We decided to go for the ghost town. After a long day, during which at least two semis tried to murder us and we got a spectauclar taste of the very worst of San Jose driving, (and Sacramento, and Grass Valley--it was like everyone on Interstate 80 decided to try smoking weed while driving), we arrived at Mallakoff Diggins State Historical Park.
Mallakoff Diggins was one of the largest hydraulic goldmines, before the massive environmental and economic damage the hydraulic mines wreaked led to them being banned. The above picture of the pit doesn't do it justice. In its heyday, the mine and the giant monitors (see below) that attended it would work around the clock. A thriving town grew up alongside it, North Bloomfield.
Originally written off as barren and dubbed 'Humbug' by disappointed miners, North Bloomfield remains today in pristine if uninhabited condition. (Well, mostly uninhabited. A few of the houses up there do have residents, just not permanent ones.
We arrived, made much of the town (look how tiny the saloon is!) and then headed out to the campground, where we were greeted by this sign.
We were now officially screwed. The drive up had been hell; actually getting to the park had required two hours or so to go ten miles over a steep, heavily potholed road. It was also heavily trafficked--there was a very popular little river on the way, and the locals were out in force.
It was looking like we'd have to go back to Grass Valley and get a hotel when we found a ranger. Turned out that they had little cabins for rent, restored versions of what the miners would have lived in. So we paid up and moved in.
We were only intending to stay for one night.
Even after finding the metric ton of wasp nests in the cabin, we stayed for two.
We did a lot of hiking around. Above, my parents walk around the lake that supplied the water pressure to power the hydraulic monitors. Below, Dad is a great scale object for the tunnel leading into the mine itself. (It's a long tunnel and VERY cold--you could feel the chill from about where he's standing).
There was a little administrative barf with the reservation system, leading to someone else being very surprised to find us in the cabin they'd reserved, (fortunately, the other two were open, so it was settled with the maximum of good feelings and minimum of fuss, helped by the people in question being absolutely lovely) so we left after the second night, and headed up to Taber Mine and the water company of La Porte.
