HIDDEN WILDS OF NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

In my travels I sometimes come across a slice of Americana so remote and hard to get to that it remains essentially unchanged from earlier times. As you might imagine, locations like this are becoming increasingly scarce. The only thing that keeps these communities isolated from progress are roads so treacherous that transport along them is ill-advised.

I recently came across such a location on my last trip to California.

If ever there was a hamlet that idealizes these qualities most clearly it is Forks of Salmon. The narrow crumbling road to and from this tiny village borders a river that runs hundreds of feet below without any guard rails to protect you. It is magnificent country.