Folsom Prison Canal Trail Run

North side of canal was often granite reinforced with concrete mixture. Old pictures show a rail road traveling on top of the canal levy.

Like the Erie Canal before it, the original Folsom dam and canal are little more than an after thought for the thousands of motorists who pass by it every day. Only Folsom Prison, which provided the labor to build the first hydro powered electrical generation on the west coast, remains as prominent. But you can still walk or run on top of history. Link to my page on Folsom lake and other historic structures.

Playing fugitive

From the forebay of the historic Folsom Power House to where you are stopped by the Folsom Prison fence is approximately 1 mile. I ran on top of the old canal to the fence and returned on a trail down by Lake Natoma. The site of the original dam and head waters for the canal are on prison property and can’t be accessed. Just imagine that the top of the canal levy once held a railroad to transfer granite blocks from the quarry to the power house. As I spied a coyote a couple hundred yards ahead of me, I wonder if the Folsom inmates, worked on the canal, also yearned to be free like him.

Different people and marks

If you trek on the south side of the lake you might be fortunate to come across old Native American grinding holes. Truly, this is cements the importance the American River has played in the communities that used its resources. Today, everything is dwarfed by Folsom Dam completed in 1958 and made the original 1895 Folsom dam, canal and powerhouse obsolete.

19th century engineering

After exploring the south side, I crossed over the pedestrian bridge and ran up to the state

Outlets controlled by the head gates on the opposite side of the canal levy.

property line. It is harder to get to the waters edge from the north side but the perspective is nice. The northside gives you the view of how Horatio Livermore, designer of the dam and canal, used the southern hillside as part of the canal.

Folsom Canal trail, south side in red, north side follows the bike trail.

More than meets the eye

From Native Americans grinding acorns, ’49er’s panning for gold, Folsom prison inmates cutting granite for the canal and powerhouse to present day kayaking catamarans the American River will never cease to be an opportunity. A great resource on the original dam and canal can be found at the Folsom museum titled Images of America Folsom California, Folsom Historical Society, 1999, Arcadia Publishing.

american_river_granite — Relatively flat portion of bedrock next to river/lake where Native American grinding holes can be found.

canal_road — Abandoned canal is now traversed by the Folsom Blvd.

canoe_turn_around — Canoe makes a u-turn on Lake Natoma before crossing into Folsom prison territory.

commenrative_plaque_1916 — 1916 plaque dedicated a bridge that crossed over the Folsom canal.

concrete_canal_lining — North side of canal was often granite reinforced with concrete mixture. Old pictures show a rail road traveling on top of the canal levy.

dry_folsom_canal_historic — Entrance to canal east of Folsom Blvd.

excess_water_spillway — Spill way built into the canal, may have used for emergencies, dumps to the river.

eye_bolt_canal — Large eye bolt fastened into large block of granite.

foot_bridge — Refurbished pedistrian bridge in approximate location of where a railroad bridge passed over the American River with one rail line to Roseville and another the attempted to go to Auburn.

forebay_power_house — Forebay or terminus of Folsom canal before water is fed into penstocks and generators.

granite_retaining_wall_folsom_canal — Granite retaining wall for the north side of the canal, east of Folsom Blvd.

head_gates_canal — Mid way from the dam to the forebay are head gates that allow to spill toward the river. Notice the tall screws are exactly like the ones at the forebay. Perhaps these were used to drain the canal quickly for maintenance.

head_gates_outlet — Outlets controlled by the head gates on the opposite side of the canal levy.

head_gates_penstocks — Screws and possibly wooden gates similar to the gates at the mid way point and at the headwaters of the canal.

indian_grinding_hole — Native American grinding hole on the banks of the American River.

kayak_lake_natoma — Catamaran kayak traveling underneath the pedistrian bridge.

lake_natoma_catamaran — Kayak near the eastern limit for boaters on the lake.

old_new_prison_wall — Guard shack and original prison wall beyond the fence stopping the trail run.

original_folsom_dam — Eastern view of original dam and canal. Completely on prison property, it can’t be accessed by the public.

original_folsom_dam_2 — Southern view of canal and dam. Railroad along canal moved granite blocks and lumber was floated down the canal.

original_folsom_dam_3 — Western view of original dam and canal on prison property. Granite was quarried locally by prison inmantes.

original_folsom_dam_4 — Northern view of dam and canal started in 1889, finished in 1893

original_river_bed_american — This part of Lake Natoma is some what natural where closer to the new Folsom dam it looks like a straight cut ditch in the granite.

trail_canal — Great trail for walking or running on top of the canal levy.

u_bolt_granite — Square U bolt fastened in granite block on the north side of the lake. You never know what you’ll find.

warning_sign — No trespassing signs hangs across the narrow lake. If boaters travel pass the sign they are greeted with a prison guard on a public address system telling them to go back.

[schema type=”book” name=”Images of America Folsom California” description=”History of Folsom California” author=”Folsom Historical Society” publisher=”Arcadia” edition=”1st” paperback=”yes” ]

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Playing fugitive

Different people and marks

19th century engineering

More than meets the eye

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