During extremely wet winters, come spring time, California and Nevada usually experience a mining bonanza, and locally it has occurred in this region. While, this was a wet winter in Lassen and Modoc, it was far from record breaking.

1907, on the other hand was a different story. It was a whiplash winter throughout California and Nevada with heavy rains, followed by heavy snows, and the scenario repeated itself. It caused a mini-gold rush with massive erosions in gullies and streams, exposing gold and other minerals. On Bass Hill between Susanville and Janesville one ravine along the road revealed gold nuggets. Thus, there was a prospector frenzy there, as well as the entire Bald Mountain. Spoonville native M.E. “Mul” Mulroney, noted that on that side of Bald Mountain a tunnel was made in hopes of gold ore, but found none.

It did not stop there. Discoveries were made just north of Susanville, on Antelope Grade. An unlikely spot was Skedaddle Mountain, where there was so much interest that caused for the creation of the Hot Springs Mountain Mining District, the last one of its kind in Lassen County. While nothing materialized there, one desert mountain seemed more promising—Fort Sage. Prospecting on Fort Sage continued for decades and I can personally attest. When my father passed away in 2002, while sorting through his paperwork, unbeknownst to me were several mining claims he had on Fort Sage.

Tim