Malakoff Diggins State Historic Park

Still able to take advantage of the unseasonably warm January weather this year, Dan and I, along with our hiking friends, took a drive to the Malakoff Diggins State Historic Park, located 26 miles north-east of Nevada City, California, along Highway 49. In most Januaries, it wouldn't be unusual for this area to be blanketed in snow, but on the day we were there, it was warm enough to peel down to one layer during our hike. Malakoff Diggins preserves the largest hydraulic mining site in California, and visitors can see huge cliffs carved out by mighty streams of water, results of the mining technique of washing away entire mountains of gravel to wash out the gold. While beautiful in its own way, the Malakoff mine pit on the San Juan Ridge is a testimony to the greed and avarice that was part of the California Gold Rush, and to one of the nation's first environmental protection measures. In 1884, this method of mining was declared illegal by the courts, but not before irreversible damage had been done. Today, visitors like us can hike on miles of trails including ducking into some of the tunnels where the water used to flow. The town of North Bloomfield, preserved to depict life in this mid-1800's mining town, includes a visitor center, museum, church, school, general store, and a furnished home. It was fascinating to see how 130 years of natural restoration has started reshaping this ravaged landscape.

Folsom Lake - The Drought of 2014

On just about everyone's mind in California nowadays is the drought. Here in Sacramento, with 50 days and counting of no rain, with record highs in January being broken almost daily, with Folsom Lake at historically low levels, with the Sierra snow pack only 20% of normal for this time of year, and Governor Jerry Brown officially declaring these conditions The Drought, it's easy to understand the high level of concern in the region. Growing up in Orangevale, Folsom's next-door neighbor, and living in the Sacramento area most of my life, I've spent countless hours at Folsom Lake and the surrounding waterways and recreational areas, camping, swimming, hiking, and biking. On a recent sunny January day Dan and I decided to drive out to Brown's Ravine in Folsom to see the changes for ourselves. Distressingly, the lake looked more like a pond, the low levels quite alarming. We saw a parking lot filled with dry-docked boats, the remnants of Mormon Island normally under water, boat launch ramps that were yards and yards from the water, and people swarming around where they would be swimming normally. Conditions are quite worrisome, to say the least. Here are some snapshots that we may not, hopefully not, have access to again.