For untold thousands of years two great rivers flowed through what is now Sacramento, unbounded by artificial levees. Their waters flooded outward with each spring runoff. The resulting marshlands and surrounding oak woodlands provided ample habitat for elk, bear, and millions of ducks and geese that passed through each winter. Evidence that thousands of Native Americans lived here remains amply evident with their grinding holes and leftover middens. Swiss immigrant John Sutter who built his fort and trading center near the confluence of the American and Sacramento rivers served notice that massive change was soon coming. When one of his workers, James Marshall, discovered gold in 1848 on the upper American River, life changed for everyone. By the following year the great Gold Rush was on and a dozen years later plans were being laid for building the transcontinental railroad.

This part of California's Great Valley has been geographically split in numerous ways over the years and given differing names for each--Sacramento Valley, Central Valley, Great Valley. And there are likely others. Stretching from about Redding to just south of Sacramento, the North Valley is bounded by the Sierra Foothills to the east and the Coastal Range to the west. Summer temperatures can soar to over 100 degrees F., although the 90s are more common. Evenings can be pleasant whenever the cooling Delta breeze kicks up, bringing cool ocean air inland. Driving down Interstate 80 is a ride through a great agricultural treasure, today's California Gold Rush.

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