john calhoun johnson
19th annual Snowshoe Thompson Ski & Snowshoe Celebration
Submitted by paula on Wed, 02/20/2019 - 10:31pm
Event Date:
March 2, 2019 - 9:00am
SOUTH LAKE TAHOE, Calif. - John Albert Thompson, a Norwegian immigrant nicknamed Snowshoe Thompson, was the legendary 'Mailman of the Sierras' and a man many consider to be the father of California skiing.
His life will be celebrated in South Lake Tahoe on March 2, 2019, during the 19th annual Snowshoe Thompson Ski & Snowshoe Celebration at the Lake Tahoe Golf Course from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. The cost for the day is a $10 donation for adults and kids under 12 are free.
Before Hwy 50 it was horses and wagons on the Johnson Cut-Off
Submitted by paula on Sat, 01/09/2016 - 6:43pm
The trip is hot and dry. A layer of several feet of dust lined the route, flying around as the wheels of the wagons and hooves of the horses pass over. The road is steep and over granite along the 130 miles from the Carson Valley to Placerville. When not the middle of summer, the road is muddy or buried by snow. A horse could cover the terrain in 24-hours.
The road is Johnson's Cut-off and the year is 1852. It was built by John Calhoun "Cock-eye" Johnson as a way to cut off 50 miles and 2,000 feet in elevation from the common route people took over Donner Summit as they emigrated West.
