkle a moose. My Rocky was a psycho squirrel that seemed intent on killing me. I came to this realization on Wednesday while walking to the bathroom. I heard a crashing sound in the pine tree above me.  An unripe giant green pine cone was falling like a plinko ball through the limbs and heading my way. I ducked and covered. It hit the ground with a big thump two feet away.

I had been hearing these sounds for the past few days, thinking they were some dead tree limbs falling down. Nope, it was psycho Rocky chewing on the stems of these five pound bombs so he and his cohorts could feast on the seeds they contained. I swear I could hear that squirrel laugh every time he sent one my way. This is what I am talking about.

Once it hits the ground the squirrels try to drag it into the bushes.

If they can’t they will just eat it where it falls.

Here is one that has started to be nibbled on.

This is what’s left when they are done.

They should offer hard hats to people that camp here. A neighbor told me that their friend’s sunroof was broken by the cones. I know Rocky had a hand in it.

Bullwinkle was simply the biggest ground squirrel I have ever seen. After a long hard day in the office on Thursday I was relaxing in my chair and reading a book on my Nook. Cracking and eating some unshelled peanuts.

I saw a small dog approaching, at least that is what I thought at first. Nope, it was Bullwinkle. I said hello as he waddled towards me. I am still not sure if it was a bite or a scratch but he did something to the big toe on my right foot and I dropped the peanut I was about to open. He sauntered over to it, picked it up and ate it. Then he glared at me, asking for more.

No, I did not give him another peanut. With a dirty look and a flick of his tail he left.

Saturday afternoon some kids passed by, one of them holding something.

13 lizards.

I’ve had beef tacos, chicken tacos and pork tacos. Possibly some dog tacos in Ensenada in the 80’s. So what the heck.

Very tasty. Kinda chewy with some crunchy bits. The tails worked great as toothpicks.

My neighbors loved them.

Regards,

Greg

Cheers

 

I left Lake Minden on Thursday and headed east to Lake of the Springs near Oregon House, CA. This is another Thousand Trails campground and is quite nice. The tent area is right next to the lake while the RV’s are farther away.

On the left side of the photo is the lake. Here is a better view, my view actually.

Walking straight ahead takes you to the beach and swim area.

These photos were taken on Sunday morning as I was doing laundry. All day Saturday that beach was packed with folks enjoying the water.

I am using this campground as a base to go visit the Little Grass Valley Recreation Area 40 miles farther east near the town of La Porte, CA. I went there on Friday knowing it was going to be filled with campers. Unfortunately there was a problem with the water supply and all the restrooms were closed and there was no drinking water or dump stations available. This will be fixed by now but what it meant is that the campgrounds were almost empty, which is better for photos anyway.

There are campgrounds on the east and west sides of the lake. Let’s start on the east side. First up is Little Beaver.

All the campgrounds on the east side have lakeside campsites. Really nice big ones. Next up was Red Feather.

The three campgrounds are situated next to each other along the shore. There are bike paths and hiking trails that link them together. Finally I went to Running Deer.

I was weird to see all the empty campsites at this time of year. There are over 220 on the east side with maybe 30 campers using them.

I was a bit disappointed with the smaller campgrounds on the west side, Wyandotte and Peninsula Tent.

 

Wyandotte is set on a ridge without direct lake access. It does have a very nice day use beach that it shares with Peninsula. It is more open and sunny as well.

Peninsula is a walk in tent campground. Supposedly there are 25 sites but I could only find about 20 of them. The walk is at most 200 feet and there is lake access from here.

I camped at Little Beaver in 2006 and 2008. I really like this place. You can get basic supplies in La Porte which is only 4 miles away. The water level can fluctuate a lot. The next two photos are from 2006.

I had a blast canoeing around the trees. These photos are from 2008.

In 2006 I had the pleasure to meet Tim and his wife Barbara who were reopening a historic building.

I hung out there for a couple of days taking photos of old photos and retouching them so they could be printed and displayed on the walls. The history in this area is quite fascinating. One of my favorites was of Reilly, the original owner.

So I tried to recreate it as best I could with Tim.

If you go camping in the area be sure to stop by here for a great meal or a cold drink. Look at all the old photos on the walls that I remade. Tell Tim you know me and he will give you a free lunch…just kidding.

One final thought about the age we live in. Saturday evening I was sitting in my chair reading my Nook while looking out over the lake. A man was fishing on the shore and yelled out to his sons who were walking by if they knew what time it was. They replied that they didn’t have their phones with them and didn’t know. I tapped the screen of my Nook and hollered that it was 6:15pm.

I don’t have a watch. The man did not have a watch. The kids didn’t either. Does anyone still wear a watch? I find myself looking at people’s wrists now. I can’t stop.

Regards,

Greg

Folsom Prison Blues

 

I only stayed for three nights in Humboldt Redwoods State Park as I needed to charge up all my batteries and process a bunch of photos. I had heard that there was power here in the bathrooms but there was not.

I cruised down the Avenue of the Giants approaching the campground.

They are so majestic and otherworldly. Almost mystical.

I was the first to arrive at 9:30am and set up camp in a nice sunny spot.

We had a potluck dinner on Saturday night and I headed out early the next morning.

Northern California is basically on fire right now and my planned route along CA 20 heading east had just reopened. This fire is in the vicinity of Clear Lake, CA. The hills were still smoking a bit but the crews were keeping a close eye on things. Below are some photos from the highway.

I was heading to a Thousand Trails campground at Lake Minden which is 20 miles south of Yuba City. I passed by Sutter National Wildlife Refuge and the Feather River.

I was the only one in the tent area of the campground and since it was a bit warm they put the sprinklers on for me.

On Tuesday I went and visited Beals Point Campground in the Folsom Lake State Recreation Area. Nearby is Folsom Prison where Johnny Cash played two shows on January 13, 1968. His song Folsom Prison Blues contains these memorable words:

“When I was just a baby,
My Mama told me, "Son,
Always be a good boy,
Don't ever play with guns,"
But I shot a man in Reno,
Just to watch him die.”

Folsom Lake is considered Sacramento’s backyard. It’s a very popular place year round with good fishing in the spring and fall and water sports all summer long. The campground has a tent loop and an RV loop. Since I was there midweek in mid-August with the mercury hitting 105 degrees it was not that crowded.

There are a variety of campsite layouts here ranging from pull throughs to spurs to walk-ins.

In fact, campsites 35, 36, 37, and 38 are on their own small loop and would make a great place for a family reunion or group outing.

The day use area has beaches and a snack bar. The water was low so the beach was huge.

Last night nature put on a little show for me. At dusk small flies and some mosquitos showed up. Then a huge herd of dragonflies arrived and began feasting on them. That was soon followed by birds (looked like swallows to me, maybe swifts) chomping on the dragonflies. At one point I swear I saw a dragonfly munch a small fly and immediately be eaten by a bird. Much better than television.

Regards,

Greg