Placerville has an unforgettable old name. In 1849, during the California Gold Rush, the town was known as Hangtown, after a series of impromptu hangings of thieves, and the name stuck for years until the more respectable citizens managed to change it. A hangman's dummy still swings from a building on Main Street, and the town leans into its rough-and-tumble past.
It sits in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, on Highway 50, about sixty kilometres east of Sacramento, at the point where the Central Valley's flat farmland gives way to oak woodland and rolling hills. James Marshall found gold at nearby Coloma in January 1848, the find that started the rush, and Placerville grew up as a supply town for the diggings. It was also a stop on the route of the Pony Express in 1860 and 1861, and the main street still has old brick buildings and wooden storefronts from the period.
For a rider, Placerville is an ideal fuel stop, with a population of over ten thousand, stations and shops along the highway, and cafes in the old town. Beyond it, Highway 50 climbs into the high Sierra toward Lake Tahoe, passing through pine forest and along the American River, with long curves and big views. Traffic can be heavy on summer weekends, with campers and skiers heading to the mountains, and in winter chains may be required on the higher sections.
Apple Hill, an area of orchards just east of town, is a popular autumn destination, with farm stands selling apples, pies, cider and doughnuts. The smell of baking drifts across the lanes in October. Wineries have taken hold in the foothills as well, and the vineyards produce good zinfandel and other reds.
The best time is spring, when the hills are green and the wildflowers are out, or early autumn, when the apples are ripe. In midsummer the grass is golden and the heat can be fierce, with afternoon temperatures above thirty-five degrees. Fill up, stretch, and keep climbing.