Day 47 – Sacramento, CA

This RV Park has a number of good features, but the best for me is that there is lots of room to roam in on our walks.  There are places where the grass is really nice, a lake where you can observe ducks and geese, and lots of vacant cabins and other structures that invite exploration.  This morning, Don and I found a large doghouse down by the lake, which turned out to be unoccupied.  I didn’t go in, but I checked it out thoroughly from the doorway.  The people I meet are all nice, and I even score a treat every now and then.  Can’t knock it!

We got rolling on our sightseeing excursion before noon, which meant that the first thing we had to do was get something for their lunch.  I had the foresight to have mine before we left, but they wanted to be different.  After their visit to a downtown Subway, we went directly to a place called Sutter’s Fort, which is located in a mixed business/residential area not too far from the State Capitol.  Geri and Don pleaded with the lady who was selling the admission tickets to allow me to accompany them on their tour, but she was adamant that the State of California didn’t want any dogs, even very well-mannered Golden Retrievers, wandering around their Fort.  So, I stayed in the truck while they toured.  When they returned, they were good enough to tell me some of what they had learned about the place.  This guy, John Sutter, was an immigrant from Germany, though he considered himself Swiss.  He had failed in business in Germany, so he left his wife and kids to fend off his creditors, and sailed off to America.  By a very circuitous route, he wound up in California, where he wrangled a land grant from the Mexican Governor, and founded a settlement in the middle of what would be California.  He did pretty good until gold was discovered in his sawmill, and it was pretty much downhill for him after that.  Does this make any sense?  You find what amounts to a ton of gold on your property and you wind up broke?  What a Yo-Yo!  But they said that the reconstruction of the Fort was well done and interesting. 

Inside the Fort - looks big!

A room in the Fort

After a brief stop to get a pic of an old mansion, we got on the highway and headed for Folsom, which Don had been planning to do all along.  There was something there he has been itching to see for years.  After a couple of stops at visitor centers for data accumulation, we arrived at his goal; the first hydroelectric power plant built in the United States, which went into operation in 1895.  I’m sure that many of my readers are green with envy at our ability to visit this shrine of engineering, but I can only say that it’s there for all of us to visit, you just have to do it!  Don spent close to an hour in the Powerhouse identifying all of the archaic machinery, figuring out the control systems, and marveling at the massive construction of the whole thing.  He was obviously in Engineering Nirvana, while Geri and I took a nice walk on the grounds of the State Park.  The views of the American River were particularly pleasant.

The Temple of Early Hydroelectric Power

Two of the Ancient Generators

Greatly Revered Generator Governor

We then did a tour of some of the very attractive old homes in Folsom, many of them spectacular.  Their downtown area is undergoing a major renovation, so we stayed out of that part of town, but the rest is quite nice.  Our next target was Folsom Prison, which apparently was made famous by a country singer named Cash.  We got there too late to visit the museum, but got a pic of the famous entrance and guard tower of the place.  Geri and Don asked the gate guard how many prisoners they had there, and he said about 3900.  Don asked if they had room for Lindsay Lohan, but the guard said she had too much money to qualify for Folsom. 

Shoot a man in Reno - go to jail in California?

So, we headed home to West Sacramento, and Geri took me for a very pleasant stroll around the grounds, during which I encountered a gentleman who had the odor of dog treats about him.  I politely enquired as to the availability of a treat, and he stated that though he often carried them, he didn’t have any with him at the moment.  I let him know that we would be glad to accompany him to his rig, where he undoubtedly had some stored, and he agreed.  Nice treat, well worth the effort. 

When we got back, Don cooked up some salmon and tortellini, resulting in some very nice plates for me.  A little TV, work on the blog, and a fairly early bedtime.  We’re on the road again tomorrow, heading west to Vallejo.  I’ll be reporting from there tomorrow!  See ya then!