After hearing about it for years, we finally sought out a California landmark: Snowshoe Thompson's
Cave. Jon Torsteinson-Rue, born in Norway, settled in Placerville, California after short stays in Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, and Wisconsin. Looking for work, he answered an advertisement he saw for Sierra mail carrier. The job: to carry mail from Placerville, across the crest of the Sierra Nevada, to Genoa, Nevada... in winter. Remembering the snow skates (cross-country
skis) he had used back in Norway, he crafted his own skis and applied for the job. Before Jon "Snowshoe" Thompson, carriers had taken 3 or more weeks to make the return trip, often surviving near-death experiences in the harsh, winter mountains. On his first journey, Snowshoe Thompson made the return trip in just 5 days, to everyone's amazement. He stayed on as the winter mail carrier, serving the growing population in the mountains of California following the 1849 Gold Rush, from 1856 to 1876. During particularly bad winter storms, he found shelter under a giant, granite slab near Woodfords, California. It's this cave, with it's fire-charred ceiling, that we visited yesterday. Nature is great, and when mixed with history, even better.
Cave. Jon Torsteinson-Rue, born in Norway, settled in Placerville, California after short stays in Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, and Wisconsin. Looking for work, he answered an advertisement he saw for Sierra mail carrier. The job: to carry mail from Placerville, across the crest of the Sierra Nevada, to Genoa, Nevada... in winter. Remembering the snow skates (cross-country 
skis) he had used back in Norway, he crafted his own skis and applied for the job. Before Jon "Snowshoe" Thompson, carriers had taken 3 or more weeks to make the return trip, often surviving near-death experiences in the harsh, winter mountains. On his first journey, Snowshoe Thompson made the return trip in just 5 days, to everyone's amazement. He stayed on as the winter mail carrier, serving the growing population in the mountains of California following the 1849 Gold Rush, from 1856 to 1876. During particularly bad winter storms, he found shelter under a giant, granite slab near Woodfords, California. It's this cave, with it's fire-charred ceiling, that we visited yesterday. Nature is great, and when mixed with history, even better.
No comments:
Post a Comment