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Tahoe and Northern Sierra

Lake Tahoe and the northern Sierra Nevada Mountains of California

10 posts

Kennedy Mine

Kennedy Mine

As you depart the downtown of historic Gold Rush town Jackson heading north on Hwy 49, a large headframe and three-story building can be seen on the hillside below. A small sign advertises weekend tours of the Kennedy Mine. This only hints at the enormous scale of this major

Honeycomb Stamp Mill

Honeycomb Stamp Mill

We stopped by to check out this three-stamp mill made by Merralls Mill Co. in the western Sierra Nevada. It is a neat find. You don’t see many three-stamp mills around. The mill was built around 1900 but never saw much use. It was electric-powered, and

Mexican Mine

Mexican Mine

On a trip in 2005, we were hiking through the thick Sierra Nevadan Forest in search of an old mine with a long tramway. It turned out to be a bit of a longer hike than we thought it would be, and we weren’t seeing a tram. Instead, we

Grass Lake Basin Petroglyphs

Grass Lake Basin Petroglyphs

Back in 2005, Alysia and I made a brief stop at a petroglyph site high in the Sierra Nevada near Gold Lake. Petroglyphs in the high country are rare in my experience. And though the site is very small and the petroglyphs are faint, it was an exciting find for

Morning Glory Mine (Alleghany)

Morning Glory Mine (Alleghany)

The Morning Glory mine was a small mine and overshadowed by larger neighbors. The vein had been discovered by at least 1900 but little work was done. Mining seems to have always been intermittent. There was a rich strike in 1910. It was active in 1917 for a few months

Lucky S Mine Camp

Lucky S Mine Camp

We first visited this mining camp in 2002, not knowing what we would find there. A mining camp full of cabins was a great surprise. There are more than a half dozen buildings here. Prospecting for gold around the Lucky S mine began as early as the 1850s, but it

Golden Bear Mining Camp

Golden Bear Mining Camp

Back in 2005, Alysia and I met up with Bill, Dan, Lewis and his daughters Sarah and Rachael for some exploring in the Northern Sierra Nevada. We spent a couple of days in the forest exploring mines and jumping into rivers at the end of the day. This is a