Sacramento Area Miata Owners Association
We had 14 cars turn out — including a 4x4 Miata — for the event despite the borderline air quality and heat. We were going to make the best of it!
The drive started out from Cameron Park and almost immediately, half of the group in missed a turn in Shingle Springs. There was a left turn that several enthusiastic drivers failed to make, but our sweep car corralled them in short order. He knew the road well because he lives on it!
The group wound its way up through Pleasant Valley and into the Sly Park area of Pollock Pines, followed by a few miles east on Hwy 50 to Fresh Pond for a bio break. The next turn was in Kyburz onto Silver Fork Road. This was the highest altitude we saw with pretty pine trees, boulders in the river, meadows and viewpoints that could have been better if the smoky skies were blue. Back to Sly Park via Emigrant Trail and into Pollock Pines for our last break at the Long Canyon Forebay before lunch. Many tops went up from here down the hill, but the twisty roads continued: Snows, Newtown, Airport and Forni to name a few. The Breakroom in Shingle Springs allowed us to have a private party room for our late lunch and we were joined by a few Miata drivers who couldn’t make the driving event, but wanted to socialize over food.
Sadly, much of the area we drove through on the event was only a few days later utterly consumed by the Caldor Fire. We were among some of the last people to see parts of this beautiful landscape before it changed forever within our lifetimes. The Silver Fork and Emigrant Trail areas are completely burned now, as are many areas along Hwy 50 and near Jenkinson Lake. All the more reason to get out there and explore our beautiful California roads!
Watch the youtube video!
Twist and Shout, Aug. 14, 2021