Monica and I spent Monday at Yuba Gap, in the high country of The Sierra, looking for the old "Overland Emigrant Trail." While we didn't find any "T markers," we did spot a stone obelisk on Laing Road. You wouldn't know what this thing was unless, like us, you had seen them before with their sign attached, as this one in Bear Valley does. I'm not sure whether these signs are being stolen, or fall off, but we have come across more of these markers without their signs than with them.
Concrete marker with sign
The next day, Tuesday we stayed a bit closer to home and tried to locate the trail in the foothills above Grass Valley. We had read the descriptions of how the path followed Lowell Ridge before dropping down towards Chicago Park area. The name Mount Olive stood out from our research so when we found the road we drove it! Coming down Mt Olive Road, it makes a sharp right-hand turn, and that's when Monica saw the "T marker." We are on the trail!
Monica and T Marker for Mt. Olive
Something looked different about this marker. It seemed it faced in an odd direction, east. Hard to read. There was also a large pile of gravel in front of it. We took some pictures and proceeded down Mt. Olive Road looking for more signs of the trail. Once at home we opened up Emigrant Trails West webpage, looked up the Truckee Trail, and the picture of this particular T marker was there! However, a house has been built right on the trail. I have put two pictures up, one from the Trails West webpage, and our photo from Tuesday. This house is entirely new, as it also does not show up on Google Maps.
Photo from Trails West webpage.
Our day was complete, as we found another section of the trail. What's worrying though is the rapid pace of development going on in the foothills of The Sierra. It's quite a desirable place to live, and we saw many new homes popping up here and there. Our concern, as history buffs, is what will people do with these old places and trails. Some don't even know what they are building on, or in some cases, don't care. How can we preserve these beautiful pieces of history, without denying people their private property rights? As fan's of the trails, it's a bit of a shame to see them paved over and in some cases forgotten.
The same spot as above but now with a house.