A breathtaking 19th-century trail overlooks Lake Tahoe.

The oldest hotel in Nevada.

This historic estate on the east shore of Lake Tahoe was home to an eccentric millionaire (and his pet elephant, Mingo).

The museum is housed inside the historic 1863 Carson City Mint.

Ruins of the original wooden flume that carried water to Virginia City are still visible high on the Virginia Range.

Historic home to one of the most famous women pioneers of the 19th century.

Hidden in a hotel parking lot is a strange historical plaque erected by an obscure fraternal society.

The Empire Mine is "one of the oldest, largest, deepest, longest and richest gold mines in California."

The beauty and the beast of hydraulic mining is on full display at this California Historic State Park.

"You don't need a rocket scientist to build a steam engine, but we've got one." -Museum docent on the credentials of a restoration volunteer.

The now-abandoned tunnels were built for the transcontinental railroad on the route where the first wagon train entered California.

A statue commemorating the heroic life of a Viking postman who was the Godfather of California skiing.

A grave dedicated to the pioneers who settled California.

The rest of him lived another 61 years and was buried elsewhere.