THE REACH



Automobile - Old Technology for 2018


A document from 2018 I was able to recover from my personal internet folder.

River Road replaced the railroad tracks over 80 years ago. Probably 10,000 cars drive it everyday. I'm one of them.

There are no train stations anymore except the one at Korbel Winery that they use for tourists. The redwoods are still impressive, though most were cut down for lumber years ago and now we only have second or third generation growth. They are an endangered species thanks to humans wanting to sell the wood. I hate that thought.

The resorts are pretty much gone. About 50 years after the train arrived for the first time, developers bought up all the land that seemed to be convertible to vacation homes. That is what we have today, though they are now full time houses, not so much vacation homes. We still have campgrounds, but none of them have a dance pavilion. They have wi-fi and cell service. Some even have a plug for your electric car. It is our technology.

Tents are gone and we are mostly homes now, and mostly year round living instead of just summers. The land is still beautiful though. We have not stopped appreciating that.

Tourists come, many rent a canoe at Burke's. Local beaches can be packed on hot days, even though we know now that getting too much sun is dangerous to humans.

Korbel Mills is now Korbel Winery, no more cutting of trees. Some of their offerings are surprisingly tasty Champagne considering what it costs.

River road doesn't stop at Korbel like the tracks did in 1876. River road goes all the way to the Pacific, though towns like Rio Nido, Guerneville and Monte Rio.

Life is still good at the river. The redwoods have a calming effect on us just like they did when humans first walked into them. Our stretch of the river from Mirabel to Korbel gives us just a little bit better outlook on what it means to be alive. We thank it for that.

Perhaps it is worth mentioning that adding 150 more years to this epic story from right now is going to take us to a different world. Just as the train technology of 1876 completely lost the train by 1935, I can't imagine what to expect in the technology of the next date of 2176, 300 years after that first train arrived on Russian River.



Hardy Fox - 2018