Where Miwoks Once Ground Acorns, Near Volcano, California

For centuries, the Miwok Indians in Northern California used a series of holes in a giant black rock to grind acorns.  Right near the 50-foot long slab of rock stands two towering Valley Oak Trees, the source of the hundreds of thousands of acorns which would be ground up, rinsed with water, and turned into flour that was baked into loaves to feed the tribe.

The Miwok Plant Trail winds its way past a ceremonial round house, made from the rough hewn slabs of oak with a large fire pit inside, where dances and ceremonies were once performed. Nearby sit five tipi-shaped houses, made of the same rough slabs of wood. It was rainy and still warm when we walked down the trail, past giant redwoods amidst shrieking birds of an unknown variety.

The drive up here took us through Volcano, and Sutter’s Mill, past wide open khaki-colored rolling hills dotted on top with windswept trees.

A quiet enveloped us as we stood silently in the woods and let the sound of a car disappear. It left us with only the distant sound of an owl…and then more bird calls back and forth.

Despite the patter of the raindrops, it was peaceful there, and we lingered long enough to let our own sounds wind down to silence.