Camping in the Gold Country

I spent Memorial Day weekend camping with friends in the foothills outside of Sacramento. We were in a campground on the south fork of the American River just outside the town where gold was discovered in California. A friend and I arrived at the campground around midnight. We set up tents with the help of a couple of friends who had been drinking for at least a couple hours best guess.

The next couple of days were spent eating, drinking, fishing, and lounging by the river. Some of the highlights include.

Hanging out by the river watching rafts navigate a nasty rapid named "Troublemaker"

Shouting at rafts that floated right by our campsite to paddle. We land lubbers felt that simply floating on the current was lazy.

I caught a trout about 6 inches long and was able to release it back to the river. This one managed not to swallow most of my hook>

My friend caught her first fish. It was about three inches long. It also survived the ordeal. My friend was amused my the small size of the fish, but was very pleased with having caught it.

I floated down a short stretch of the river in a water toy that only kept my upper body out of the water. The river was about 42 degrees according to a ranger that walked by.

On the whole it was a fabulous weekend. This group of people have been camping together for a few years now, and I hope we continue it for a long time to come.