Normally in this part of August, the Big Guy would be camping in the mountains with his buddies and I would be spending a few days in San Francisco, exploring the city streets and enjoying the cool sea breezes. But this summer, between the current pandemic, the triple-digit heat, and now the poor air quality from numerous wildfires, we’ve both […]
The Sacramento neighborhood known as Alkali Flat has a history going back to the 1850s and 1860s. Thanks to preservation efforts, many of the beautiful Victorian houses have been restored to their former glory and hopefully will survive many more years into the future. I could happily watch an entire show about these historic buildings; but Huell’s visit to the […]
As I was driving out to Folsom Lake this morning I stopped at a gas station to top up my car’s tank and give the windshield a quick cleaning. It was only after I’d got back on the road that I noticed the service station’s worn-out squeegee had left a bunch of water lines across the glass — my windshield […]
I’ve never visited the La Brea Tar Pits in Los Angeles although I’ve known about their existence for as long as I can remember! I’m so glad that this amazing spot is being preserved and treasured — the artifacts continue to be discovered even now. The historic presidio site in San Diego was excavated for only a short time before […]
They were huge flying boats named after the great sailing ships that in the 1800’s sailed the oceans of the world. The luxurious Pan American”Clipper” planes of the 1930’s took cargo, mail and passengers around the world in what was, for its time, considered a daring and pioneering feat. Pan American’s Treasure Island terminal and lagoon became the home port […]
California schoolkids learn all about the history of our state when they reach the fourth grade, and that includes the California missions. Throughout the three centuries since their construction, these 21 historic California missions have experienced destruction from fires, earthquakes, and neglect. Only this week the San Gabriel Mission in Los Angeles was devastated by a fire in the sanctuary. […]
I’ve developed a serious appreciation for mules ever since reading Rinker Buck‘s book The Oregon Trail, in which he describes how he and his brother traversed the 2,000 miles from Kansas City, Missouri, to Portland, Oregon, in a covered wagon pulled by three unforgettable mules — Jake, Beck, and Bute. So I couldn’t help enjoying this episode of California’s Gold, […]
Not all of the “gold mines” in California were actual gold mines! For more than 100 years, there was plenty of money to be made retrieving and refining the quicksilver necessary to processing gold, and in this episode of California’s Gold Huell learns something about the lives of the people who helped produce mercury in this once-thriving community. It’s great […]