Family Visit

Visits from family and friends always involve about as much time planning and preparing as the total visit and the Burkhard's visit this past weekend was no exception. Verne came up with a brilliant idea for our entertainment...a tour of the Kennedy Mine in Jackson followed by a short hike to the Kennedy tailing wheel, which has recently been the subject of a community improvement project to preserve it by enclosing it in a building. A few years ago we had hiked to see the tailing wheel, which is the only complete and standing tailing wheel remaining of the original four. When we got to the top of the hill on Saturday, the sight took our breath away. The tailing wheel now stands enclosed in a magnificent metal building with a beautiful paneled glass front for viewing. It's a work of art! The structure was paid in part by a grant with the remaining funds coming from community donations. The completed project might not have had such an impact on Verne and I, but we had seen the wheel before, standing there slowly decaying after being abandoned in 1942, and soon to join its sister wheels as a pile of decaying lumber. It was heartwarming to see that beautiful old wheel standing tall and now protected so that future generations may visit and learn its history.

I think everyone enjoyed the adventure, although the kids were ready to rest their tired little feet and have a Starbucks by the end of the walk. It certainly was far better (shorter, that is) than the hike Grandpa Verne took Kendall and Sam on a few years ago when one of the kids asked, "How big is 40 acres?" and Grandpa showed them by walking the entire perimeter of the property...through some of the scruffiest, rockiest, buggiest terrain in Amador County. Their bloodied legs healed with time (just joking), but their shoes were so dirty and full of burrs that they went home in a bag and were later mistaken for trash and accidentally thrown away! Our hike on Saturday was about a 2 on a scale of 1 to 10...very citified and complete with an asphalt trail and picnic benches. 

Here are a few pictures from our big event...