Explore Outdoors: Gold Rush history comes to life in Coloma at weekend event

Weekend event immerses visitors in a Gold Rush mining camp.

Weekend event immerses visitors in a Gold Rush mining camp.

DAY THAT’S AT 10:00. THE EVENTS, BY THE WAY, ARE FREE. WELL, NOW TO OUR EXPLORER OUTDOORS. TODAY IN CALIFORNIA’S GOLD RUSH, HISTORY COMES TO LIFE WITH THIS WEEKEND IN THE SIERRA FOOTHILLS. KCRA 3’S BRIAN HICKEY EXPLAINS HOW YOU CAN STEP BACK IN TIME AND EXPERIENCE THE LIFE OF A MINER. THE EVENT IS CALLED COLOMA LIVE AND YOU ARE INVITED TO PARTICIPATE THIS WEEKEND, JUST LIKE IT WAS 1849 SATURDAY AND SUNDAY IN EL DORADO COUNTY. MORE THAN 130 DOCENTS WILL DRESS UP AND TRANSFORM THE MARSHALL GOLD DISCOVERY STATE HISTORIC PARK INTO AN 1850S TENT TOWN. VISITORS WILL GET TO EXPERIENCE THE JOY AND HARDSHIPS OF BEING A MINER IN THE HEART OF THE CALIFORNIA GOLD RUSH. OF COURSE, GOLD PANNING WILL TAKE CENTER STAGE ALONG THE AMERICAN RIVER, BUT VISITORS WILL ALSO LEARN HOW THESE PIONEERS LIVED THEIR EVERYDAY LIVES. CHEFS WILL DEMONSTRATE DUTCH OVEN COOKING. BLACKSMITHS WILL SHOW YOU HOW THEY MADE TOOLS AND EQUIPMENT. MERCHANTS WILL EVEN DEMONSTRATE WHAT A STORE LOOKED LIKE BACK THEN. AN ANTIQUE BOWLING ALLEY IS ALSO OPERATIONAL, AND IT’S A MEANS OF RECREATION AND A CANNON WILL FIRE TO DEMONSTRATE THE POWER OF BLACK POWDER. ORGANIZERS SAY IT’S IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND OUR HISTORY IN A FUN AND INTERACTIVE WAY. IT’S JUST REALLY IMPORTANT THAT PEOPLE SEE WHAT WE COME FROM SO COLOMA, BECAUSE THIS IS WHERE GOLD WAS FIRST DISCOVERED. IT’S WHERE PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD CAME LOOKING FOR GOLD. SO THIS WAS A MELTING POT OF CULTURES, PEOPLE OF DIFFERENT BACKGROUNDS, AND THEY WORKED REALLY, REALLY HARD. LIFE WAS NOT EASY BACK THEN AND SOMETIMES I THINK WE TAKE THAT FOR GRANTED. OTHER ACTIVITIES INCLUDE CANDLE MAKING, JOURNALING, ROPE MAKING, KIDS GAMES, CAMPFIRES, EVEN WAGON RIDES. AND THEY’LL HAVE A BARBECUE. THE EVENT RUNS SATURDAY AND SUNDAY. THE COST IS $15 PER CARLOAD. THAT INCLUDES PARKING. HOURS ARE 10 TO 4 ON SATURDAY AND 10 TO 3 ON SUNDAY. VISITORS CAN PAY WITH CASH AND CARD. FOOD AT THE BARBECUE WILL COST YOU A BIT EXTRA. YOU MIGHT EVEN GET TO MEET JAMES MARSHALL HIMSELF, ROAMING THE GROUNDS THIS WEEKEND, WHERE HE FIRST DISCOVERED GOLD, LAUNCHING THE GREAT CALIFORNIA GOLD RUSH. I’M BRIAN HICKEY FOR EXPLORER OUTDOORS. WELL, FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS EXPLORER OUTDOORS SEGMENT OR OTHER IDEAS FOR DAY TRIPS, YOU CAN SCAN THE QR CODE THAT’S BEEN UP THERE ON YOUR SCREEN. I STILL REMEMBER WHEN MY KIDS WENT THERE FOR JUST THE SCHOOL TRIP. IT’S REALLY SPECIAL. YEAH. FOR

Explore Outdoors: Gold Rush history comes to life in Coloma at weekend event

Weekend event immerses visitors in a Gold Rush mining camp.

California's Gold Rush history comes to life in El Dorado County at the annual Coloma Gold Rush Live event.The Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park hosts the event each fall to give visitors an immersive and hands-on look at life in a mining camp in the 1850s.The park is where gold was first discovered in California by James Marshall in 1848, triggering the massive migration of prospectors from around the world hoping to strike it rich in the Sierra foothills.The Coloma Live event features more than 130 docents dressed in period costumes demonstrating how early settlers lived their daily lives in the camps.The state historic park is turned into a tent town complete with a blacksmith, mercantile owner and chefs demonstrating Dutch oven cooking.Visitors will learn how to pan for gold, make rope, dip candles, journal, play games and take a wagon ride. You'll even get a chance to try your hand at an antique bowling alley.Try not to flinch when the canon is fired throughout the day demonstrating the power of black powder and how it was used to move rock.Organizers of the event say it's important to understand and connect with the state's history in a fun and interactive way."It’s really important to see where we come from. So Coloma, this is where gold was first discovered, people came from all over the world came looking for gold. This was a melting pot of cultures and people of different backgrounds and they worked really, really hard. Life was not easy back then. Sometimes I think we take that for granted," said state park interpreter Holly Thane.Admission to the event is $15 per car load of people and includes parking.The barbecue lunch costs extra. Visitors can pay with cash or card.The event runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday at the Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park at 300 Back Street in Coloma.

COLOMA, Calif. —

California's Gold Rush history comes to life in El Dorado County at the annual Coloma Gold Rush Live event.

The Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park hosts the event each fall to give visitors an immersive and hands-on look at life in a mining camp in the 1850s.

The park is where gold was first discovered in California by James Marshall in 1848, triggering the massive migration of prospectors from around the world hoping to strike it rich in the Sierra foothills.

The Coloma Live event features more than 130 docents dressed in period costumes demonstrating how early settlers lived their daily lives in the camps.

The state historic park is turned into a tent town complete with a blacksmith, mercantile owner and chefs demonstrating Dutch oven cooking.

Visitors will learn how to pan for gold, make rope, dip candles, journal, play games and take a wagon ride.

You'll even get a chance to try your hand at an antique bowling alley.

Try not to flinch when the canon is fired throughout the day demonstrating the power of black powder and how it was used to move rock.

Organizers of the event say it's important to understand and connect with the state's history in a fun and interactive way.

"It’s really important to see where we come from. So Coloma, this is where gold was first discovered, people came from all over the world came looking for gold. This was a melting pot of cultures and people of different backgrounds and they worked really, really hard. Life was not easy back then. Sometimes I think we take that for granted," said state park interpreter Holly Thane.

Admission to the event is $15 per car load of people and includes parking.

The barbecue lunch costs extra. Visitors can pay with cash or card.

The event runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday at the Marshall Gold Discovery State Historic Park at 300 Back Street in Coloma.

Explore Outdoors: Gold Rush history comes to life in Coloma at weekend event

Weekend event immerses visitors in a Gold Rush mining camp.

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