California's Gold

Season 17

2006 · 12 episodes · 5h 36m in all

Episodes

1. 1

   1. Ladybugs

   2 Jan 2006 · 28 min

   Huell heads out on an honest-to-goodness ladybug hunt in a tightly guarded, secret local valley to witness millions of beetles overwintering. [Production Code 8001]

2. 2

   2. Aztec/Wigwam

   3 Feb 2006 · 28 min

   Huell hits Route 66 to explore two historic roadside architectural landmarks: the Mayan-themed Aztec Hotel in Monrovia and the concrete teepees of the Wigwam Motel in Rialto. [Production Code 8002]

3. 3

   3. Things Beside The Road

   7 Feb 2006 · 28 min

   Huell pulls off the highway to inspect quirky curiosities catching his eye, including a vintage 49er RV Park, a local aviation hangar, and a towering redwood elk monument. [Production Code 8003]

4. 4

   4. Cotton

   1 Feb 2006 · 28 min

   Huell travels to Buttonwillow, the self-proclaimed "Cotton Capitol of California," to pick cotton by hand for a historical look at the state's massive textile agriculture before touring a modern high-speed gin. [Production Code 8004]

5. 5

   5. Noriega's

   2 Feb 2006 · 28 min

   Huell enjoys a traditional, family-style meal at the historic Noriega's Basque Hotel and Restaurant in Bakersfield, capturing stories of early European sheep-herding immigrants in Kern County. [Production Code 8005]

6. 6

   6. Printing Museum

   1 Mar 2006 · 28 min

   Huell visits the International Printing Museum in Carson to watch live, interactive theater presentations and see massive, working demonstrations of antique historic letterpress machinery. [Production Code 8006]

7. 7

   7. Fotoplayer

   17 Feb 2006 · 28 min

   Huell meets collector Joe Rinaudo to marvel at a beautifully restored 1926 American Fotoplayer, demonstrating how the complex piano rolls provided live sound effects and music for early silent films. [Production Code 8007]

8. 8

   8. Warnors Theatre

   5 Jun 2006 · 28 min

   Huell visits Fresno to tour the magnificent 1928 Warnors Theatre, examining its historic Spanish Revival motifs and listening to its rare, floor-shaking Robert Morton pipe organ. [Production Code 8008]

9. 9

   9. Solano Train Ferry

   8 Aug 2006 · 28 min

   Huell uncovers the heavy maritime history of the grand S.S. Solano, tracing how the world's largest historic ferryboat once moved entire transcontinental trains across the Carquinez Strait. [Production Code 8009]

10. 10

    10. The Lost Golden Spike

    1 Jul 2006 · 28 min

    Huell visits Stanford University's Cantor Arts Center to get a special preview of the historic, long-lost ceremonial Laurel tie artifact driven at the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad. [Production Code 8010]

11. 11

    11. Tecate Train

    1 Jul 2006 · 28 min

    Huell visits the Pacific Southwest Railway Museum in Campo for an international excursion, boarding a vintage locomotive that rolls across the border for a tour of the public plaza in Tecate, Mexico. [Production Code 8011]

12. 12

    12. Trout

    4 Oct 2006 · 28 min

    Huell treks out alongside conservation teams to study native California trout varieties, exploring mountain hydrology, historical hatchery programs, and modern stream restoration tactics. [Production Code 8012]