Oregon -- Peace And Scenery In Old Mining Area

JACKSONVILLE, Ore. - This old mining town in southwest Oregon - site of Oregon's first gold rush back in 1851 - lures more than 75,000 visitors each year.

But few travelers know about the scenic Applegate Valley in Jacksonville's back yard.

In just 25 miles of gentle highway, motorists can meander through mining history, sample fine wines, stroll a covered bridge and park by a sapphire lake where bald eagles soar.

Some of the Applegate Valley is in the 630,000-acre Rogue River National Forest; some rambles through leafy country that has no official boundaries.

Navigation is easy: just follow Oregon Highway 238 south from Jacksonville for about 7 miles to a hamlet called Ruch (say "Roosh"), then turn left and follow the Upper Applegate Highway to Applegate Lake.

You can't miss the forest-rimmed 4 1/2-mile long lake that includes a dam almost 250 feet high. The mountain peaks beyond are in California. And down along the lake shore are hiking trails, picnic grounds and boat-launching areas. Applegate Lake rainbow trout have been known to measure 22 inches or more.

Marguerite Black, a valley resident since 1925, says "You're riding along a pioneer trail, whether you know it or not."

Mrs. Black came to the valley to teach school - and married the first farmer who asked her. She and that farmer, John Black, have been married for 59 years.

"We live on the same ranch where we first settled," Mrs. Black says. "John never wanted to travel much. He says he wants to sleep in his own bed every night."

The ex-schoolteacher has a story for just about every mile of the Applegate Valley. A favorite is the one about the farmer's wife and her brood of golden chickens. Each time she butchered one for dinner, she found gold nuggets in the gizzard.

Just a clue, Marguerite Black says, to the riches that the prospectors found in Jacksonville's rich digs.

The Logtown Cemetery, on the southern outskirts of Jacksonville, is the resting place of 400 or so pioneers, with graves dating to 1862.

Back in about 1853, a settler planted a yellow rose here that he had carried from his home state of Missouri. Slips from that first Logtown Rose bloom now at the cemetery and at homes throughout the valley.

The Applegate River, moving north from its headwaters high in the Siskiyous, deposited plenty of gold in this valley thousands of years ago.

And therein lies a little-known story about hard-working miners from China who traveled here to sift through the old river beds. The Forest Service has built an interpretive trail - the Gin Lin Trail - in the valley to show visitors how things used to be.

Gin Lin was the valley's most successful Chinese mining boss. Tailing piles and other traces of his mining operations still are evident along the 3/4-mile long trail.

Prospectors, both white and Chinese, literally moved mountains to get at the Applegate gold. They used high-pressure water nozzles to sluice away slopes and expose the gold-bearing gravels. The technique was called hydraulic mining.

It's said that Gin Lin deposited more than $1 million in gold in Jacksonville's Beekman Bank. (The bank still stands as a visitor attraction, under the management of the Southern Oregon Historical Society).

Gin Lin made at least four trips home to China, each time returning here with a new wife whom he sold to members of his mining crew.

On his final journey to China, in 1894, Gin Lin vanished. Some say he was beaten and robbed as he stepped ashore in Canton. No one knows for sure.

There's still gold in these hills. At last count, the Forest Service had registered more than 1,000 mining claims in the Applegate Ranger District. There are zones set aside for recreational gold-panning, too, if you want to try your luck.

Pack a picnic and stop at the valley's most romantic spot, the McKee Covered Bridge. The bridge was built in 1917 to help miners' ore wagons cross to easier terrain on the west side of the Applegate River.

A few years ago, inspectors found that the old bridge was in danger of collapse. Area residents held T-shirt sales, barbecues and other events and raised $105,000 for repairs.

And on your way home, don't forget the Valley View Winery, eight miles southwest of Jacksonville on Highway 238. The tasting room is in a 100-year-old hay barn.

---------------------------------------- IF YOU GO: ----------------------------------------

-- Getting there: Jacksonville is about 275 miles south of Portland. Drive Interstate 5 to Medford, then take Oregon 238 from Medford five miles west to Jacksonville. From Jacksonville, continue south on Oregon 238 to reach the Applegate Valley. In Ruch, about seven miles from Jacksonville, turn left onto the Upper Applegate Highway. (It's marked, but has no highway number.)

It's about 25 miles from Jacksonville to the Swayne Overlook at Applegate Lake. Just beyond is Hart-tish Park, a U.S. Forest Service park which slopes to the water's edge.

-- Lodging: Jacksonville and neighboring Medford boast about 1,900 motel rooms. There are seven bed-and-breakfast inns in the area, with a total of 35 rooms. Accommodations average $45-50 double.

-- Mining tour: Jacksonville Gold Mine Tour operates three trips a day from Jacksonville to the 1890s Oregon Belle Mine near Ruch. The season is April/May through October. Vans depart from downtown Jacksonville. Participants are invited to pan for gold and to enter a hard-hat mining tunnel 560 feet long. Tickets are $9 for adults, $5 for children under 12 years of age. Details: Jacksonville Gold Mine Tour, P.O. Box 1774, Jacksonville, OR 97530. Phone: 1-503-779-2239.

-- Activities:

Memorial Day to Labor Day - There are guided walking tours of Jacksonville, directed by the Southern Oregon Historical Society. Groups leave the Jacksonville Museum several times a day.

Mid-June to early September - The Britt Festivals with music programs ranging from classical to jazz. Most programs are Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

-- Contacts:

Applegate Ranger District, Rogue River National Forest, Star Ranger Station, 6941 Upper Applegate Road, Jacksonville, OR 97530. Phone: 1-503-899-1812.

Visitors and Convention Bureau, Medford Chamber of Commerce, 304 S. Central Ave., Medford, OR 97501. Phone: 1-503-779-4847.

Southwestern Oregon Visitors Association, P.O. Box 1645, Medford, OR. 97501. Phone: 1-800-448-4856.

Britt Festivals, P.O. Box 1124, Medford, OR 97501.

Stanton H. Patty, a resident of Vancouver, Wash., is the retired assistant travel editor of The Seattle Times.