August 13, 2014

August 13, 2014

From Corning we continued south to Sacramento, the capital of California. In the evening an old roommate of mine from the University of Illinois picked us up for dinner. It probably has been almost thirty years since we last saw each other. Can I really be that old?

We had a delicious dinner with our wives in Old Sacramento overlooking the Sacramento River. After dinner they gave us the dime tour of this restored area. We are pleasantly surprised how nice and big and historic it is. We will have to come back again during the daytime.

Sacramento hit the big time during the California Gold Rush.  John Sutter had a wharf here at the confluence of the Sacramento and American Rivers.  It turned into the major transfer point for supplies going in and gold coming out.  As with all gold rushes, the people who made it rich were those that provided the mining supplies here and in San Francisco.  Today Sacramento is affectionately named Sac-a-tomato for all the tomato processing done here.  Tomatoes decorate local highways near every pothole and sharp curve.