What has 4 legs, can withstand 110 degree heat, and does not die? That would be Ken and I on our last prospecting trip. So we thought. We traveled over 7 miles on dry stream beds, climbing boulders, and hiking up and down the hillsides, just because we where curious about the way the 49'ers used to live. We found their small dugout foundations where they lived for years at a time in their endless quest for gold. Some dug into the earth as others combed the riverbanks spiking rocks and panning gravel. Being that most claims were only 18 square feet, they as a group worked together becoming family, running flumes, diverting streams, and sinking holes. Living conditions were at there worst.  When available, supply wagons and hunters kept these miners fed (for those that could pay), but during the summer months, the rivers/creeks (like the one we explored) became dry and what little water remained became stagnant and full of disease. Bad water, unhealthy eating, and the constant exposure to the elements allowed Cholera to rage through these boom camps. What was once a thriving gold camp for years, now became death camps overnight. It did not discriminate. Your neighbors, your family, and your friends fell to this disease. It became known as THE SCROUNGE OF THE MINERS. The  miners that survived this onslaught soon succumbed to scurvy and malaria. To battle these epidemics, the camps were burned to the ground and abandoned.  The lucky ones moved on only to spread these diseases elsewhere.  So, when you're out prospecting and you get a couple bug bites, maybe some poison oak, and you're not finding much gold, stop and look around, for the greatest treasure you can find is all around you: it's called history. With your mind's eye, you can almost hear the striking of steel on rock, the loud murmur of thousands of miners working the gravel, and when a nugget was found, the occasional excited yell "YIPPEE!!" that echoed up and down the crowded camps.  Now, take a big breath and do like I do -  just pack up everything into your truck, turn on some tunes, and be home in bed  in a matter of hours with an ice cold glass of water. Slowly close your eyes and dream the dream that every 49'er dreamt. GOLD!
 
So, reflecting on what they endured day in and day out for years and years, this little hiking trip we made yesterday seems so ---- feeble.  


                         

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