Wednesday 30th July 2003 - The Sierra Nevadas
We spent the night in the suburbs of Sacramento. I don't know where and I have no idea what everyone else got up to. About the only thing I remember (and technically speaking, I don't remember it at all, but you get my drift, I'm sure) is that I slept. After a couple of nights of much beer, little or no sleep and the heat of the previous day, which I am totally unused to, I was pretty shattered. With the exception of someone puking by my open window around 4AM, I slept fitfully all night. Call it a gift, but it is something that I can do; I can sleep anywhere, when I have to.
When I woke up the next time, it was already hot out, and it was around 10AM. A couple of the others had evidently made it back to the van at some point; Chig was on one seat, Kev on another, sleeping quietly. It was stuffy and I needed the toilet. I grabbed my huge, gallon bottle of double hydrogen with an oxygen on the side, got out of the van and sat on the sidewalk. I had a long drink, pouring some over my head to wake me up and cool me down. It was already so hot that I started drying out immediately. As the water evaporated from my skin, I felt somewhat cooled. After a while, I noticed a tickling sensation, which was initially quite pleasant, until the realisation dawned that this feeling was not due to the water burning off me. I jumped up, swiping frantically at my arms and legs. Goddamned bloody ants everybloodywhere, feasting on me, the little bastards!
When I woke up the next time, it was already hot out, and it was around 10AM. A couple of the others had evidently made it back to the van at some point; Chig was on one seat, Kev on another, sleeping quietly. It was stuffy and I needed the toilet. I grabbed my huge, gallon bottle of double hydrogen with an oxygen on the side, got out of the van and sat on the sidewalk. I had a long drink, pouring some over my head to wake me up and cool me down. It was already so hot that I started drying out immediately. As the water evaporated from my skin, I felt somewhat cooled. After a while, I noticed a tickling sensation, which was initially quite pleasant, until the realisation dawned that this feeling was not due to the water burning off me. I jumped up, swiping frantically at my arms and legs. Goddamned bloody ants everybloodywhere, feasting on me, the little bastards!
Ants Marching
My reason left me momentarily and I wanted revenge! Had I been arrested, I would have claimed temporary insanity. I was dying for a pee, so I whipped it out and drowned a few million of them right there and then. As I finished relieving myself, decimating the Sacto ant population into the bargain, I realised that we were parked in the heart of a reasonably tidy suburban area, surrounded by neat little houses, SUVs parked on the drives, sprinklers watering the lawns, the smell of bacon drifting from someone's kitchen. I quickly checked around for signs of life. I couldn't see anyone. I quickly tucked myself in and leaned against the van, trying to look as cool and inconspicuous as possible. I could see visions of the police turning up, throwing me in jail with some redneck, cracker asshole, who wanted to show me his strange collection of warts.
As it turned out, Davey turned up pretty soon after, Snotty and Ush trailing behind him. We elected to stop somewhere for breakfast before tackling the ascent into the Sierra Nevada. $5 worth of orange juice, bacon, eggs, hash browns, and black tea later, I felt much refreshed and satiated, ready for anything.
Ever since the white man set foot on California's golden soil, it has been the land of eternal promise, the land of opportunity, the American Dream. This is as true today as it ever has been. Any place, wherever it is in the world, where you can ski in the morning, surf in the afternoon and party all night, can only be known by one true name: Paradise.
The only problem, as I see it, is that those who live there, don't know what it is they've got and take it for granted. The only ones who can truly appreciate all that California has to offer are those who have travelled great distances to get there. Of course, these days, it is so much easier to get to than it once was.
As it turned out, Davey turned up pretty soon after, Snotty and Ush trailing behind him. We elected to stop somewhere for breakfast before tackling the ascent into the Sierra Nevada. $5 worth of orange juice, bacon, eggs, hash browns, and black tea later, I felt much refreshed and satiated, ready for anything.
Ever since the white man set foot on California's golden soil, it has been the land of eternal promise, the land of opportunity, the American Dream. This is as true today as it ever has been. Any place, wherever it is in the world, where you can ski in the morning, surf in the afternoon and party all night, can only be known by one true name: Paradise.
The only problem, as I see it, is that those who live there, don't know what it is they've got and take it for granted. The only ones who can truly appreciate all that California has to offer are those who have travelled great distances to get there. Of course, these days, it is so much easier to get to than it once was.
Truckee
When settlers from the east began to make their way across the vast American continent, in the first half of the 1800s, the ones who survived the sheer distance, the heat and rain of the great plains, not to mention the natives who, fiercely protective of their tribal lands, were prepared to do whatever was necessary to stop the white man from ruining it all, often fell at the final hurdle: the Sierra Nevada. This great mountain range runs, like a backbone, from north-to-south separating California from Nevada and for the early pioneers, crossing into California was a matter of life, or death.
Truckee lies beside the main emigrant trail into California. The first emigrants to discover the Truckee basin were the Stephen-Townsend-Murphy Party, which passed through the area in 1844. While traveling westward along the Humboldt River in Western Nevada, a northern Pauite Indian befriended the emigrant party and offered to guide them to California. His name sounded something like "Tro-Kay", but the emigrants called him "Truckee". As they proceeded westward they discovered a beautiful stream running down from the mountains, and later a large deep lake; they named the stream the "Truckee River" and the lake "Truckee Lake", in honor of their guide. The stream still bears Chief Truckee's name, but Truckee Lake became Donner Lake, in memory of the emigrants whose tragic ordeal occurred on its shores
Truckee lies beside the main emigrant trail into California. The first emigrants to discover the Truckee basin were the Stephen-Townsend-Murphy Party, which passed through the area in 1844. While traveling westward along the Humboldt River in Western Nevada, a northern Pauite Indian befriended the emigrant party and offered to guide them to California. His name sounded something like "Tro-Kay", but the emigrants called him "Truckee". As they proceeded westward they discovered a beautiful stream running down from the mountains, and later a large deep lake; they named the stream the "Truckee River" and the lake "Truckee Lake", in honor of their guide. The stream still bears Chief Truckee's name, but Truckee Lake became Donner Lake, in memory of the emigrants whose tragic ordeal occurred on its shores
The Donner Party
Many died as a result of the difficult, often impassable terrain; others died from cold and the extreme weather conditions. After gold was found here in 1849, many died through stupidity, greed and carelessness at the business end of a gun or a knife.
In 1846 a great westward movement began. A small part of the movement, the Donner Party, a looseknit band of midwestern farmers and adventurers, left Independence, Missouri, in April of 1846. Traveling west through the Great Plains, they crossed the Rocky Mountain crest at South Pass, in Wyoming territory, and then headed southwest through a relatively new and unexplored shortcut, or "cutoff". This cutoff was their undoing, for rather than a shortcut, it added precious weeks to their travel time. The party finally reached present day Truckee in late October, 1846. It was too late.
Already starving, their stamina depleted, the emigrants were greeted by one of the earliest and most severe of Sierra winters. The emigrants could not climb out of the Truckee basin, and they remained there to wait out the winter. In January, 1847, a few broke through westward, over the 7,088 foot pass (now Donner Pass) and they summoned relief parties. By April 1847, only 48 of the 89 emigrants who comprised the Donner Party were still alive. The others, 41 in all, had died along the way. All but a few had died of starvation or cold in the long Sierra winter. Those that survived subsisted on their few meager provisions, the ox hides, and finally the bodies of their dead friends and relatives.
And that, boys and girls, is how we come to have Donner Kebabs. Sick, sick puppy... I know, I know...
In 1846 a great westward movement began. A small part of the movement, the Donner Party, a looseknit band of midwestern farmers and adventurers, left Independence, Missouri, in April of 1846. Traveling west through the Great Plains, they crossed the Rocky Mountain crest at South Pass, in Wyoming territory, and then headed southwest through a relatively new and unexplored shortcut, or "cutoff". This cutoff was their undoing, for rather than a shortcut, it added precious weeks to their travel time. The party finally reached present day Truckee in late October, 1846. It was too late.
Already starving, their stamina depleted, the emigrants were greeted by one of the earliest and most severe of Sierra winters. The emigrants could not climb out of the Truckee basin, and they remained there to wait out the winter. In January, 1847, a few broke through westward, over the 7,088 foot pass (now Donner Pass) and they summoned relief parties. By April 1847, only 48 of the 89 emigrants who comprised the Donner Party were still alive. The others, 41 in all, had died along the way. All but a few had died of starvation or cold in the long Sierra winter. Those that survived subsisted on their few meager provisions, the ox hides, and finally the bodies of their dead friends and relatives.
And that, boys and girls, is how we come to have Donner Kebabs. Sick, sick puppy... I know, I know...
Gold
More fortunate emigrant trains traveled through the Truckee area in the summer and fall of 1847, and in January, 1848, James Marshall discovered gold at Sutter's Mill near Coloma in the Sierra foothills. Word spread quickly, and the great California gold rush was on.
Even today, crossing the Sierra Nevada mountain range is no straightforward task. Reaching the summit, at just under 15, 000 ft, can quite easily break modern motor vehicles. Signs advise you to turn air-conditioning off, otherwise run the risk of stressing the engine to breaking point. At certain times of the year, snow chains are mandatory equipment for anyone wanting to travel along this road. Conditions up there get quite extreme, very quickly.
The scenery, which is quite breathtaking, has it all; towering mountains, densely forested slopes, meandering rivers, immense ravines and massive landscapes are all part of the stunning natural beauty of the area. But, it has not always been the scenery that brought people through here.
Even today, crossing the Sierra Nevada mountain range is no straightforward task. Reaching the summit, at just under 15, 000 ft, can quite easily break modern motor vehicles. Signs advise you to turn air-conditioning off, otherwise run the risk of stressing the engine to breaking point. At certain times of the year, snow chains are mandatory equipment for anyone wanting to travel along this road. Conditions up there get quite extreme, very quickly.
The scenery, which is quite breathtaking, has it all; towering mountains, densely forested slopes, meandering rivers, immense ravines and massive landscapes are all part of the stunning natural beauty of the area. But, it has not always been the scenery that brought people through here.
The First Transcontinental Railroad
In 1862, President Lincoln signed the Pacific Railroad Act, which named and directed two companies, the Union Pacific and the Central Pacific, to construct a transcontinental railroad. The Union Pacific broke ground in Omaha, the following year, whilst the Central Pacific started from Sacramento. The general idea was that $millions would be available in government money and land grants for the railroad builders, making the companies fantastically wealthy and owners of vast tracts of land. First, however, they had to lay the first forty miles of track at their own cost.
For the Union Pacific, initial funding issues delayed them until 1865 but, from then on, progress on the flat plains was rapid. For the Central Pacific team, trouble was all they seemed to have. There was no local heavy industry in Northern California. All of the steel and rolling stock would have to come from the east. Later, it would all come by rail, in days, but for now it must come by sea, through some of the most treacherous waters in the world and it would take weeks. There was also the small matter of the Sierra Nevada.
Work on the eastbound section began using European labour, but as soon as men had earned enough for picks and shovels, they left to seek their fortunes in the nearby gold fields. All seemed lost. Then, a stroke of luck. Fleeing oppression in their home country, thousands of Chinese immigrants landed in San Francisco. Despite initial reservations, the newcomers proved to be more hardworking and faster than their European counterparts. At the height of construction, as many as ten thousand were employed.
For the Union Pacific, initial funding issues delayed them until 1865 but, from then on, progress on the flat plains was rapid. For the Central Pacific team, trouble was all they seemed to have. There was no local heavy industry in Northern California. All of the steel and rolling stock would have to come from the east. Later, it would all come by rail, in days, but for now it must come by sea, through some of the most treacherous waters in the world and it would take weeks. There was also the small matter of the Sierra Nevada.
Work on the eastbound section began using European labour, but as soon as men had earned enough for picks and shovels, they left to seek their fortunes in the nearby gold fields. All seemed lost. Then, a stroke of luck. Fleeing oppression in their home country, thousands of Chinese immigrants landed in San Francisco. Despite initial reservations, the newcomers proved to be more hardworking and faster than their European counterparts. At the height of construction, as many as ten thousand were employed.
Six Years
It took several years of backbreaking labour to force a way through the mountains, with all of the engineering problems that they would provide. At one point, progress was so slow that it was measured in inches falling at one point to as little as twelve inches per day. Once they attained the Nevada salt flats, however, things sped up greatly. On one record-breaking day, the Central Pacific team laid an astounding ten miles of track.
For six long years, the two teams battled the land, the natives and each other to be the first team to finish the task they had started. In 1869 that moment finally came at Promontory Summit, Utah. The golden spike was driven home by officials of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific, marking the inauguration of the first transcontinental railroad.
As soon as you cross into Nevada, the scenery changes completely, as if by magic. The mountainous terrain becomes dry and dusty desert and the temperature starts to rise. By the time we got to Reno, the thermometer was showing 103 degrees. There was no shade.
Click here for the next bit
For six long years, the two teams battled the land, the natives and each other to be the first team to finish the task they had started. In 1869 that moment finally came at Promontory Summit, Utah. The golden spike was driven home by officials of the Union Pacific and Central Pacific, marking the inauguration of the first transcontinental railroad.
As soon as you cross into Nevada, the scenery changes completely, as if by magic. The mountainous terrain becomes dry and dusty desert and the temperature starts to rise. By the time we got to Reno, the thermometer was showing 103 degrees. There was no shade.
Click here for the next bit
