Halo Trail by Moonlight (Washoe County, Nevada)

 

This is going to be a busy week for me, as I'm studying for a professional certification exam, but I had to take a break from the books and after seeing a posting on the Reno Hiking Meetup group for a moonlight hike up Peavine Peak, I knew it would be a great distraction.

Tonight is a full moon and there is a cold breeze blowing; I can't think of a better time to run to the hills. Meeting fellow hikers Nick, Dean, Kristine, and Jeff at the trail head at 6 PM, we almost immediately started putting in the miles. Luckily, Nick knows the trails in this area very well and leads us through the sagebrush-laden terrain. The going is pretty easy with some mild inclines, and we take advantage of it to push the pace. For most of us, this is simply a training hike and so, the harder we can push ourselves the better.

Reaching the first small summit, we stop at a park bench and Nick takes a snapshot of the crew. As the sun sets in the west and the moon begins to rise in the east, we continue to push the miles. The views of the city from up here are always fantastic, but the idea of getting some shots of downtown at night was really the draw for me.

As darkness sits in, the trail is still nicely illuminated by the full moon above us. Jeff and I get a bit ahead of the others and miss a turn. We quickly recognize our mistake and turn back, catching our fellow hikers a few minutes later. Eventually, we all arrive safely back at the trail head, saying our thanks to Nick for organizing. The distance for the evening was only a meager 7.6 miles, but the views were well worth it.