Markleeville, CA

[stepper77]

Alpine County, just south of Lake Tahoe, is wedged in the high Sierras against the Nevada State line. It is the smallest county by population in California and, with only 1,175 residents, there are more people in my apartment complex than the entire county.

Entering Alpine County on Highway 88, and we are treated to frozen over Caples Lake



Some people were adventurous enough to walk out on the lake...we were not







Winter, thus far, has been exceptionally dry so for there to be virtually no snow in January is remarkable.





Located at an elevation of 5,500 ft and a population of 210, Markleeville is the largest community and seat of Alpine County. Despite the relative remoteness, the city was well maintained and the people seemed friendly and laid back.

The Alpine County Courthouse, one of the spots recommended for fall leaves tours of the Eastern Sierras





















Originally built as a house in 1862 in a nearby city, the building on the right was dismantled in the 1880s and reconstructed and repurposed as the Alpine Hotel in 1900. Today it is a bar and restaurant reportedly with a few rooms to stay in as well.



























A few local residences...or vacation homes





Heading up to the local history museum





The old city/county jail



Amazing there is no snow



Old Webster School dating from 1882



















Overlooking Markleeville





The museum buildings were closed from the winter, but, thankfully I could get a glimpse of the inside of the school











Geography was my major in college so I was happy to see the old globe!













The community of Woodfords





As luck would have it, we finally are finally getting some decent storms this weekend to bring much needed snow



________________________________________________________________
Tour of California 1: Los Angeles, 2: Hollywood, Glendale, Pasadena, Beverly Hills, 3: Riverside, Santa Ana, Long Beach, 4: San Jose, 5: San Diego, 6: Fresno, 7: Stockton, Modesto, 8: Gold Country, 9: Eureka, Arcata, 10: Monterey, Carmel, 11: Santa Cruz, 12: Sacramento Pt One, 13: Sacramento Pt Two, 14: Roseville & Folsom, 15: Concord & Walnut Creek, 16: Tri-Valley, 17: Berkeley, Emeryville, 18: Fremont, 19: Santa Clara, Mountain View, Palo Alto, 20: Redwood City, Foster City, San Mateo, 21: Oakland, 22: Benicia, Vallejo, 23: Napa, St. Helena, 24: Petaluma, Santa Rosa, Sonoma, 25: San Rafael, 26: Larkspur, Mill Valley, 27: Sausalito, Tiburon, 28: Hollister, San Juan Bautista, 29: Long Beach 2008, 30: Venice, 31: Santa Monica, 32: Sacramento Pt 3, 33: Solvang, 34: Alameda, 35: Knights Ferry, 36: California Zephyr, 37: Colfax, 38: Davis, 39: Oakdale, 40: San Francisco Pt 1, San Francisco Pt 2, 41: Chico, Redding, 42: Kings Beach, 43: Merced, 44: Gold Country pt 2, 45: Gold Country pt 3, 46: Sonora, 47: Vacaville, Fairfield, Suisun City, 48: Orange, Fullerton, 49: Anaheim, Irvine, 50: Newport Beach, Laguna Beach,51: San Francisco, Pt 3, 52: Lodi, 53: Martinez, 54: Ft Bragg, Mendocino, 55: San Luis Obispo, 56: Sacramento River Pt 1, 57: Sacramento River Pt 2, 58: Lake Merritt/Oakland, 59: Marysville/Yuba City, 60: Woodland, 61: Beverly Hills"62: Los Angeles, 63: Sacramento, 64: Lakeport, 65: South Lake Tahoe, 66: Salinas, Watsonville, 67: Pacific Grove. 68: Winters/Willows, 69: Red Bluff, 70: Redding, 71: Weaverville, 72: Yreka/Weed/Mt Shasta, 73: Mt. Lassen/Susanville, 74: Quincy, 75: Oroville, 76: Avalon, 77: Mariposa/Yosemite

[fflint]

It's great to see Markleeville, the nearest town to where my family spent many a summer vacation when I was young. It really does look better when things are green (or, alternatively, when there's like five feet of snow on the ground). I've always loved how tiny it is, yet oddly sophisticated--the economy is based on tourism, and the summer/winter seasons bring lots of owners/renters from elsewhere for a couple weeks at a time. Did you make it to the hot springs?

[Evergrey]

incredible photos

[SLO]

Very nice, thats one town in California that Ive never been....

[stepper77]

Thanks for the comments!

Originally Posted by fflint

I've always loved how tiny it is, yet oddly sophisticated

The oddly sophisticated comment is spot on...I did not get any sense the people there were small minded at all...I really liked that.

Originally Posted by fflint

Did you make it to the hot springs?

I didn't even know there were hot springs in the area. I will have make that an adventure for another visit.

[Ryan8888]

I went to the hot springs out there a couple years ago and it was bizarre that I was one of the few people that spoke english. Most of the people that were hanging out in the hot springs were speaking russian.

[xzmattzx]

Nice pictures. Looks like nothing more than a smattering of buildings that you could drive past in 5 seconds. But I guess that's what you'll find with a town population of 250 or so. That courthouse is wimpier than some of the other ones that you've shown, and the Forerst County Courthouse in Tionesta, PA, that I think I mentioned before. No need for something fancy when there's only 1,100 people in the county, though.

Great setting for a town, even without snow!

[fflint]

Originally Posted by stepper77

I didn't even know there were hot springs in the area. I will have make that an adventure for another visit.

Grover Hot Springs is open all year, although I should add Markleeville has an average of 221 days with lows of 32 °F or lower, according to Wikipedia. It's always cold after dark there!

[Danny]

Thank you for so beautiful pictures!

Amazing landscape, houses and frozen lake and rivers. Spectacular place.

Congrats and greetings from Madrid, Spain!

[montréaliste]

Originally Posted by fflint

Grover Hot Springs is open all year, although I should add Markleeville has an average of 221 days with lows of 32 °F or lower, according to Wikipedia. It's always cold after dark there!

Pretty amazing facts! We complain of how cold and drawn out our winters are here, and then I find out about this region of California with freaky cold weather. Nice.

[stepper77]

Originally Posted by xzmattzx

Nice pictures. Looks like nothing more than a smattering of buildings that you could drive past in 5 seconds. But I guess that's what you'll find with a town population of 250 or so. That courthouse is wimpier than some of the other ones that you've shown, and the Forerst County Courthouse in Tionesta, PA, that I think I mentioned before. No need for something fancy when there's only 1,100 people in the county, though.

Great setting for a town, even without snow!

It is pretty understated than most, but, as you said, given the population and remoteness, it isn't unexpected. I will say the courthouse seemed pretty busy while I was there as a number of people going in and out of the courthouse making for a very busy Friday afternoon. A lot of courthouses I've seen outside of large urban areas are relatively quiet.

Originally Posted by fflint

Grover Hot Springs is open all year, although I should add Markleeville has an average of 221 days with lows of 32 °F or lower, according to Wikipedia. It's always cold after dark there!

Cold temps, for me, are the best times to go relax in warm water, so, all the better for the location! Thanks for the info.

Originally Posted by montréaliste

Pretty amazing facts! We complain of how cold and drawn out our winters are here, and then I find out about this region of California with freaky cold weather. Nice.

Yes, it is not all sun and warm days in California, the Sierras get very cold at night...but that is also part of the reason why the majority of Californians live near the coast or the Central Valley.

[Expat]

This place really appeals to me. There is something romantic about it.

I love old globes, too.

[LSyd]

interesting tour. i half expected to see some gunfighting cowboys in those pics...i guess that's what watching "unforgiven" before bed will do to you.

-

[ifeeldope9779]

...i need a vacation

[fflint]

Originally Posted by LSyd

interesting tour. i half expected to see some gunfighting cowboys in those pics...i guess that's what watching "unforgiven" before bed will do to you.

There are some towns in California like that. My grandpa slept on his wallet the time my family stayed in a hotel above the raucous local saloon in Murphys. Not Markleeville, though, which is mostly transplants from other areas and has a tourist-based economy catering to urban Californians. You can get to Markleeville in about an hour coming from Lake Tahoe, if I recall correctly.

In the 1960s and 1970s, Bay Area hippies plotted to move to Alpine County (remember, the population is only a thousand and some change) and take over. It never quite happened like that, but those who did show up changed the area forever.

[stepper77]

Originally Posted by fflint

There are some towns in California like that. My grandpa slept on his wallet the time my family stayed in a hotel above the raucous local saloon in Murphys. Not Markleeville, though, which is mostly transplants from other areas and has a tourist-based economy catering to urban Californians. You can get to Markleeville in about an hour coming from Lake Tahoe, if I recall correctly.

In the 1960s and 1970s, Bay Area hippies plotted to move to Alpine County (remember, the population is only a thousand and some change) and take over. It never quite happened like that, but those who did show up changed the area forever.

That is really fascinating about the migration of hippies to Alpine County. It actually makes sense with some of the stores I saw there. Markleeville is a small, but, interesting place.