Wild West still lives in Calaveras County If you are looking for the Wild West, you could do better than go to a place that was once the home of Mark Twain and even immortalized in one of his short stories. Fortunately for residents of California, Calaveras County is a reasonable drive of both North-South and puts a lot of Gold Rush history, all within a few square miles.
Students will remember Mark Twain's famous Jumping Frog of Calaveras County, a short story that Twain was actually the first book published and what would make him famous. Today, the Angels Camp community reminds us about Twain and his story in May, drawing more than 2,000 "frog jockeys" who compete to see which frog can jump the farthest.
Such is the spirit in Calaveras County, a fascinating collection of historic villages that you do not need to wait until May to visit. In fact, the Jumping Frog Jubilee added traffic may only intervene if all you want to do is explore the many historical attractions, museums, interesting shops - and even wineries - located in this picturesque part of the State.
Your exploration can be a weekend or holiday and can concentrate solely on the Calaveras County or to include a number of towns and attractions in neighboring counties. We spent a weekend, parking close to our Angels Camp RV and drive short distances to attractions in Calaveras County, and a couple of the border in Tuolumne County. The distances are short - 10-20 miles between towns or attractions - and sometimes winding roads are still in the picturesque hills, wooded area of California.
The common denominator between all these attractions is the story - if you like history and love in search of historic cities, this part of the state is your kind of place. A historic church, here, a former general store, there are antique shops on every block - the Cities of Calaveras County are like a walk in the past.
The connection of Mark Twain is a great step for Angels Camp, and, like "Birds" has become a cottage industry for its location, Bodega Bay, the short story by Mark Twain put Calaveras County and Angels Camp on the map. All sorts of frog souvenirs are available locally, and more than one company has the word frog in its name. You can even visit the cabin where Mark Twain lived during the few months he was staying in the region.
Angels Camp is the only incorporated city in Calaveras County so that tells you something about the rural character of the neighborhood. Anxious to share his story, Angels Camp offers visitors a map for a tour of the city. Each of the historic buildings of the city - and what we could tell, they are ALL history - has a number displayed on the facade of the building to correspond with numbers on the map. The card has a description and history of each place.
The Angels Camp Museum and Carriage House is known for its fine collection of historic mining equipment as well as numerous Native American artifacts. There are reminders of life in the mid-1800s such as the pharmacy with the many old remedies set out in their original packaging. The Carriage House offers more than 30 cars, carts and wagons of the time.
Just a few miles from Angels Camp, a little further into the mountains, is Murphys, a small hamlet which also offers many historical sites. Most buildings are from the mid-1800s with thick stone walls, iron shutters and white picket fences. Once a town of 3,000 inhabitants, the current population is a fraction of that, although the tourists swell the ranks of the weekend.
Not far from Murphys, we met a producer who had been recommended to us by the association of local visitors - Ironstone Vineyards. This property of 1150 acres, includes a tasting room, tours and even a museum on the site. Take our attention was a nugget of gold 44-book that was on Displa.
Posted on June 5, 2010.
