Kenneth E. Harker
2007 Sierra Nevada Foothills

Jen and I spent a September day exploring California's Sierra Nevada Foothills. We visited Twisted Oak Winery in Calaveras County and tried our hands at gold panning in the upper Mokelumne River in Amador County.

These photos are copyright © 2007 Kenneth E. Harker. All rights reserved.

	This was the view from the hilltop location of Twisted Oak Winery in Calaveras County. You can see some grapevines planted on the other side of the valley.
	Part of the Twisted Oak Winery operation. The winery was going through crush when we visited, you could hear Def Leppard coming from the area where the grapes were arriving.
	The main building at the winery was basically a large warehouse where a small area indoors was set aside for a tasting room. We tried all the wines, and there was not one we disliked. Jen liked the Syrah the best, while Ken preferred the Grenache.
	We spent a few hours at the Mokelumne River in Amador County. (The river is the county line between Calaveras County and Amador County, but we were on the Amador County side.) There's a paved road that parallels the river upstream of the Pardee Reservoir that eventually leads you into Federal Bureau of Land Management property that is open to the public (and even has a permanent outhouse).
	We stopped by the river to try our hands at gold panning. We'd borrowed pans and shovels from a coworker. The river was chilly but not icy.
	The river bed was rocky and must have been several meters deep at the center of the river. We did not wade in very far, as the current was pretty strong.
	Jen, walking up the trail back to our car.
	We had to leave a little before sunset. The late summer/early fall temperature and weather were perfect.
	We had a good time.