7-17-2021 GRASS VALLEY, CA

 

The white arrow points to the approx.
location of Frolic Cove - Look
safe to you?

The reason I mentioned the shipwreck in my last story is because you can see a bit of Frolic Cove from the cliff where the Cabrillo Point Light stands.  The cove was not named for the fun little dance you do through the tulips.  The catastrophe occurred 170 years ago, but in theory at least, bits and pieces of the ship Frolic still lie beneath the surf there in the cove.  By the way, Capt. Faucon went to seek help from the locals to save the ship’s cargo but when they returned to the scene, they found nothing.  The Pomo Indians had looted every last scrap that wasn’t nailed down.

 

One other (trivia) thing:  We asked Mike, the camp owner at Fort Bragg, what the local politics are.  He hesitated and then said, “We-e-e-l-l, most of the people are communists….”  Moving along…

 

Now we take the same twisty, dipsy Route 20 inland, away from the sea, only this time, we go uphill, just to make things a little more “interesting.”  I was exhausted just watching Rob drive.  After it cleared and leveled out some, the scenery through the wine country and citrus groves was bucolic.  It is a bit brown and drought-stricken as California has not had rain for about 2 years, but some areas seem to be getting the water they desperately need and rightly so as these good folks make our wine.  In the signs department, here is the perfect one for this time.

 

Our Noobee among the pines

Who knew that a fairgrounds could have such a beautiful campground?  We’ve arrived, we’re leveled and fully-hooked-up at Nevada County Fairgrounds, for 2 days;  warm, sunny and sprinkled with 200 foot tall pines.  

Grass Valley is a pretty little town to visit.  There is an old historic district where Cirino’s, an old saloon with a gorgeous back bar, served us a fine lunch.  When what to my wondering eyes should appear but a pasty shop, Grass Vallley Pasty Company!  What to do, what to do…. It’s a tiny little establishment with 3 fellows working just inside the door behind the counter.  The owner, elbow-deep in flour, takes each piece of dough from the refrigerator, presses it flat with his roller that he flips around, then piles in the filling and deftly folds and presses the pasty into shape.  He paints it with a sauce that will make it shiny and into the oven it goes to bake.  The other two fellows assist him, keeping an eye on the beautiful pasties.  This place has been in business in this little kitchen for 37 years and was called by the name Cousin Jack’s because they made pasties for the the men who worked the mines, “Cousin Jacks.”   Women were called “Cousin Jennys.”  This little kitchen makes and sells 100 pasties per day.  It was impossible to choose which one to buy so we solved that dilemma by buying one of each, six altogether.  They are huge, weigh about a pound a piece and one, pot roast, will be quite enough for both of us for dinner tomorrow night.  The remaining  5 are safely tucked in the freezer.  What a lucky discovery and rare, one of only 2 or 3 other pasty settlements we have found across the fruited plain.

The master creates a work of art

In the kitchen of the 
Grass Valley Pasty Co.

A masterpiece - now in captivity
in the DLM Jailhouse

 

Seems many of the little towns in this area were settled by miners seeking their fortune in gold.  Another small town nearby, Nevada City, was established for the same purpose in the early 1800s.  Many of the old buildings still stand in the historic district including the old firehouse, which was built in 1850.  It has withstood the tests of time as well as fires that swept through the areas leveling whole villages. 

Firehouse built in 1850

The firehouse was still functional until 1979, 129 years in the biz. 

Nevada Theatre

Across the main street from the firehouse is the Nevada Theatre.  It was constructed in 1865 and has also survived through the decades until its door closed for the final time in 1957.  Celebrities who performed at the theatre included Mark Twain and Jack London.  Another small interesting place is named the Two Room Inn located right in the heart of Nevada City.  It was originally named the Teddy Bear Castle and was constructed in 1880.  Since its restoration by the current owners, it is now a tiny inn which can accommodate 6 people and is now on my bucket list, maybe sometime after California gets over its Covid hysteria.

New York Hotel, 1863, destroyed by
a fire that swept through the town

 

The New York Hotel, rebuilt in 1880.
The fire started in a nearby upholstery shop 
owned by John White.  In 1881, it was
rumored that a fellow named John
White was lynched "for starting a fire."

Two Room Inn - 1880

Lindy and Rob at the Nevada
County Fairgrounds RV Park

Tomorrow, we will be one step closer to home, traveling to our familiar digs at Whiskey Flats in Hawthorne, NV.