This video shows breathtaking images of several of this year’s wildfires, including point-of-view aerial footage from specially-equipped California National Guard Blackhawk helicopters dropping hundreds of gallons of water on flames. It also takes viewers along with Cal EMA Secretary Mark Ghilarducci, California National Guard General David Baldwin and CAL FIRE Director Ken Pimlott as they visit a special “helitack base” near the massive Ponderosa Fire in Tehama County. There’s also footage from a strategy session with federal and state coordinators at a regional emergency operations center in Redding, Calif. Officials also included an interview with two residents of Manton, California who were evacuated from their homes, expressing the grim reality of destruction caused by the Ponderosa Fire.
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Photo courtesy of Washington Hotel www.washingtonhotel.net
By Judy J. Pinegar
This little town in Nevada County is located on the banks of the South Fork of the Yuba River. It is located off Highway 20 between Nevada City and Interstate 80. Washington boasts a population on about 200, but that fluctuates seasonally and the town has a lot of tourist traffic in the summer.
Washington was founded in 1849, as were most of the cities in Nevada County; it was all about the Gold Rush!! These particular miners were from Indiana, so the settlement was first named Indiana Camp, but renamed to Washington in 1850. The area produced a large amount of placer gold, after that hard rock and hydraulic mines were established and were also very productive. Many people of Chinese descent worked in the area at these times.
The hotel in the town of Washington started with Hessel B. Buisman who was born in Holland in 1827, he landed in San Francisco in 1850. He originally kept a hotel in the town of Jefferson located near Washington from 1852 to 1857. He then came to Washington building a two story hotel which could accommodate up to 30 guests.
After the Buisman owners passed away, their daughter and her husband Eldridge Worthley kept the hotel for years. The hotel was called “The Worthley” or “Washington Hotel” and sat on the same site as the current hotel today. The hotel stable was across the street.
At 11 PM, August 16th, 1867 The Big Fire broke out in a nearby cabin. It jumped from house to house and destroyed almost every business downtown Washington including the Hotel. The hotel was rebuilt.
On April 21st, 1896 another fire started in the kitchen of the Washington Hotel. This fire destroyed the hotel and several buildings nearby. This time, Worthley had taken out fire insurance previous to the fire. The hotel was rebuilt as fast as the weather would allow. The picture shows the new and improved Washington Hotel after being rebuilt in 1896.
Photo courtesy of Washington Hotel www.washingtonhotel.net
The Washington Mining District was always served by operators of small stage lines. This photo shows the company stage of Prescott and Grissel. A daily trip used to leave The National Hotel in Nevada City at 7 AM and arrive in Washington around noon. This was used to rest between trips or take shelter from the weather. Now the drive only takes 25 minutes in your car.
Picture from the Red Ledge Mine in Washington. The gold/quartz veins occur in the sedimentary rocks close to the contact with serpentine. Mariposite is often in association with the serpentine, and in close proximity to the gold. Photo courtesy of http://www.mindat.org/loc-3515.html
The town of Washington currently consists of the Washington Hotel/bar, a restaurant, a grocery store, a one room schoolhouse that has educated students continuously for over 100 years, and two trailer park campgrounds
There are two trailer parks, Gene’s Pine Aire Campground and the River Rest Resort have been in business since the 1960’s with various owners. Campsites are often to capacity, so reservations are advised.
Old Vine cabernet from Chateau Montelena, (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Sierra Vintners is located in Nevada County, California between Sacramento and Reno/Lake Tahoe with easy access • off I-80.
Sierra Vintners wineries and tasting rooms are located throughout the Sierra Foothills and within the towns of Grass Valley and Nevada City, California.
Sierra Vintners is part of the Sierra Foothills American Viticultural Area (AVA), which was established in 1987 on the western edge of the Sierra Nevada: Roughly 160 miles long, stretching from Yuba County in the north to Mariposa County in the south.
Wine grapes were first planted here during the California Gold Rush, but like in so many California regions rich in wine history, serious wine making reemerged and flourished only within the past thirty years.
Sierra Vintners is a region of contrasts with dense forests, snow-capped mountains, golden valleys, and spectacular rolling vistas.
Like much of Northern California, the area has a classic Mediterranean climate, with warm summers and rainy winters that often include snow in higher elevations.
The characteristic cold winters are in fact quite conducive, allowing vines to go dormant, to rest and conserve energy for the coming season.
In the summer, the warm days and cool nights provide ideal growing conditions—producing grapes with ripe, concentrated flavors and balanced natural acidity—resulting in wines of distinction.
Vineyards are planted at elevations as low as 1,300 feet all the way up to 2,600. The region boasts over 60 miles of terrain between vineyards and as a result, the grapes display a diverse array of varietal characteristics.
Sierra Vintners produces an unusually wide variety of vines, boasting over 45 planted varietals. •
Nevada County’s four distinct seasons, and its range of elevations and landscapes, makes it a fertile home for more • than forty varieties of wine grapes, ranging from Chardonnay, Merlot, Zinfandel, and Cabernet Sauvignon to Cabernet Franc, Barbera, Sangiovese and Tempranillo.
PO Box 1552 • GrassValley, CA 95945 • 530.205.3016 • www.sierravintners.com
The first residents of the area were the Maidu Indians, who migrated in about 1833 from the Sacramento Valley. The four main areas they lived were the sites now called Bridgeport, Lake Wildwood, Indian Springs and Money Flat. However everything changed with the discovery of gold and the white settlers moved into the area, when Penn Valley became one of the first settlements in the county.
Photo courtesy of the Penn Valley Chamber of Commerce
The name Penn Valley may come from a Madam Penn who is remembered for her determination to make money if hard word would do it. Coming to the area in 1849, she took her turn with her husband carrying dirt to wash and rocking out the gold. Later she had a 320 acre homestead at the intersection of Squirrel and Grub Creeks, which grew to 700 acres (most of Penn Valley) after being purchased in October 1852.
Early settlement of the area was probably started due to its location on a freight wagon route from Sacramento to mining regions east. Later men gave up their picks for plows and the valley produced fresh meat, fruits and vegetables to miners as far away as Nevada (state). In the late 1800’s the valley was home to a thriving dairy industry. In Western Gateway park is the rebuilt Butter Maker’s Cottage to commemorate the importance of the dairy industry in the area.
Photo Courtesy of Penn valley Chamber of Commerce
Today the valley is still a peaceful place, but continues to gain business opportunities and residential growth. Horses, llamas, deer and wild turkeys all coexist in the area with about 12,000 residents. The Western Gateway Park, Historic Bridgeport and Lake Englebright are all a short drive away.
Photo Courtesy of Penn valley Chamber of Commerce
Lake Wildwood is gated community in the area, off Highway 20 on Pleasant Valley Road, which now has about 5,000 full time residents. Over half of the residents are retirees, but more and more families are moving in and the average age continues to go down.
Judy J. Pinegar is a writer
Her articles have appeared in many publications
For all your real estate needs
Email or call today:
John J. O’Dell Realtor® GRI
Civil Engineer
General Contractor
(530) 263-1091
Email jodell@nevadacounty.com
Citizens Bank of Northern California, Nevada City, California, was closed today by the California Department of Financial Institutions, which appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as receiver. To protect the depositors, the FDIC entered into a purchase and assumption agreement with Tri Counties Bank, Chico, California, to assume all of the deposits of Citizens Bank of Northern California.
The seven branches of Citizens Bank of Northern California will reopen on Monday as branches of Tri Counties Bank. Depositors of Citizens Bank of Northern California will automatically become depositors of Tri Counties Bank. Deposits will continue to be insured by the FDIC, so there is no need for customers to change their banking relationship in order to retain their deposit insurance coverage up to applicable limits. Customers of Citizens Bank of Northern California should continue to use their existing branch until they receive notice from Tri Counties Bank that it has completed systems changes to allow other Tri Counties Bank branches to process their accounts as well.
This evening and over the weekend, depositors of Citizens Bank of Northern California can access their money by writing checks or using ATM or debit cards. Checks drawn on the bank will continue to be processed. Loan customers should continue to make their payments as usual.
As of June 30, 2011, Citizens Bank of Northern California had approximately $288.8 million in total assets and $253.1 million in total deposits. In addition to assuming all of the deposits of the failed bank, Tri Counties Bank agreed to purchase essentially all of the assets.
Customers with questions about today’s transaction should call the FDIC toll-free at 1-800-430-6165. The phone number will be operational this evening until 9:00 p.m., Pacific Daylight Time (PDT); on Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., PDT; on Sunday from noon to 6:00 p.m., PDT; and thereafter from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., PDT. Interested parties also can visit the FDIC’s Web site at http://www.fdic.gov/bank/individual/failed/cbnc.html.
The FDIC estimates that the cost to the Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF) will be $37.2 million. Compared to other alternatives, Tri Counties Bank’s acquisition was the least costly resolution for the FDIC’s DIF. Citizens Bank of Northern California is the 73rd FDIC-insured institution to fail in the nation this year, and the fourth in California. The last FDIC-insured institution closed in the state was San Luis Trust Bank, FSB, San Luis Obispo, on February 18, 2011.
Source FDIC
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Nevada Irrigation District (NID) water originates in the snow pack of a 70,000-acre watershed in the high mountains of Sierra and Nevada counties. The district’s Mountain Division reservoirs include Jackson Meadows, Milton, French, Faucherie, Sawmill and Bowman. Water from these reservoirs flows to PG&E’s Lake Spaulding via the Bowman-Spaulding Canal.
From Spaulding, NID water flows down the South Yuba Canal to the Cascade Canal system which carries water into western Nevada County service areas. Water from Spaulding also flows down the Bear River watershed through PG&E’s Drum Hydroelectric Project and NID’s Yuba-Bear Power Project. This water supplies NID service areas in southern Nevada County and Placer County.
In addition to its seven mountain reservoirs, NID owns and operates three Foothill Division reservoirs, Scotts Flat, Rollins and Combie. The district operates and maintains 400 miles of canals and 300 miles of pipelines.
The highest point on NID watershed is 8373-foot English Mountain, which rises just south of Jackson Meadows. The lowest elevation NID water service is 100 miles to the southwest, at the 150-foot elevation, near Lincoln, Placer County.
Source: Waterways, a publication of NID
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Emerald Cove Marina – photo courtesy of Emerald Cove Marina
Bullards Bar Reservoir is not in Nevada County, but it is close enough to Nevada City and Grass Valley as to make it a destination for water skiing, house boating and fishing. It’s only 21 miles north of Nevada City off of Highway 49 in the historic gold country. The three closest cities are Nevada City, Grass Valley and Marysville.
The lake surface is at 2,000 foot elevation, 16 miles long with about 60 miles of shoreline. The boating surface is 4,700 acres, which is a lot of area to boat in. There are only two launch ramps and once you are in the water, you are surrounded by a greenbelt covered with pine, oak, fir, madrone, dogwood and other species of trees native to the area. As you cruise up into the North Yuba Canyon, sheer cliffs of granite come down to greet the crystal clear water.
The North Yuba River is backed up by New Bullards Bar Dam which is an awesome sight all by itself. Standing 645? above the canyon floor, it holds back 960,000 acre feet of water. It’s the second tallest dam in California, 5th tallest in the United States. A hydro-electric dam, Bullards Bar Dam is operated and controlled by the Yuba County Water Agency. They are able to manage the water so that recreation access to the reservoir is never restricted.
Bullards Bar offers boat access campgrounds, land based sites, and shoreline camping permits. There are a total of only 160 sites, which limits the amount of people the area can accommodate. Emerald Cove Marina takes site specific reservations for all camping.
For the fisherman, there are kokanee salmon, rainbow trout, German browns, large mouth, small mouth and black bass, crappie, catfish, and bluegill. Bullards Bar has a reputation as having the best kokanee salmon and black bass fishing in California.
CAMPING
Campgrounds – Call for reservations & fees
Pets, NO Hookups, Boat & Trailer Storage, Some Flush Toilets
BOATING
Power, Row, Jet ski, Windsurf, Canoe, Sail, Water-ski, and Inflatables are allowed.
There is a full service marina with gas and propane exchange available
Rentals: Houseboats, Ski Boats, Jet Skis, and Pontoon Patio Boats
RECREATION
Fishing
Swimming, Picnicking, & Hiking
Snacks, Groceries, Bait & Tackle and Fuel Dock
The Empire Mine is the site of the oldest, largest, and richest gold mine in California. From 1850 to its closing in 1956, it produced 5.8 million ounces of gold.This 5.8 million ounces of gold would fill a box 7 feet on each side. It is estimated that this represented only 20% of the available gold…80% remains. The Park contains many of the original mine buildings, the owners cottage and the restored gardens and grounds as well as the entrance to 367 miles (the equivalent of a round trip from Grass Valley to San Jose) of abandoned and flooded shafts and tunnels. The park consists of 845 acres of forested back country and 12 miles of trails for hikers, bikers and horseback riders.
Snow storm came during the night and decided to have a seat.
Friday night, November 19 2010, it started snowing and by Saturday morning I had about six to eight inches of snow. Just as I started to go to work on my computer, the power went out. With no power, I have no heat so I figured… I’d better leave for the weekend. On the way out, there was a pretty good size tree branch in the road. I managed to drive around it but I could tell this was going to be a bad storm.
The leaves are still on the trees and the snow is very wet, resulting in trees and tree limbs coming down all over the forest.
Looking up the road away from my house Saturday morning
Checking on my house Monday, November 22, 2010, there still was no power. The road I live on loops, and I came up the first turn to my road and went up to my house. Everything was fine until I decided to continue out the other end of my road. Guess what? There is a tree lying across the road. One wire has fallen off the power pole and is lying across the road also. If you look closely at the picture I took, looking up the hill, you will notice the wire on the right hand side of the pole is not there.
Look at the right upper side of pole, wire has fallen offNotice the tree and power line across the road - Monday evening
PG & E called me on my cell last night and informed me that there would be no power until Tuesday. At this point there are about 7,000 homes without power. Tonight, I received another friendly call from PG & E and they said there would be no power until Wednesday. (my house is at 3,700 foot elevation)
