Day 7: Auburn to Placerville

May 17, 2021

Today is a strenuous 2-river day. First I cross the North Fork American river with a 900 foot descent and 800 foot ascent. Later I cross the South Fork American river with 800 foot descent and 1200 foot ascent.

Breakfast at McDonald's. On the road at 8:30, following Lincoln avenue back towards downtown Auburn. But this time I turned left onto CA 49 to descend into the river canyon. The 900 foot descent has good views.

Looking downstream at North Fork American river during the descent on CA 49.

At the bottom I wandered around a bit for river views. I turned onto Old Foresthill road and followed it a short distance upstream for views of the river forks and Foresthill bridge high above.

Confluence of the North and Middle forks of the American river.

Old Foresthill Road bridge (left), Foresthill bridge (top), and North Fork American river looking upstream.

Foresthill bridge and North Fork American river looking upstream.

Then back to CA 49 where I began the 800 foot climb out of the canyon.

CA 49 crossing the North Fork just downstream from the confluence with the Middle Fork.

Near the beginning of the climb is a good view looking down on the Middle Fork American river.

Middle Fork American river looking upstream. View from CA 49. Old Foresthill road on the left.

Traffic was moderate going into the canyon around 9 AM. Traffic was much heavier after 10 AM when climbing out of the canyon. Truck traffic and commuter traffic. The 800 foot climb has no shoulder and it's mostly 7-8% grade. After the climb CA 49 has a narrow shoulder in open areas, but it always disappears in the frequent hill cuts.

Today's route passes through the old gold mining towns of Cool, Pilot Hill, and Coloma. Few gold rush era buildings are visible from highway.

The shoulder always disappears in the century old hill cuts.

First of many vineyards I saw during this tour. Typical barely usable shoulder.

After a long 1200 foot descent CA 49 follows the the South Fork American river upstream for several miles before crossing the river.

First view of South Fork American river. Telephoto with the real camera.

CA 49 goes through Marshall Gold Discovery State Park where I took a long stop. Gold was first discovered in January 1848. James Marshall was an employee of John Sutter, doing maintenance on the millrace when he accidentally discovered a nugget of gold.

John Sutter had no interest in gold and tried to keep the discovery secret. That didn't last long, of course. The subsequent gold rush destroyed John Sutter's dream of building a utopian agricultural community along the South Fork American river.

The park built a replica of John Sutter's sawmill. Water from the river is diverted through a gate into the millrace. Water flowing in the canal spun a wooden wheel that powered a saw. Uncut logs were skidded up to the saw with a winch.

Replica of John Sutter's millrace and water-powered sawmill.

The replica is not in the same location as the original sawmill. This one is far enough from the river than it won't be washed away by floods. Historical research has determined the location of the original mill and millrace. They believe they located the exact location where the first gold nugget was found. It doesn't really matter if they are wrong by 100 feet.

This monument marks the site where the first gold nugget was found by accident in the millrace.

CA 49 finally crosses the South Fork American river south of Sutter's Mill, still in the park.

CA 49 crossing South Fork American river in the park.

South Fork American river looking downstream from the CA 49 bridge.

A short distance later I turned onto an inviting looking 1-lane bridge across the river, built in the 1930's. It connects to the park campground.

1930's 1-lane bridge across South Fork American river.

South Fork American river looking downstream from the 1-lane bridge.

Then CA 49 turns away from the river and begins the 1200 foot climb to Placerville. Much of the climb is 8-10% grade. One of the steepest grades of the trip.

Traffic was surprisingly light south of the Gold Discovery park. Apparently most motorists want to get to the I-80 expressway in Auburn, not the US 50 expressway in Placerville. That's good because CA 49 has no shoulder.

CA 49 climbing to Placerville. No shoulder but traffic is light.

Today's route is mostly oak forested. Orchards and vineyards were rare. The weather was mostly sunny with a high temperature of only 72F (22C). Cooler than normal but very pleasant for the climbs.

Rare cherry orchard. Most orchards are in the valley, not in the hills.

In Placerville I cross the US 50 expressway which is the last of 3 expressways that connect the gold country to the megalopolis below. I'm hoping the traffic will decrease soon.

I arrived in Placerville at 3 PM, surprisingly early considering the amount of climbing and a long delay for road construction. I explored downtown for a few minutes before checking into my hotel.

Placerville. Today's population of 10,000+ is similar to the population during the gold rush.

The name Placerville refers to "placer" mining which is a polite term for hydraulic mining, where a water cannon blasts away entire hillsides to find small bits of gold. It's so destructive to the environment that the government banned the practice in the 1890's by making it illegal to dispose of mine tailings in rivers.

Fortunately, most gold mining activity was "hard rock" mines where tunnels access buried seams of quality ore.

Placerville is the county seat of El Dorado (The Golden) county.

El Dorado county courthouse is not as grand as Placer county courthouse in Auburn.

Tonight I stay at Cary House Hotel which was built in 1857. I'm pretty sure it will be the oldest place I have ever slept. It's the only operating hotel in downtown Placerville. Visually it's obvious that it was built as a 3-story building and the 4th floor was added later.

Tonight's home is Cary House hotel, built in 1857.

The lobby definitely has a 19th century vibe.

My $131 room is well equipped considering the age of the hotel. It has A/C, TV, a private bath, and a kitchenette. But no microwave, coffee maker, or breakfast.

I stored my bike in the hotel's conference room.

My room faces the balcony and Main street.

The hotel's 2nd floor balcony is popular with guests. It has one of the best views of downtown Placerville, directly across from the famous Hangman's Tree tavern.

I felt strong when I arrived. I had an early dinner at an Italian restaurant, with 2 beers. After dinner I felt much more tired so I took a 1.5 hour nap before going back out to see the town at sunset.

Posing post-nap on the shared balcony just outside my room.

Placerville is known as Hangtown, presumably because there were so many hangings in the early days. Most of the hangings took place before there was a county sheriff and a county court. The hangings were vigilante "justice".

I noticed several stores in Placerville that claim to be the oldest in the west, or something similar. The 1852 hardware store claims to be the oldest west of the Mississippi river. I'm skeptical.

Many stores in Placerville claim to be the oldest in the west.

I enjoyed walking around downtown Placerville. I pedaled through Placerville in 2010 during my Sacramento to Loveland bike tour but didn't stop to see the historic downtown. Now is the time.

Placerville was founded in 1848. Every town on this route was founded in 1848 or 1849, at the beginning of the gold rush.

The day's first climb had miserable traffic bursts but the larger second climb had light traffic. Overall the traffic wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. Traffic didn't get heavy until 10 AM. I should have started an hour earlier to get to the top of the first climb before peak traffic.

Distance: 30.7 miles (49 km)
Ascent/Descent: +3194/-2943 feet (+974/-897 m)
Average Speed: 7.6 mph (12.2 km/h)

Today's ride: 30 miles (48 km)
Total: 261 miles (420 km)

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Kelly IniguezYour photos of Placerville remind me of Leadville, or perhaps, Bisbee. You are the one that has been there. comparison?
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3 years ago

Wayne EstesLeadville is sort of forested, so it resembles Placerville and Nevada City.

Bisbee is more arid, so it more resembles Virginia City, Nevada.

Virginia City, Tombstone, and Oatman are all excellent places to walk the boardwalks in a desert mining town.

There seem to be more old mining towns in deserts than in forests.
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3 years ago