California Gold Rush

Last Saturday Tina and I hopped in the wagon and "headed west".
Other than stopping at "Old Town Auburn" we really didn't have a plan or care, we just wanted to get out of the house for the day. We pulled into Auburn and had lunch and walked around checking out all the old buildings which are now antique shops, gift shops, restaurants and there are a couple of bars there. We then took highway 49 South which was a very windy, beautiful drive that took us through Coloma. In or around Coloma is "Sutters Mill"
which is the place gold was discovered in 1848. After stopping and checking out the old mill replica, we continued into "Placerville (Old Hangtown)" We passed by an old saloon called hangman's Saloon which I found out later was a spot where a hanging tree stood and people where hung. I really should read about places before I visit, but we really didn't know we would end up there anyway. We drove East from there on highway 50 through Lake Tahoe and headed for home after stopping at the Cattlemens Steakhouse for a nice Prime Rib dinner. It was a good day and nice to get out for a change. Driving through the old CA goldrush towns were pretty cool, next time I will have to read up so we can plan our stops and get a better feel of the past. I would like to check out some of the Donner Party sites as well.