Wagons Ho - Back On The Trail

Wednesday 19^th

We had figured that 96 miles to Lake Tahoe would be a fairly gentle drive, what didn’t figure on was that I had chosen a bendy road, also that it was uphill all the way, we climbed from 4000ft to over 8000ft. Consequently our drive time was more than four hours and around fifteen gallons of gas.

We left Plymouth and cut East on a county road that took us through Fiddletown and eventually joined up with route 88, part of which is built on the old wagon train route opened in 1844 and gave access to Sacramento and the Gold Country, along with such names as Tragedy Valley gave us some idea of the hardship and difficulties of travel in those days – they would take days to travel the distance we thought tedious in a couple of hours. We stopped on the shores of Caple Lake to have our picnic, which was very pleasant However our first sight of Lake Tahoe did not disappoint, it is a beautiful location, with deep blue water surrounded by tree covered mountains. We had decided to approach from the South and head to the West Shore, as there are several State and Forestry campgrounds, but after stopping at a visitor center we discovered that there were only two options available – Kaspian and Sugar Pine, so we settled on Sugar Pine, where we found a nice campsite in amongst the Sugar Pine trees, after following the road round the lake for about 12 miles. We set up in the almost empty campground in a very nice site.

So today we will set out to see some of the sights of Lake Tahoe.

Visiting Gold Country

Monday 17^th

Over Sunday and Monday everyone went their separate ways, while we had determined to stay an extra day sos that we could take in a bit more about Gold Country, it really is a beautiful area of rolling hills with many small villages and towns tucked into the valleys, there is a lot of evidence of the mining that went on here many years ago, we revisited the Kennedy Gold Mine, which we have passed last year when we drove up 49, this time we swung off the main road to a small town with a grand name called Amador City, if 20 houses can be classed as a city, but it was very pretty., we drove on through and parked in Sutters Creek, a town which looks as it did in the 1850s, thought the wooden sidewalks have been replaced with concrete, many of which Sally could not negotiate in her chair, but we still saw plenty. There are many antique/junk shops, also many preowned clothes shops, full of the fifties and sixties fashions that Helen is looking to have at her wedding, so of course this set us off looking at vintage memorabilia, which was very interesting. In many windows were  posters advertising a local event – Vintage Fashion Show and Afternoon Tea, for the local people Vintage included Victorian, Edwardian, Suffragette, Flappers, pre war and post war fashion (so the poster said and I a sure that it would have been a great event, unfortunately not until October, when we will be many miles away. It was here that we found a lovely shop with hundreds of musical boxes and chiming clocks, many of them Disney, so we spent a fair while there trying the different items on display.

We moved on to the next town, this one is bigger, called Jackson and list the hub town for this area. It too has a main street, which is now bypassed, so is very quiet. We parked the car and started to stroll, once again many antique and clothes shops, though we did find a huge sweet shop, which we were forced to go into and look round. We saw a huge variety of sweets, fudge and ice cream, I was forced to sample some of their homemade fudge, but not tempted to buy any. We did find a huge array of Cookie Cutters and bought a pack of various sized hearts, we think that it might be a good idea to make and decorate heart cookies for Helen’s Wedding, but we shall see, at least we have the cutters even if that idea does not fit into the plan.

It was now time to eat, we asked the Candy shop people where was a good place and were directed to Mel’s Diner, originally just a kiosk it had become so popular that it had now opened as a large diner. We chose a booth (green leather) and ordered a New York Strip, fries, one trip to the Salad Bar and two plates, we were embarking on our new strategy of trying to share meals, not only to save money, but also to try and keep the calories down (more of that later). We had a very nice meal, well cooked and ample for both of us, though we did have fun balancing all the salad on the plate you get for the salad bar. I succumbed to a milk shake – a peanut butter milk shake, which was delicious. Feeling full, but righteous, we continued our exploration of Jackson, which included the newly refurbished National Hotel, all the time feeling that we were extras in a cowboy film, because the street was so reminiscent of the towns we see in Westerns.

Our last stop was some shopping, which would enable us to resupply after a week of not leaving the campground (except to get the truck done), Sally had not left the campground at all. So Walmart was the first stop. Since beginning to lose weight my trousers have been getting bigger and bigger, so I figured that it was time for a smaller pair. I chose some Wrangler Relaxed Fit, same as I bought last year, but a size smaller – 38” and a pale blue Tee shirt, then tried them on. They fitted perfectly, the only thing being that the Tee shirt was a L, rather than the XL, or XXL I had been buying and when we looked at the jeans instead of picking out a 38”, somehow I had picked up a size 36” waist!, so from a tight 40” I have now gone down to a 36” waist! I felt quite chuffed at that. We completed our shopping and returned to the trailer to start packing ready to leave tomorrow to follow the old road which brought the Wagon Trains from the East to California, though we will be travelling in the other direction, as we head to Lake Tahoe.

More Bluegrass

Sunday 16^th

Wow what a great weekend! The weather was beautiful, nice and dry and warm. There were a number of good bands on, in particular we enjoyed The Bluegrass Brothers, with their new line up which includes Kevin Prather, who used to be part of James Kings Band. We chose a shady spot at the back, but could see and hear everything clearly as it is only a small amphitheater and just sat and relaxed, listened and watched. After the concerts Sally went to bed and I took both the mandolin and guitar to friends to sit and jam until the small hours. Our neighbours, Terry and Jeannie, were friends  of James King and had invited him to eat with them, so we got a chance to have a little conversation with him as he was passing  by. I really want to remember the people who I jammed with, as in a few months they will drift from my memory. Randy Sheldon, guitar.  Ernie, a great musician, who made the wagon circle with Randy Sheldon and Cliff. That guy has a guitar collection, which includes a guitar made in 1808! No he didn’t have it with him. Paul, patient, great and gentle guitar, Lou great bass player, Randy the excellent mandolin player, Rodney the Brit, Lolan, guitar and daughter/niece Amber, Vic, who makes his own bass and dobro, one which had a selective Tremolo Arm to enable him to play minors! Each with built in amp and speakers. Pat Calhoun, accordionist and husband George, Jeannie, guitar. Ed, guitar and church organiser. Kristen (bass), Laura and Dan, such a laugh (way out in their tent), who lent me his jacket against the night chill and nearly lost it. Steve and Mary, we didn’t pick but it was great to see them in their new RV, looking much fitter.  Jo a great tub thumper. I want to remember these people, so I guess this page is the place to do it.

Great time at the Bluegrass

Friday 14^th

So now is the eve of our festival.

We have had the prelims. But after tea we are to be entertained by James King, The Bluegrass Brothers and Third Generation.

So far we have been here for five days and spent our time keeping in the shade during the day, and playing bluegrass in the evenings. It is so nice to be able to sit out until 1.00 in the morning in a Tee shirt and shorts. Sally has not had to worry about where the Wellies are, if her waterproofs are at hand, or how many layers she needs to keep the right temperature. Instead we have both had our instruments out and taken part in several jams. Now that I have the new mandolin I have been playing that more than the guitar, not necessarily very well, but playing anyway.

The budget for car maintenance has taken a bit of a hammering this week. Two new all terrain tires, new battery, wiper blades, oil change and two new batteries for Sally’s wheelchair haver taken their toll on the budget, still it has been pretty cheap over the last five years, so we won’t complain (too much).

9/11

Today is September 11 – 9/11 Anniversary, and people are still talking about it and its effect, even over here in California. It is also J.P.’s birthday and Joes birthday. What a great coincidence.

As I sat here I have talked to those people and they have given me some books about the role of women in the pioneer wagon trains that used to come through this area on their way to California, very interesting. He also suggested we visit a place called Bodie in Nevada, where there is a large ghost town, we are looking forward to that.