I can hardly believe I haven’t already shared this episode of California’s Gold, since it’s one of my favorites! Even when I was much younger, the Governor’s Mansion State Historic Park in downtown Sacramento was always on my list of must-see places; so I had some very mixed feelings when it closed to the public in January 2015, so that Governor Jerry Brown could move back in (the park is still closed, at least for the moment, although Governor Brown’s tenure has ended and our new governor has chosen to live elsewhere). Huell’s second segment takes him to a secluded spot in Central California with a marvelous view, and I’ll admit to feeling a bit jealous of the sixth-graders who are able to experience the SCICON camp, located in Tulare County.

Searching for some of the neatest houses in California, Huell travels from one of the state’s most public houses to the most private. We start out in downtown Sacramento at the former Governor’s Mansion (1903-1967), home to 13 of our states first families, where we get a private tour from Kathleen Brown. Next after hiking up over 3,500 feet in the Sierra foothills, Huell arrives at a small wooden cabin built by miners and later inhabited by Irvy Elster a bonafide hermit.

(Click on the linked image below to see the video.)