I present this post to you in the interest of public service… When trying to research the Henness Pass Road, one will stumble across a few internet forums that contain vague and sometimes contradictory information or websites from various government agencies that just loosely mention the Henness Pass Road. Every one of these websites from … Continue reading
Made famous by the Bret Harte story, Outcasts of Poker Flat, which actually has nothing to do with the real town, the name “Poker Flat” will likely at least have name recognition for many people. And to expand on the previous sentence, although the Poker Flat in the story bears no resemblance to the real … Continue reading
It took me a while to find St. Louis as there is, unfortunately, little left of this once-thriving town to lead one to it. To get here (on the road leading to Howland Flat which one picks up a little outside of La Porte) travel for about a mile past the St. Louis Bridge up … Continue reading
If one continues half a mile northeast past Howland Flat, over Potosi Creek, one will come to a fork in the road. This fork is where the town of Potosi was located. No one knows the source for the name of the town of Potosi. However, potosi is the Spanish word for “great wealth” and … Continue reading
First settled in 1853 when mines known as the Union Company and California Company were discovered, Howland Flat was once second in size and importance only to La Porte. Located twelve miles north of Downieville on the East Branch of Slate Creek and at the base of the dramatic 7,000′ elevation Table Rock Mountain, Howland … Continue reading
Okay, technically, Scales is not yet a ghost town as one to two homes here are still occupied. However, the town is certainly a shadow of its former self and is well on the way to “ghost town” status. Scales is a part of that remote band of rapidly decaying (and often already disappeared) Gold … Continue reading
If one accesses the road to Howland Flat from Church Street – the route that passes by the La Porte cemetery – one will pass over the following steel bridge (crossing over Slate Creek) after dropping down into the canyon: I will discuss this bridge and its surroundings in a future article. I use it … Continue reading
The Velvet Rocket 