THE ECOSYSTEM
The primary habitat is open savannah rising eastward to open woodlands with shrubby understories. Lower elevation woodlands merge with annual grasslands. Blue oak and gray pine are the characteristic species with sporadic valley oak and interior live oak. Near the water courses and ponds there are willow, alder, cattails and other riparian species.
Blue Oak
Blue oak is California’s dominant oak species, representing more than one-third of the state’s oak woodlands. Blue oaks are adapted to drought and dry climates and they can survive temperatures above 100° F for several weeks at a time. Average maximum temperatures in July can range from 70° to 100° F while annual precipitation averages 20 to 40 inches and mostly falls in the form of rain.
Blue oak acorns are long, thin, and gently tapering. They are 3/4 to 1 1/2 inches long with shallow caps. The acorns ripen in one year, and can germinate after one month, unlike other oak varieties, which germinate the following spring. From the beginning most of the growth is in the roots instead of the shoots. This allows it to tap into available water sources right away to survive dry conditions. It’s an important food source for deer, rodents, game birds and at least a dozen species of songbirds. They are slow growers, and deceptively small plants can be 25 years old. Blue oaks can live 200 to 500 years, but the blue oak population has decreased because there has been little natural regeneration. According to Department of Fish and Wildlife (DFW) employees, grazing cattle and feral pigs eat many of the acorns and seedlings.
On the west slopes of the Sierra Nevada, blue oak is abundant in the foothills at an elevational range of 500 to 2,000 feet. The most common tree associate of blue oak is gray pine however blue oak extends farther into valleys but not as far into montane regions as the pine. Blue oak is usually the majority species, grey pine inevitably the taller. Most sound acorns fall between mid-September and the end of October. They average 100 seeds per pound and yield from 55 to 180 pounds.
Acorn woodpeckers are very busy birds
Recently conducted wildlife surveys of SWA found 42 mammal species, 12 kinds of reptiles, 4 kinds of amphibians, and 20 fish species. The Audubon Society considers Spenceville a birding “hot spot”, listing 80 nesting, and 175 migratory bird species.
CULTURAL CONTACT
CULTURAL CONTACT
There is no clear evidence that Spanish or Mexican land uses had any significant impact on the distribution or abundance of oak woodlands. The introduction of livestock led to dramatic changes in understory species, which may have had some effect on oak regeneration, but this first wave of settlement left California’s oak woodlands largely intact.
Major changes began during the American period, with the huge population influx that accompanied the Gold Rush. Within two decades, riparian oak woodlands were nearly completely destroyed. Oaks were cleared for agriculture, fuel wood, charcoal, rangeland improvements, and urbanization. Recent urbanization has expanded into oak woodlands, fragmenting wildland habitat.
After 1940 agricultural land clearing was encouraged through federally funded programs. Examples include the War Food Program started in 1941, and the Agricultural Adjustment Administration range improvement program intended for the Eradication and Control of Destructive and Competitive Plants. It was assumed that removal of blue oak would improve forage production, so inexpensive methods were devised for killing and removing oaks. These methods included poisoning with herbicides such as 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T and burning and bulldozing. I don’t know if any of these programs were implemented in the Spenceville area. Another impact has been predator extermination, which has caused an increase in acorn and nut eating animals including gophers, mice, ground squirrels, rabbits, deer and cattle. Acorns and seedlings are being eaten out existence.
Winter is beautiful at Spenceville
In 2002 the U. S. Forest Service published research findings in Oaks 2040: The Status and Future of Oaks in California. They estimate that of the 3 million acres of blue oaks in California 750,000 acres, or 25 percent of California oak woodlands, will be seriously threatened from a burgeoning state population by 2040. Many species of oaks are under threat of extinction in the wild, largely due to land-use changes, livestock grazing and unsustainable harvesting.
The Sacramento region, which includes the Yuba and Bear Rivers, is more at risk for development than any other. Only two-thirds of the oak woodlands are considered “stable.” More than 300,000 acres of oak woodland could be developed in the Sacramento region by 2040. By 2040, 80 percent of El Dorado County’s oak woodlands and more than half of the oak woodlands in Nevada, Yuba, and Placer Counties may be developed. They conclude that California should plan for protection of its stable oak ecosystems now, before these ecosystems are fragmented beyond repair. We are indeed very fortunate to have access to the Spenceville Wildlife Area – it has become an endangered ecosystem. Meanwhile, in 2004, congress passed legislation designating the oak as America’s national tree.
THE NATIVE NISENAN PEOPLE
The Spenceville area has a rich history that begins thousands of years before the Spanish, Mexicans and European gold seekers arrived. Bedrock mortars for pounding acorns and other foods are plentiful especially near springs and streams and they are a visible legacy of the Nisenan people who have lived here for at least 1,500 years. By the time of European contact, acorns and pine nuts were a major part of the Nisenan diet. They manipulated the environment by frequently burning the landscape to improve the gathering of acorns, to facilitate collection of grass seeds, to stimulate growth of shoots used for basketry, to clear brush for hunting and to create nutritious browse for deer. These deliberate fires helped maintain open oak savannas where succession would have led to coniferous forest.
The Nisenan interacted with the largest oaks and sustained an intimate relationship with them for centuries. They were aware that they provided sustenance, shade and continuity for generations. Ancient oaks were living monuments that witnessed the history of the indigenous people unfold. Generations of Nisenan met in the shade and splendor of special oak trees. To the colonizers, these gigantic oaks were viewed simply as trees without any inherent wisdom. With the commoditization of oak trees, not only did their importance as food decrease, but their spiritual significance to the Nisenan diminished.
Bedrock mortars on Dry Creek
Naturally, such reckless damage to the flourishing ecosystem that was their homeland was resented by the Nisenan. The invaders ridiculed the natives, stole from them, abused the women and could be extremely violent. When the Nisenan resisted, the foreigners formed militias and declared war on the natives – their paranoia and hatred was so intense that they petitioned for, and received, a small military garrison called Camp Far West, located a few miles southwest of SWA.
In 1850 the Camp Union Treaty was negotiated with the Nisenan, who by now realized that they were hopelessly outnumbered. This was one of 18 treaties made with California Indians – not one of these treaties was ever ratified (but this is a story for another time). The proposed reservation for the Nisenan included the current SWA.
A diseño, or map, of John Rose's Mexican Land Grant
In addition to the notorious impacts of gold mining there was grazing. Before the gold rush John Rose was awarded a Mexican Land Grant known as “Rancho de Yubu” which was approximately 16 square miles and included parts of the SWA. Rose became rich by providing the expanding mining population with cattle and horses fed on grasslands that once belonged to the Nisenan.
Agriculture was not sophisticated, nor was the palate of the average miner, but one endeavor requires special mention. Scurvy was a problem because of a lack of Vitamin C. A few innovative black men filled a need when, in 1852, they planted and sold cabbages, which stored well and provided vitamin C for would-be miners packing into the mountains. The community of Cabbage Patch was just south of Dry Creek and along the busy road from Sacramento to Empire Ranch, a major transportation hub. It was near the present-day Waldo Bridge and within the SWA. In 1898, when there was enough of a community to warrant a Post Office, Cabbage Patch was renamed Waldo, after Captain William Waldo, who in 1850 led a successful rescue party to the Humboldt Sink in Nevada.
Cattlemen moving their cows
The Waldo schoolhouse was at the intersection of the Spenceville Road and Long Ravine Road and the current Waldo Bridge on Dry Creek was built in 1901. Apparently, the bridge was rebuilt several times and almost destroyed by vandalism in 1964. Now I don’t want to imply that this is a bad neighborhood but only last week my truck was broken into and robbed while parked alongside the road less than a mile from here. Employees of SWA told me it’s happened before – so when you visit this otherwise beautiful place make sure that you don’t leave anything of value in sight.
Spenceville was named for Edward F. Spence, a Nevada City druggist, who in 1868 donated lumber to build the local school house. Spence was a member of the Nevada City Board of Trustees in 1865 and later organized banks in several California cities. He eventually served a term as Mayor of Los Angeles where he was instrumental in establishing the Mt. Wilson observatory.
Tailings in Albion Ravine
There is evidence of early gold mining in Albion Ravine and there was a copper boom along Little Dry Creek in the 1860s. The most famous of the copper mines was adjacent to the town of Spenceville. By 1879 the town of Spenceville had a Post Office, a school, three general stores and was home to 67 families. In 1915 the mine’s surface structures burned to the ground. Some of the families stayed and operated ranches
SPENCEVILLE MINE HISTORY
The mine was originally discovered by some men digging a well in 1862 who named it the Well Lead Copper mine. In the 1870s the Well Lead and the adjoining Grass Valley Copper Mine were bought by the San Francisco Mining Company and $15,000 was invested on improvements to the site. The combined mines were then renamed the San Francisco Copper Mine and Reduction Works. In 1880 their headframe collapsed into the shaft. No one was injured but high expenses were incurred. As a result, management abandoned shafts and decided on an open cut that measured 300’ long by 70’ wide by 75’ deep. In 1882 they owned 43 acres of copper-bearing ground and 100 acres of adjoining land was bought for timber and fuel wood. They were heap roasting ore that was hand-broken by Chinese workmen into small lumps before being hoisted to the surface where they were heap roasted. The imperfectly roasted ore was then returned to a fresh roast-heap, and the rest trammed to the leach vats. They employed 23 white men and 40 Chinese at the mine and the mill and several “wood choppers.”
With copper values in flux the San Francisco Copper Mine and Reduction Works sold their property to the Imperial Paint Company and Copper Works. The new owners didn’t really mine but instead reworked tailings containing iron oxides to produce a Venetian red paint pigment. This paint became all the rage – it even won a Gold Medal in the San Francisco 1894 Winter Exposition. But, by 1897 the business failed when it was discovered that the paint corroded the structural nails causing barns and other buildings to collapse. Then the mine was renamed the Spenceville Mineral Company and in 1915 was damaged by a fire with mining completely shut down in 1918.
This is not the end of the story. When I started visiting SWA in the late 70s the mining site was easily accessible with a pit containing deep blue water of a scary hue, nearby Little Dry Creek had strange chemical crusts on its banks, there was little vegetation and the soil was reddish, arid and dusty. Not at all hospitable, not even natural. Here’s the State Department of Conservation’s initial assessment of the situation: “The 10-acre site included 60,000 cubic yards of mine waste and a half-acre, water-filled mine pit. The pit contained 7.5 million gallons of pH 2.5 acid mine drainage – essentially, battery acid that was trickling into two creeks. The flooded pit posed a risk not only to wildlife, but also to people recreating in the area.”
In 1988 the Department of Fish and Wildlife started exploring the possibility of cleaning up the site, however funding to actually complete the project didn’t become available until 2000. Actual work began in 2001 and was declared a success in 2013. The former mine is currently fenced off while the replanted vegetation takes hold. The pit has been drained and backfilled, the tailings removed, soil has been buffered by lime to remove its acidity and Little Dry Creek is replanted. The Department of Conservation is pleased with the results and was honored with a Governor’s Environmental and Economic Leadership Award in 2013.
View from a bunker created when Beale owned this land
BEALE AIR FORCE BASE
In 1942 the U.S. Army acquired (often by eminent domain) 86,000 acres of oak-woodland and prairie grassland, including Spenceville, for training purposes. There are still concrete bunkers from this era dotting the landscape within the SWA. By 1964 the government sold all but 22,944 acres, which it retained as Beale Air Force base.
SPENCEVILLE WILDLIFE AREA
The Department of Fish and Game acquired land from the federal government to create the Spenceville Wildlife Area in 1966. Humans frequent the area as well. There is a varied group of users that includes hikers, bicyclists, equestrians, bird watchers, fisherman, hunters and cattle ranchers who have grazing allotments here. They even offer a shooting range.
Map of the Spenceville area
Courtesy of Friends of Spenceville
TRAILS
Spenceville contains several very scenic trails that require little effort. For instance, North Pittman Road is one of several closed roads with numerous equestrian trails that branch off revealing oak groves, open meadows and wildlife ponds. To reach the road walk across the concrete bridge at the Spenceville parking lot and turn left.
The most popular hike is the well-marked 2.5-mile trail to Fairy Falls. On a spring or summer weekend it can be extremely popular. From the parking area walk across the concrete bridges over Dry Creek and Little Dry Creek and continue northeastwardly on the historic Spenceville Road as it gradually climbs. The meadow on the north side of the road was the location of the town of Spenceville. All that remains are some rock alignments, olive trees and a small concrete structure that was a well. This segment of road/trail is about one mile long with an elevation gain of only 200 feet.
Fairy Falls on Dry Creek
Luscious lichen at Fairy Falls
SAFETY
Hiking is great all year at Spenceville, especially if you are prepared. Summers are very hot so bring enough water and protection from the sun and heat. Poison oak thrives here but can be avoided by staying on roads and trails. Learn to identify it. Ticks are especially active in the spring and early summer. In the winter Spenceville can be foggy creating a moody and mystic landscape that is damp and sometimes cold. If you are coming to Spenceville from upslope you may be surprised to find yourself in valley fog, which is no problem if you remembered to bring appropriate clothing.
Remnants of the original Kneebone Ranch
HOW TO GET THERE:
From Grass Valley, drive 12.5 miles west on Highway 20 toward Marysville. Turn south (left) from Highway 20, at the Beale Air Force Base sign, onto the Smartsville-Hammonton Road. After .9 mile, take the left fork on Chuck Yeager Road and continue for 3.8 miles to Waldo Road. Continue along Waldo Road for 1.8 miles to the Waldo Bridge. After crossing the bridge, continue to the left along Spenceville Road for 2.3 miles until you arrive at a parking area and trailhead by the old concrete bridge and abandoned mine site.
For maps and more specific information:
Spring is gorgeous here
