NEVADA CITY : In and out of the woods THE 70's

California State Highway 20 travels 213 miles from the High Sierra to the Pacific Ocean. It's journey through Nevada County is one of the most scenic. There would be times when the view would be your least concerns. One being a logging truck in your rear view mirror.
Miles Rodney's "Fandango Dance" wiil go down as one of the funniest moments in fire camp history. One that still can make you laugh over 40 years later. A very classic event.

Miles Rodney was member of White Cloud's CWN Fire Crew. An "insane group" and Miles was most certainly the " insane of the insane ". One of the most fun person we have ever met. He died at a all to young age, I am sure he had a lot of laughs left in him when he passed on.

Giant burn towers could be found at the many lumber mills that were spread throughout Nevada County in the 1970's. They burned sawdust and other wood scraps and their smoke was seen and smelled at almost every spot where you could see trees. By the end of the decade they were all gone. Air pollution was one reason for sure and the most obvious. But the industry was always evolving and what once was waste soon became another product. Wood waste became a thing of the past as every part of the tree was put to good use.

Wiley Dog could smell the burnt rubber in the air. It was from smoking tires as Sparky at slammed on the brakes and suddenly brought the careening Edsel to an abrupt stop. The large V8 now stood at a quiet idle. In front of the long blue hood a Desert Tortoise was taking it's time to see what was on the other side of the road. Wiley Dog and Sparky took an advantage of this unexpected pit stop and they both jumped out of the car. Sparky using the door and Wiley Dog leaping and flipping an complete somersault before landing up right on all fours. His red Chuck Taylor's barely making an imprint on the desert floor. Sparky looked over his shoulder and yelled, " 5 point 0 ! You should be in a Jackie Chan movie !" The Nevada City Duo climbed back into the Edsel. As Sparky turned the radio dial to the Giant game, Wiley Dog figured that they were halfway to the canyon ahead. " Hummmmmm Baby !", Sparky yelled out. That was good news as the Giants were currently ahead of the Dodgers. They both smiled at each other. After all any day Dodger Blue is losing is a good day. And this was to their beloved Giants, that was even better ! The tortoise was now safely on the other side and Sparky buried his foot on the pedal and the Edsel responded by roaring back to break neck speeds. Wiley Dog returned to his thoughts of Sparky's first day on the job as a fire fighter for the U. S. Forest Service.

Sparky had cut his long hair, bought a new pair of Levis and a khaki shirt which he was wearing when he pulled his Dodge pickup into the White Cloud dirt parking lot. This would be the first day of fire training for the new fire season and both new and experienced fire fighters had gathered from all over the Tahoe National Forest. The real first thing he noticed was the Hobart Hot Shot Crew. They had come over from Truckee which was east of the Sierra Summit from White Cloud about an hours drive. At this time except for crew management they were all Indians. They had been around for some time and always proved to be one of the hardest working crews on the Forest. What Sparky really always ed remembered was EVERYONE of them had long hair, most all the way down their back ! He had cut his hair and he knew even then as a young man that hair, much less long hair would soon be a faded memory. That moment would soon pass replaced by the thoughts that this was going to be fun....and it was.

Wiley Dog's thoughts broke has the radio blared out " Bye Bye Baby " as a Giant had just hit a home run to add to the Giant's lead. " Hummmmm Baby !", the duo screamed in unison. Wiley Dog returned to his thoughts. Sparky had told him that in the Fire organization there many levels. At the top were the 20 man hot shot crews that fought all the big fires and of course had the largest ego's, usually well deserved. These groups are the ones that books and movies are made about. Sparky was a district fire fighter and the public hardly ever heard of the fires they fought. Their motto was " Hit em hard, keep em small !". After all they were picking up sticks. Fire on the other hand could not tell you apart and the job was truly dangerous. A job filled with hours that border on true boredom and in an instant can be start terror. What a great way to spend the summer ! The BD Crew was so new and awash with money that they soon found themselves involved in almost every kind of fire, both small and very large. Yippee! Sparky did almost nothing but fight fire that season with only a rare chance to enjoy Nevada City's ever increasing night life. And there would be no trips to one of his and Wiley Dog's favorite places......the Yuba River. That summer was filled being away on a fire the longest span being 28 days at one time. Hell, the money was rolling in and you had no time to spend it.

A bad fire season and loads of money led to the most interesting times. One was the formation of a twenty man crew that were the Call When Needed Crew. They fought fires and picked up sticks right alone besides us but were you might consider a temp worker. They were called the CWN Crew. And this Summer they worked almost every day of fire season, yes awash with money. It really takes a special kind of person that wants to spend the season fighting fire. And this group was all that and more. Lifetime friendships were formed and the combination of BD Crew, CWN Crew, the woods and fire proved to be the most interesting. Sure, a lot of hard work was done, but the stories all came out of something other than that. All those years have to many to tell so a few that involve one of life's really true characters should do. Mile Rodney stood about 5 foot 7 and must at least weighed 213 pounds. Every ounce was either fun or trouble usually both. Sparky considered him the Tasmanian Devil with a voice like the cartoon character Yosemite Sam. On this occasion we had all gone to a large fire as a 20 man hand crew. Days had gone by and the effort had turned to a routine, a very boring one at that. One night after dinner we had all gathered around the burn barrel camp fire and stared at it with lifeless eyes. All of a sudden I could here the Tasmanian Devil's voice. : Gentlemen for your pleasure I will perform for you the dance of seven veils !" What could this be Sparky thought ? Miles had stretched a semi transparent plastic sheet between two poles. He began to dance around he had his hard hat on with the headlamp on. You could only see his round shape as he peeled some bit of clothing and waved in the air all the time gyrating in in some sort of "exotic" moves. There must have been fifty fire fighter who all turned on their head lamps and shined them through the plastic onto Miles. He did this for at least 15 minutes and he finally was down to his boots, underwear and hard hat. During all that time we all were howling and clapping our hands. Taking a bow Miles turned off his headlamp and slipped away. Such fun...everybody laughed for days.

Another crew story that involved "The Devil" was a trip to a fire in the San Francisco Peak area close to Flagstaff Arizona. Once again a 20 man hand crew we bussed to Redding California and boarded the Big Banana. A bright Hues Air West 737. We were traveling with a crew from the Lassen National Forest. The most disciplined fine crew you could imagine. To this day Sparky thinks that they must have consider his crew mates insane or close to it. As soon as the plane reached cruising height and the seat belts came off the Tahoe boys went Zerk. Screaming at each other, running up and down the aisle. It was non stop and at the peak of this Miles pulls down his pants while being at the head of the cabin and yells out " Mile high BA !". All this time the Lassen crew watched in total disbelief. We landed in Winslow Arizona, boarded separate buses and were off to the fire. Our driver drove like a bat out of hell and the Lassen bus was soon out of our site. Well the fire by then had been snowed on and it turns out the crews were not needed. The Arizona Highway Patrol caught the Lassen bus and they turned around and got on the same plane and flew back to California. There was no catching us ! We showed up at fire camp but not before the bus got stuck in the mud. At last there was something for the Tahoe boys to do. Piling out they all pushed the bus from it's muddy grasp. Arriving at the camp and being told what was going on . There was nothing to do. Well Miles had found a hut made of logs and a roof of paper sleeping bags built by the convict fire crew. Making friends with them and the fact they were on the night crew we took over their makeshift shelter. A night of playing cards under your head lamp followed. Out of the sleeping bag hut the next morning proved it had once again snowed and everyone was going home. We in our spotless bright yellow nomex fire shirts and those that the yellow was long gone by the fire's grime. Returning to the Winslow Airport we waited for our plane. A group of us started to play cards and drink Bud in the can. So much Bud that those selling it to us did at least two beer runs to refresh their vastly depleted supply. It seemed that Pete Newell and Sparky cleaned up that afternoon stuffing their pockets with dollar bills. We flew back in an old DC 3, many times the return trip was with "different" than the getting there. Once again this was Animal House in the air. The good news it was just us and the flight crew. Oh, speaking of the crew. There was Miles with a small group of friends in the very small bathroom all smoking. The smoke seemed to go out the tail some how. Heck it was an old plane ! When there was a knock on the door. Ignored it got a little more aggressive. Still ignored it became a beating with a loud voice yelling " This is the pilot ! I have to pee!" The look on his face as people kept coming out of that small bathroom was amazing. What fun....

NEVADA CITY: Stories told in Pete's Place THE 70's

Logging was jamming in the 70's loader at Brunswick Mill now gone
A happening place in the 70's Robinson Timber truck yard-still active in 2008
Dolley loader Brunswick Mill site now gone

Wiley Dog and Sparky are racing across the desert in an attempt to save their friend Mic. The Ford Edsel is careening at speeds close to one hundred miles an hour. The top is down and the radio is blasting the Door's " Rider in the Storm". " Life is so grand !" shouts out Sparky. Wiley Dog pulls his head in from the blasting warm desert wind and gives the so true sign. He relates to how long the two of them have felt this way. Wiley Dog's thoughts return to their early day's bull shitting in Pete's Place in downtown Nevada City. Isn't that what your neighborhood bar should be. A good one should seem like an extension of your living room, filled with familiar sights, smells and of course good friends. Pete's Place was the home of ice cold Bud in the can and cheap whiskey. All which were consumed for the enjoyment and at times at a record pace. Being amazed the Sparky was actually working in the woods much less fighting fires ! Here was a man who only real time in the woods was when he had gone on vacation with his parents to Yosemite. Now that trip was taken many times and Sparky had become to think Yosemite as his spiritual compass. That's funny because over the years of their adventures he had began to think the same thing. What fun the two of them had there. But back to the woods. Nevada County in the 1970's and beyond had a lot of trees and the demand was high for wood products. The mills and the logging trucks were running at peak production. This was the period that most of the old growth forests would be taken away." One stick at a time" , as Sparky would say. It seemed after working in the "working woods" for some time Sparky had a whole different concept about the forest. He could not identify all the species, but he could tell you how they would burn. Wiley Dog was never sure if that was a good overall thing or not. While it may not be ,if you were going to try to prevent or stop them from burning it mightily was. Sparky was told that a new crew needed some manpower. Although there is a mix of the genders later but those days there were at this time no women fighting fires. So off he goes to the Nevada City District office, which as you remember is next door to Pete's Place. He enters the office and tells the receptionist that he had heard they were hiring. Speaking of hiring, this was the good ole days with the Forest Service way before all those darn computers changed everything. You COULD actually get hired off the street. It could have been his hippie long hair, his handlebar mustache, who knows! The response was "sorry we are not". Remembering that he was told from a good source that they where. He preceded to pound on the counter and in a ever increasing loud voice demand to see someone, hell, anyone who was in charge here. Suddenly a head popped out of the office down the hall and a uniformed official came to the counter. " Why don't you come back after lunch", he said. The noon siren then began to wail as it did for so many years. And this was the US Government and yes it was lunch time. Returning later Sparky was ushered into an office and introduced to the district's top fire guy Chuck Welch. After a brief who are you session ,Chuck hired him on the spot. It seemed there was a new program that was floating in money, you remember the woods were a happening place. Monies from logging sales were pouring in to this program which in it's simplest form was called Brush Disposal or as we would all soon call it; the BD Crew. The downed slash from a logging site was tremendous and to prevent further damage from fires there was a need to reduce this hazard. There are many ways but the main way then was as became to be known as "picking up sticks" putting in a pile to be burned after fire season was over. That's it...picking up sticks ! That is how Sparky got into the woods....or shall we say the "working woods". His guard station was White Cloud some 13 miles east of Nevada City on California Highway 20. Nestled on the ridge top that separates Deer Creek from the South Fork of the Yuba River it had seen deer, Indians, early pioneers and modern travelers all pass this way. The old Emigirant Trail goes right through White Cloud. The then camp site, it is still active to this day, was built in the 1930's by the CCC. Located at just over the 4,000 feet level it proved to be a great place to work with soft breezes and much cooler temperatures than the lower Nevada City. As the story goes the reason that it is called White Cloud is that is where the clouds form during the summer. Sparky said that they did and that was good enough for him. SCREECH went the tires as the Edsel slammed to a halt. Wiley Dog's quickly returned to the present.........

NEVADA CITY : Such a cute little town THE 70's

Annie owner of Pete's Place Nevada City California

Miles Rodney Firefighter
F7 Air Tanker
Hooking up the water bucket at White Cloud
Cutting fire line with D6 Cat

As the most chromed example how Detroit like to push on the car loving American public their misguided follies hurled it's way across the flat desert floor Wiley Dog's mind began to whirl. Fond thoughts came clear of the time he and Sparky met. It was in Pete's Place in the small town of Nevada City California. It was 1970 and unknown to both of then this was the starting decade to what this town would eventually evolve into. Located an hour from California's Capital Sacramento and a hour east to the blue gem of the Sierra Nevada Mountains Lake Tahoe. Nestled in what is called California's Mother Lode it had earned the title as the " Queen of the Northern Mines". The Mother Lode is an area that earned it's name from the 1849 gold discovery. It stretches north of Nevada City and runs along the Sierra Foothills south of Mariposa. Several hundred miles that finds itself being the transition point between the majestic High Sierra and California's Great Central Valley. The valley oaks change to the Sierra pines and the many rivers that feed the valley all seem to cross the Mother Lode. And it was the rivers that brought the first gold seekers to the region. California gold was discovered at a lumber mill site along the banks of the American just an hours drive south from modern Nevada City. That find by John Marshall not only transformed this area but was the start of modern California. Originally called Deer Creek Diggings after the creek that gold was first discovered in. Soon would be called many names; Caldwell's Upper Store was one of them. The strike was a good one and the camp soon became a town. On April 14 1849 a real town was born sporting the name Nevada. The tents started to disappear and wooden structures started to appear. The area at the 2500 foot level was blessed with large areas of pine forest and abundant water and of course all that glittering gold. Wiley Dog always-ed like the idea that Nevada City was an Aries. When Nevada became a state the town became officially the name it is known for today----Nevada City.

Nevada City flourished from it's birth until the mid 1950's. By then the many gold mines where far under ground and had brought millions of dollars to the local economy. It might seem strange here in the year 2008, but the price of gold was so low and the mines so deep that it was no longer worth the effort. So after a Century of very good times the area had become depressed. Blessed with outstanding scene and fabulous history just not enough cash to spread around. That is something you might be able to relate here in 2008 ! One area though was doing fine and was on the way to doing even better, that being the timber industry. The Golden Center Freeway was built in the 1960's. Dubbed California's shortest freeway it stretched from just north of Nevada City to just south of "the town over the hill" Grass Valley. While Nevada City was the county seat of Nevada County and the headquarters of the Tahoe National Forest, Grass Valley had grown much larger and had a better retail base. The Golden Center Freeway was short on miles but ran deep with emotions. Nevada City was given three choices; one east, one through and one west of town. Already facing economic survival the city father choice became the route directly through town. It was their belief that there was no way town could grow with traffic going on the outskirts. The route took out a large swath of town although the builders sunk this section which changed to sound and site lines. The construction sparked a fierce battle that would set the foundation of modern Nevada City. What came out of this battle was an historical district that would preserve a true gem of a town. That effort would in time prove to be the salvation of Nevada City.

Sparky first was introduced to Nevada City in the late 60's. While attending college a friend and fellow fraternity brother was dating his future wife. She had grown up there and the introduction to town was a fun one. After all fun was the main theme of his life in those days. Theta Chi's ,OX , had become known for their outlandish parties and all around good times. Sparky fit in well. If he was not being an OX he was on the quad. He must have gone to some classes for he got his degree. But he was an art major and this WAS the 60's. I should not make fun of him for I earned my color stripes during that time. We all had are ways !

After college Sparky moved to Squaw Valley. Having spent the years since high school hanging in the Lake Tahoe area with friends this was a natural move. Spending the non snow months filled with all types of entertainment. As far as I can tell he was stoned on something all the time.....but it WAS the 60's. Myself, I was hanging with a young Huell Houser. Huell is responsible for my endless curoisity and great question skills. I met Sparky at Pete's Place, which by any standards was a most non happening place. The doors on non weekend days were closed by 8. And unlike some places it did not have any AM business. Actually Pete's Place in the 70's had very little business at all. That was going on across the street at the Club Crazy Horse....it was the it place in town in those days. The joint was owned by Annie who was then in her late 60's and she DID everything...no one else worked there. Occasionaly her son Frank might help. But he was from far away Yuba City! What was the attraction ?! Simple put it was the hang out of the postal workers which was just down the street and the Forest Service. That is the United States Forest Service which District Office was next door. And Sparky he was a firefighter with the organization.

Outside of Pete's Place Nevada City had started to transform itself. Hippies, spiritual seeking young people all had slowly shown up. Some because of the Spirtual Community of Ananda. Some because the cosmos showed them that this place was the center of "special powers". Some because of the fantastic Yuba River. Some to try their hand with new tech with the Grass Valley Group. For what ever reason this eclectic group were about to transform sleepy Nevada City into what many now call Nirvana.

I liked Pete's Place, after all it was the home of cold cheap Bud in the can and cheap whiskey shots. A true mix that could lead to hours of bar "bull shit". Most certainly a mighty fine time! Some of those stories next.......

DESERT SOLITARE: Wiley Dog remembers it all

The Adventures of Wiley Dog and Sparky has just one simple goal. That being; TO SAVE THE PLANET, BY ONE PERSON AT A TIME. Simple you say !? If you controlled the powers that Wiley Dog has you too would think this life's mission can be accomplished. I am sure you want some sort of explaination of those powers. But let it be said now that they most certainly will unfold as simple to you as the planet spins. Common sense and reasoning all are a part of those powers. Including a keen sense of smell. After all I am a dog ! Sparky on the other hand has, if I recall right , has never been called a dog. And while I hold dogs in the highest regards, a human being called a dog is seldom a good thing. Sparky is my constant companion and as good fortune in life would have it we have managed to compliment each other towards are life's mission. That being once again our simple goal. We both figured that as well as mass media works here in the 21ST Century, the one person at a time thing will have more of a lasting impact. The latest adventure all started as we crossed the lonely desert in a car we both love but surely ranks as one of Detroit's worst mistakes. A bright blue Ford Edsel. The blue stood out in a landscape of brown, yellow, purple, red and orange. Sparky had been sent a map and a note that pointed to the spot where is friend Mic had been last sighted. Wiley Dog and Sparky sped across the high desert seeing in the distance a canyon entrance that this slender straight road was rapidly taking them too. Sparky pressed the gas pedal to floor and the Edsel responded in kind hurling them at ever greater speed toward the unknown. This was nothing new for the Nevada City duo. They both had seen half the planet in their quest to rescue their friend. Wiley Dog's thoughts flashed back to were this all began.......