Best of the Wild West
STEVE PURCELL traces the footsteps of pioneering miners who panned for riches in the California Gold Rush and uncovers some priceless nuggets himself
THERE’S still gold in “them thar hills” of California’s Sierra Nevada – golden sunshine, golden vistas and, yes, a few golden nuggets exposed year on year by rushing meltwaters to a handful of old-timers still panning the rivers and creeks around Yosemite National Park.
It’s home to the great California Gold Rush which hit paydirt in 1849, sparking a frenzy of activity as the hopeful 49ers flocked to the towns of Columbia, Jamestown and Sonora and spread throughout the 1,160 square mile area.
Today you can follow in the footsteps of those early pioneers, creating golden memories of your own in the midst of inspiring peaks, amazing forests and the historic towns of Tuolumne County.
Many people visit Yosemite to wonder at the granite majesty of
El Capitan and Half Dome peaks. But there’s so much more to see and experience that it’s well worth planning to stay for several days rather than just making it a pitstop on a Californian road trip.
Everywhere you feel steeped in the history of the oldwildwest.
At the Columbia State Historic Park you’ll find an authentic gold rush boomtown with wooden sidewalks, hotels and saloons dating back to the 1850s, a working blacksmith and a genuine old stagecoach pulled by four horses.
This was the setting forwestern classic High Noon and thewells Fargo office on main street was the centre of shipping for much of the $1billion worth of gold that was mined in the area in just 20 years from 1850. Many other films and TV series were filmed in these parts too, including The Virginian, Unforgiven, Gunsmoke
and Petticoat Junction. Not far away, Jamestown also has many authentic buildings from the period and at Railtown you’ll see close up some of the iconic engines of the Sierra Railroad which featured in series such as Bonanza and Little House On The Prairie.
One in particular stands out as the star exhibit – the No.3 engine which featured in those TV shows and in the film Back To The Future III in 1990.
To complement the historic towns and rugged natural beauty there are some great places to stay and a mind-boggling array of fabulous food choices while you decide just how active you want to be.
We stayed a couple of nights in luxurious log cabins at the Lazy Z Resort, near the town of Twain Harte, while we got over the flight to San Jose and three-hour drive up into the Sierra.
There we enjoyed the mountain air and wildlife, relaxing in the pool and hot tubs which had a natural feel created by the use of granite boulders.
AFTER a hearty breakfast at Alicia’s Sugar Shack, we drove up to Pinecrest Lake for a two-hour kayak expedition at 5,600ft above sea level against an extraordinary backdrop of mountains and forest.
After working up a thirst, it was back to Jamestown and the Gianelli Vineyards Tasting Room. Some