Welcome to Sacremento!

 Hiya Gang: 

I scampered into Sacramento, paws clicking against sidewalks shaded by tall trees that seemed to hold a ton of history.  The air was alive with trains, laughter, and the wide river shining under the California  golden sun. Everywhere I looked, the mix of past and present made me feel like the city was inviting a curious fox like me to explore.

I hopped onto the light rail, ears twitching at the hum and chatter of the morning commute (even on a Saturday). Before long, the train rolled into Sacramento Valley Station, its grand old building standing proudly against the skyline. With a flick of his tail, he set off toward Old Sacramento, ready to spend the day wandering wooden sidewalks and exploring gold rush history.

As I sit on this old switching train, I remember my schooling as a kit learning about Sacramento’s past.  It was western starting point of the Transcontinental Railroad in the 1860s. Railroads helped Sacramento grow from a Gold Rush town into a hub of agriculture trade.  The trains are running today still part of everyday Sacramento history. 

Old Town Sacramento feels like stepping back in time, with its creaky wooden sidewalks, brick buildings, and horse-drawn carriages clip-clopping by (pretend you don't see any cars).

 I could spend hours exploring the museums, peeking into old shops, and sniffing around the waterfront where history and fun come alive.

So many stories in these old buildings, it would be a great place for a ghost tour.   This is the old town square area home to the state railroad museum - no time today but looks interesting.

Old Town Sacramento is filled with beautifully preserved buildings from the mid-1800s, many of them built during the Gold Rush era. Sturdy brick structures, once saloons, hotels, and general stores, still line the streets, their weathered facades telling stories of pioneers and fortune seekers. Walking past them, you can almost imagine the bustle of wagons, riverboats, and merchants that once made this district the heart of California’s early days.

The Pony Express was a daring mail service that carried letters across nearly 2,000 miles between Missouri and California in just 10 days during 1860–1861. Sacramento marked the western end of the route, where riders finished their exhausting journey by delivering the mail to the bustling riverfront. Today, a bronze Pony Express statue stands proudly in Old Sacramento, honoring the  riders who made history.

The Delta King is a historic paddlewheel riverboat built in the late 1920s, originally paired with her twin, the Delta Queen, to carry passengers between San Francisco and Sacramento. 

After the Delta King was retired in 1940, her story took a rough turn. She served as a floating barracks during World War II, then was used for various odd purposes, even sitting half-sunken and deteriorating in the Bay Area for years. By the 1980s, the once-proud riverboat was nearly lost to rust, rot, and neglect. That’s when the Lewis family of Sacramento stepped in, purchasing the vessel and painstakingly restoring her over several years. Thanks to their dedication, the Delta King was brought back to life and now rests proudly in Old Sacramento as a living piece of river history.

Of course I'm sure you are curious about the Delta Kings sibling, the Delta Queen.  Well, she needs some help.  The Delta Queen remains docked in Houma, Louisiana, awaiting her next chapter. The Delta Queen Steamboat Company has now listed her for sale, hoping to find a steward committed to preserving her legacy—whether that means bringing her back to cruising or transforming her into a stationary attraction, much like her sister ship in Sacramento.

She looks like a grand ship.

Of course, she's in peril right now (here's a pic from 2016) in Louisiana.  

Enough for one day, it is August in Sacremento and it's kind of hot.  This fox has an idea of where to go to get out of the heat.

Bartender hooked me up with a nice local beer.   Cheers.