Sagehen Creek (Sierra County, California)

 

Early winter in the Reno area is often problematic when it comes to planning hikes or snowshoes. Often one turns into the other and so it always best to prepare for both on any given trip. Today, I went with the local Sierra Club Meetup group for the first time. I've been a member of the meetup group for a couple of years, but until today, I've never actually hiked with them. I've always been under the impression their hikes are quite a bit tighter and regulated than is my preference, but I decided to finally check one out.

The trip today was along the beautiful Sagehen Creek, which feeds the large Stampede Reservoir. Meeting at IHOP in northwest Reno, the fifteen members of our group carpooled to the trailhead just a few miles north of Truckee. It's about a 30 minute drive, but the time went by pretty fast. 

Once we arrived at the trailhead, we were undecided on how much snow was going to be present. Some hikers strapped on their snowshoes and others, like myself, opted to leave them behind. It turns out I made the correct choice. While there are a few inches of snow along the well worn trail in some areas, it was compressed enough to not require snowshoes. Most of the trail was a combination of snow, slush, and mud, but it was easily manageable with just boots.

The creek itself is a beautiful vein of frigid water and ice flowing through a virgin snowfield. I always find this type of view incredibly gorgeous, especially with the sunbeams reflecting off of the water's surface.

Finally reaching the large body of water that is the reservoir, we took a break and enjoyed some lunch in grassy area along the shoreline. We discussed varied topics from other hikes, to politics, and finally Burning Man. One hiker in particular was extremely interested in my experience, as she became a burner this past year for the first time as well. 

Our conversation continue most of the way back to the cars. Though a few years my senior, she spoke incredibly highly of the experience, just as I do. I think everyone should take in the event at least once in their lifetimes. Finally reaching the cars, my GPS tracking app indicates we hiked about 4.9 miles. It was an extremely easy hike with very little elevation gain, but it was fun to find a new trail and meet some new hikers.

Incline Peak (Washoe County, Nevada)

 

Winter in the Lake Tahoe basin is without a doubt one of the most magical sites on the face of the earth. Any chance I get to explore this winter wonderland, I jump on. The meetup group decided to snowshoe to the summit of Incline Peak this morning. I've only been to the top of this 9,500 foot mountain once before, and it was this past summer to watch the Independence Day fireworks all around Tahoe from above. I remember it being a steep climb, which should make it a very interesting on snowshoes.

After meeting at Sierra Summit, we carpooled to the Incline Lake pull-off just beyond Tahoe Meadows. This early in the season, there is only a couple of feet of snow, but in a couple of months, the Mt. Rose Highway will seem more like a tunnel through snow piled up on either side 6-10 feet high. 

We meet up with a couple of others that chose to join us a the trailhead and then set off into the snow-covered forest. The first part of the trail is well-worn and drops down to the Incline Lake basin. It's easy going at first, but soon, the trail disappears and we are forced to cut our own path down a steep incline. Luckily, it's only a few yards through snow-covered rocks and trees before we drop down to what we believe is the trail.

I have vague memories of the trail and as we cross a bridge over a slow-flowing stream, I'm confident we are on the right path. I always love the site of running water carving a channel through the white blanket. While snow fields can seem hopelessly permanent in their desolation and void, the running water brings hope to the scene and forces one to realize the impermanence of everything.

Pushing on, the trail begins the steep climb. As it swings out west of the summit, we approach a beautiful ridge that overlooks Lake Tahoe to the south. Patches of low-hanging clouds linger over the frigid lake waters, but the overall view is stunning. To the west, Rose's Knob juts out of the landscape like a spear through the blanket of snow. It's a magnificent view and I wish I could see this every day of my life.

Finally reaching the summit, the panoramic in all directions is something out of an art gallery. Slide Mountain and Tahoe Meadows below it span the entire breadth of our view to the northeast. To the south, an even more divine view of the mighty lake Tahoe fills us with awe. This is the same view I had for the fireworks five or so months ago, but as different as night and day. Instead of fireworks to draw my eyes, the blue waters of the lake and the white snow caps of the surrounding mountains grab my attention. 

We take some time to absorb the church-like quality of this place while eating some lunch. I recently acquired a small double-walled thermos and I've found that it is ideal for keeping a lunch-sized serving of vegetable soup just hot enough for a winter hike. While it's a pretty nice day and warmer than expected, it's still later December and there is a chill in the air. Warm soup is just what the doctor ordered to keep the body and soul warm.

The trip down the mountain is much easier, but prone to tumbles by many in our group. The loose powdery snow can be difficult. I note that I am one of only two people on this trip not using poles, and yet, I haven't fallen once, while many of my comrades have taken a few falls. I do see the value in poles for snowshoeing, but so far, I haven't really needed them. As we reach the cars, I note the distance. We've hiked just short of 4 miles. It's shorter than some of our recent treks, but the elevation gain was much greater. As always, it's a great group of people and I'm honored to have gone on another adventure with them.

Summit Lake Snowshoe Trek (Nevada County, California)

 

Winter in the Sierra Nevada is always about snow. The highest peaks in the range surpass 14,000 feet in elevation. Those peaks are far to the south of me, but even here near Reno, several peaks exceed 10,000 feet, which means the trails are all snow-covered in mid-December. Hiking becomes Snowshoeing. When the Meetup group scheduled a trek to Summit Lake from the Donner Pass PCT trailhead, I was excited to join the adventure. While I've hiked to many of the lakes north of Summit Lake, I've never been to this particular lake. 

We met on the west side of Reno and carpooled to the trailhead. Ten of us in total, strapped on our snowshoes and made hit the trail. This area is very popular for many outdoor sports and so the trail is well worn, even covered with three or so feet of snow. 

The trail heads east out of the SNO-PARK for about three-quarters of a mile before it actually intersects the PCT. From here, we take a quick left turn and begin heading towards Interstate 80. A pair of steel reinforced tunnels allow hikers to pass through each of the highway sections (westbound and eastbound)

Emerging on the other side of the highway, we begin making our push towards the lake. The trail here is less used and some route-finding is required. We pass by large snow-covered granite boulders. Some of them have large icicles hanging from them. The largest we see has formed more of an ice column about ten inches in diameter and spanning about five feet from the top of the boulder to the ground.

Further on, we loose the trail and are forced to cut a little our route over a small ridge. It's a bit challenging, but the view from the top of the ridge is totally worth it. Looking south out over the peaks and valleys of the mighty mountains is a breathtaking sight.

Leading the group and having completely lost the trail at this point, I head due east. From my last check of the map, I knew were just a short distance to the west of the Summit Lake and so, I simply headed in the proper direction. After just a couple of hundred years, the large unmistakable treeless areas comes into view.

We follow the rim of the small frozen lake around a short distance before stopping for a snack and some pictures. While the surface of the lake is frozen, it's obvious that the ice is not very solid. A simple misstep in the snow and one of my group has broken through and submerged a foot in a few inches of frigid water. We laugh and begin to pack up for the trek back to the cars. 

The return trip is much easier since we now know the proper route. We make the return trip in just about an hour, which is probably a good thing. Overhead, the fast moving clouds and winds whipping through the trees tell of threatening weather on its way. Once we reach the cars, I check my GPS and see that we've covered about 5.1 miles. It was a great little snowshoe. I may have to return and do this trail again in the summer.

Galena Falls in Winter (Washoe County, Nevada)

 

It's been quite a while since I've been snowshoeing, but when the Meetup group posted a trek to Galena Falls via the Mt. Rose Trail, it seemed like the perfect opportunity to get back out there. Thirteen of us met at the Park and Ride and then carpooled up to the Mt. Rose Trailhead. Luckily, the parking lot has been plowed in the last day or two. This area has received about three feet of snow over the last two weeks from the first storms of winter.

After putting on our snow shoes and some introductions for the newer members, we headed out. I took the lead at first, but we had already discussed the need to trade out leaders throughout the hike. It seems we are the first to hit the trail since the most recent snow and trail-breaking will be required, which is always a substantial workout. Rotating leaders in and out is the best method for spreading the work, as those behind get the luxury of moving across pre-compacted powder, while the person(s) at the front has to do the compressing with each step. The system works pretty well and after just a couple of hundred yards, I'm spent and allow someone else to take the lead, while I rotate to the back of the line.

The other difficulty in snowshoeing in fresh powder is navigation. All of us have hiked to Galena Falls multiple times over the years and know the way pretty well, but without the ability to see the trail, we found ourselves deviating slightly from time to time. Luckily, we also know the landscape pretty well and with the falls at the head of a large meadow carved by Galena Creek, there was little chance of us actually getting lost.

Having expected it to be extremely cold at these elevations (the trailhead sits at 9k+), everyone wore multiple layers and some of us, myself included, even decided to experiment with some chemical toe warmers. However, the with the sun shining on us brightly, we quickly need to remove some layers. In fact, the only time we actually got cold was when we stopped for a quick lunch at the falls. Amazing how warm physical activity can keep us.

The waterfall itself is covered with ice and snow, but we can still hear the frigid liquid water flow underneath the ice. After a short break, we decide to head back. Fortunately, with the trail already cut by our trip into the backcountry, the way back is significantly easier and we move at a much quicker pace. Along the way, we take a few moments here and there to spectate some skiers taking some runs off of the fresh powder on the side of Tamarack Peak. Returning to the cars, I note that we covered about 5.7 miles. However, for some reason, my GPS app had a starting point several hundred feet from where we actually started. I corrected the topo map, but I suspect the hike was probably more like 5.2 miles. Now, I'm a bit cold and a bit damp. It's time to head home, warm up, and get a shower.

Pine Grove Ghost Town (Lyon County, Nevada)

 

All over the high desert and mountains of Nevada, there are ghost towns to be found. Communities that were once exploding with hopes and dreams of buried treasures deep within the earth, were quickly abandoned to the ravages of time when the mines ran dry of their precious silver and gold ore. One such town was Pine Grove, located in the hills a few miles south of present-day Yerington. 

From my research, two mines were established in the town. The Wilson Mine was first dug in 1866 and the Wheeler mine the following year. Between the two mines, they produced approximately $8M in gold and silver ore before the main strike finally ran dry. During the town's boom in the 1870's and 1880's, it boasted a post office, weekly newspaper, dance hall, five saloons, three hotels, and many other shops, all in the service of a population of 600 residents. However, mine production was slowly abandoned in the mid-1890's with the last residents deserting the community in the 1930's.

For a while, I have been wanting to visit the ghostly remains of this once booming town in my jeep, but when my hiking group posted a meetup to explore the area, I jumped on the chance. The five of us met in Carson City and carpooled the seventy or so miles to the bottom of the hills below the town, and then hiked the rest of the way. While there was some steady uphill as we climbed approximately 1400', it was a very easy hike through the picturesque Nevada landscape of sagebrush. 

Finally, reaching the first signs of the abandoned community we noticed a hot spring pool and a stone wall on the far side that may have served as an ice house or other water-related utility building. A bit further, we find the stone walls of the post office and a sign telling the story of Pine Grove.

While there are likely many foundations and partial walls hidden in and among the sage, only five (including the post office and water facility) poke out of the desert. One building, just a bit beyond the post office is in relatively good condition. I enter it and find the floors very solid. Someone else has apparently thought so too, as there is a modern (though heavily worn) mattress and box springs in the corner of the one-roomed building. It must get cold up in these hills with no glass in the windows, but someone has obviously been here at some point in the not-to-distant past. Nearby, some large mining equipment juts out of the hill.

Making our way further up the road, we next encounter what I believe to be one of the former hotels. It is a fairly large two-storied building and when comparing the layout to old pictures of the two before it's eventual demise, I'm pretty sure it once had a balcony. Now, however, the first floor is partially buried in dirt and gravel, likely from the run-off of the hills above.

*Note: Photo courtesy of Google

The final building we discover is only thirty or forty yards away an looks to have served as a barn or garage back in the day. It's fairly sturdy and would still provide some limited shelter. It does provide a good spot to take our lunch break before returning the way we came. After finishing off my soup, kept warm in a my new thermos, I hear one of the guys mention a cave or mine shaft nearby while walking around. We head over as a group to discover what appears to be a natural cave with a large iron grate over it's entrance. A sign indicates the cave serves as a bat preserve and should not be entered or interfered with. Fine with me.

As we being heading back down the hill, we explore a couple of side trails, but never find anything more of real interest other than a few piles of rusted out cans - obviously, the dump of the community. Arriving back at the cars, I see we've hiked just over 8.7 miles. It was a decent workout and it's always to explore with these folks. I look forward to our next adventure.

Half Moon Lake (El Dorado County, California)

 

Desolation Wilderness, in the southwestern corner of the Lake Tahoe Basin, is for many, including myself, the jewel of the Sierra’s north of Yosemite. It abounds in mountains and lakes, and is a very popular hiking destination, both for overnight and daytime adventures. I’ve visited numerous times and even backpacked through the area, but I had never hiked to Half Moon Lake. I’ve only seen it from above while hiking over Dick’s Pass.

When the hiking Meetup group that I often go out with, scheduled a Sunday hike to visit this lake, I jumped on the chance to see a new area of the wilderness. Those of us in Reno, met up at the Park & Ride at Sierra Summit and carpooled down to the trail head, where we met our Carson City friends before setting out into the forest – eighteen of us in all.

The early part of the trail has been covered with gravel and rock, which is not the best surface to hike on and is good for rolling ankles. As we got a bit higher in elevation, the trail surface turned to dirt and solid granite, both of which are much easier to walk on. As usual, the group was comprised of a combination of long-time members (of which, I suppose I now count myself) as well as some new comers. It’s always a great group of people though and it’s always fun to chat and get to know the newer members as we make our way into the wilderness.

Everyone was commenting on how wonderful it was to be able to hike into Desolation Wilderness this late in the season. Normally, this area would have already seen significant snowfall, but the winter storms haven’t shown themselves just yet and gave us a gorgeous day to explore. While it was a bit cold standing around the trail head waiting for everyone to gear-up, once we started moving, people were quickly dropping layers.

A couple of miles in, the trail begins to parallel a small creek, which is frozen. While it the air temperature doesn’t feel like it is below the freezing point, the overnight temperatures and shadow cast in the little canyon cut by the creek, will probably allow it to maintain a solid state until the spring. The trail overall is not terribly difficult. There are a few short steep sections, but mostly it’s a gradual climb to the lake, which sits at the end of the long canyon with Dicks’ Peak above.

We reached the lake without incident and decided to have lunch here. I decided to try out a new thermos I recently acquired. The boiling vegetable soup that I had pour in it over four hours earlier, was just now at the perfect temperature to be enjoyed. That and a protein bar and I felt rejuvenated enough to walk around the area a bit.

The lake itself is shaped much like a crescent moon. Our lunch spot was near one of the points of that crescent, but high on the mountainside of the far end, tall waterfall has frozen over. The ground is made up mostly of granite slabs with the occasional gnarled juniper jutting out of the rock. I find one group of stunted junipers who’s girth is nearly the same as their height. With the lake in the background, it makes for a great picture.

After our short lunch break, we start heading back to the cars. I begin chatting with another long-time member about our past adventures and some we plan on accomplishing in the future. Overall, it’s a marvelous time. With good company, the fresh autumn air, and some of the most stunning scenery on earth, who could want for more. We hiked right at 9.9 miles and make plans to grab some food together once we return to Reno. Thank you all for a wonderful day.

Philosopher's Way (San Francisco County, California)

Just outside of the hustle and bustle of downtown San Francisco, sits a small hill, which is home to John McLaren Park. Within the park near it's outer perimeter, I recently learned of a short trail known as the Philosopher's Way. Knowing that I'm going to be trapped in the city for the next couple of days, I decided to take a detour and hike this short urban-ish trail.

Starting the somewhat popular trail on the southwestern corner of the park, I quickly enter a wooded area, which seems a little odd in the bay area, but it's a pleasant escape nonetheless. The trail meanders around the edge of the park, occasionally offering views of the city or the bay. Large stones with an etched triangle mark the way, but even with this I find myself loosing the correct path periodically. Being within the city, this trail and the park as a whole gets a lot of use and a network of interconnected trails have been worn over the decades.

After cutting across a hillside carpeted with the golden grasses that are so prevalent in California, the trail opens up to the small Jerry Garcia Amphitheater. I think I would enjoy seeing a performance here someday. For the city-dwellers, I can imagine this nearby retreat may give them a chance to breathe and open their minds beyond the confines of the concrete jungle. For me though, as someone who lives to be in the backcountry away from all of this, it's much like any stroll in any city park - pleasant, but not overly enlightening. 

With the sun falling in the west, I head back to the jeep. I have to get checked into my hotel and then over to Oakland for a concert. Still, it was a nice distraction and I'm glad to have had the opportunity to hike the 2.6 or so miles right here in the heart of the bay.

Jack London State Park - Vineyard Trail (Sonoma County, California)

 

I'm in San Francisco for a couple of days this week for some training, but since I have the whole day to get there from Reno, I thought I would take some extra time to get a couple of hikes in. Driving through Napa and Sonoma this time of year, it's impossible to not smell the grapes having been recently harvested. That wonderful aroma occupies and the thoughts that it inspires occupy me until I reach the small village of Glen Ellen. I've stayed here before and find this little hamlet intriguing. It has a wonderful feel to it. 

For many years, Glen Ellen was home to the famous turn of the century author, Jack London, and where he finally met his ultimate end. He attempted to popularize the idea of sustainable farming here, but his thinking was unfortunately far ahead of his time. He essentially drank himself to death on the land he so loved. In the years since his wife's passing, the lands have been acquired by the state and turned into the Jack London Historical Park. This will be the source of my first adventure today.

Originally, I had planned to hike a collection of trails forming the Sonoma Ridge Loop here, but as time is passing faster than I had anticipated, I have to settle for a few less miles. As I explore the grounds of the ranch, I quickly get lost in what London was trying to do. The trail departs the parking lot and quickly enters the main structures of the ranch. A large (no roofless) hall opens up to the vineyard, rich with the colors of fall. We're only a couple of months after the harvest and most of the grape leaves are still clinging to the vine.

At the prompting of a sign, I wander a short side trail up to an area known as the Pig Palace. Apparently, London built a luxurious pen for the porcine inhabitants of his ranch, with sanitation heavily on his mind. From what I've read, he believed (rightfully) that if he could maintain a clean and disease-free area for his livestock, he could produce very high quality pork, and while his hypothesis was correct, it failed to be economically viable, at least in his time.

From here, the trail wanders alongside the vineyard and into the woods behind it. A short distance further, and I reach London Lake, which these days is overgrown, but when the Ranch was a home, the author and his guests enjoyed a wonderful swimming hole, complete with a bath house and "floating" walkway to the lake. A large retaining wall on the eastern side, allowed a service road to pass by the lake. 

Continuing on into the woods along the Vineyard trail, I finally reach a dry creek bed, which signs indicate as a local water source (at least in the spring). Here a couple of things catch my attention. 

First, I'm mesmerized by the loud chirping of what I believe to be a tree squirrel in the canopy above. For several minutes, I listen to the lonely hum reverberating through the forest. While there is a sadness to the creature's voice, I can not know if it is truly in pain or just lonely. Perhaps, it is not sadness at all and my squirrel-ese is just out of practice. Regardless, I remain still and just listen for a while 

The second item that really seems odd is the way the trees grow. Tall clusters of redwoods have grown in a number of what I can only describe to as huddles. In these groupings, eight to twelve mature trees seem to have grown around a central point, all within a twenty-five or so foot circle. Seeing one group like this would be strange, but here there are numerous clusters growing like this. Were these trees the offspring of some mighty ancestor that once stood at the center of each huddle? Were the trees planted like this by London or someone connected with him? I really have no idea, but it's certainly an oddity.

Turning back, I mostly retrace my path. As I return to the jeep, I see that I've hiked about 3.3 miles. I really want to go further, but today's time is limited and this place will be here when I'm able to return in the spring. 

Peavine Peak (Washoe County, Nevada)

 

With my foot and ankle feeling pretty good on a short hike last week, I decided to test them a bit further today. Overlooking Reno from the North, sits Peavine Peak. So named by the early settlers due to their finding of wild peas on the northeastern side of the 8,269' mountain. The mountain houses a number of radio and television transceivers, and provides a pretty backdrop for anyone driving into downtown Reno from the south. I've hiked in and around the peak a few times in the past, but never summited. Time to change that.

The trail I decided to take starts at the very northern end of Robb Drive. Immediately after leaving the neighborhood, the trail quickly starts gaining elevation as it roughly follows a small drainage offering up the last remnants of the spring rains to the sparse inhabitants of this yellow hillside. Hopefully, what little remains will sustain them until the oncoming winter.

These hills have a number of jeep and dirt bike trails, which make navigation a little challenging, but I find that using the contours on the topographical map I downloaded to my phone keeps me going the right direction. In the distance, I hear a drone buzzing around overhead. It stops briefly to take a look at me and I wave at the controller, but it quickly moves off and over a distance ridge.

From here, the trail gets incredibly steep. There are a number of sections that I can barely traverse without dropping to all fours. Incredibly, I see some tire treads. I must assume they were going down instead of driving up, as it would take quite a vehicle to make it up this and several other inclines.

Shortly thereafter, I finally reach the first of the two peaks, both of which are crowned by broadcast towers and equipment. I make my way around to the other peak, just a quarter-mile or so to the east. This second one is actually Peavine Peak, but both are nearly the same elevation. From up there, I can survey the entirety of the Truckee Meadows where Reno and Sparks sprawl from one side of the valley to the other.

Instead of returning the way I came, I decided to descend via the service road, which is a much more manageable grade. I'm able to make my way down much, much more quickly and finally return to the neighborhood where I left the jeep. Today's hike covered about 8.8 miles with right at 2,800 feet of elevation gain. It was a good workout for someone that hasn't been on the trails as much as he would like, but my ankle and foot seem to be okay.

Ballardini Ranch Loop (Washoe County, Nevada)

A few weeks ago, I hurt my foot running a 5k. I attribute the injury to the route being mostly on sand, which I hate running on. Anyway, that ailing foot has limited my recent hiking, but as it is starting to feel a bit better, I figured it was time to start hitting the trails once again.

On the southwestern side of Reno, a trail system was build a couple of years ago around what was once the Ballardini family's ranch. This is just one of many such projects that have been build in and around Washoe County, but this one had not been on my radar until recently. Listed at a modest 2.2 miles, it is really only something I would consider when I didn't have a lot of time (or was recovering from an injury). Both of those happened to be the case today and so, I decided to check it out.

A nice trailhead, complete with pit toilets, awaits hikers here. This time of year (and most of the year for that matter), the foothills around Reno are covered with a golden-yellow grass as far as the eye can see. Right now, however, the few trees along the creek and in the neighborhoods below are in the peak of their autumn coloration and add to the gorgeous pallet of fall. 

The easy trail meanders through the hills offering views of the neighborhoods to the north and of canyons leading into the Mt. Rose Wilderness to the south. Air temperatures are hitting the mid-70's, a bit warm for this late into fall, but good hiking weather. As I round the far end of the loop, I note that my foot really isn't bothering me at all. 

Eventually, I make my way down to the creek and the trail parallels it most of the way back to the trailhead. It's a nice and easy 2.3 mile trek, but it's nice to be out on the trails again.

Kings Canyon North Loop (Ormsby County, Nevada)

As winter approaches each year and the daylight hours grow shorter, I'm always hard-pressed to find short hikes doable before it's completely dark outside. For a while, my friend Chris and I have been trying to get together to hike the Kings Canyon area just east of Carson City. It's a short drive and a short hike, which will hopefully, allow us to complete it before it's pitch black outside.

Driving down to Carson, I meet Chris at his house and we quickly head over to the trailhead. After quickly reviewing the map, we head up the moderately steep incline. In the distance, we can hear the lower waterfall, but the trail we intend to take doesn't take us by that until the return trip. The trail here is actually a forest service road that uses switchbacks to traverse the steep hillside. Eventually, we find a side trail that appears to head deeper into the canyon and decide to take it.

This trail follows the creek that is responsible for carving this canyon. The leaves of the small quacking aspen have turned yellow, as they do every October, but it makes for a beautiful scene. As we cross a small sturdy bridge across the creek, we turn back towards the trailhead. The trip back is uneventful as night falls, but we take a quick detour to see the waterfall before returning to the truck. We hiked just shy of 2 miles, but it was nice just to get out on a week night. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera and so these shots were taken with my phone.

Red Run VI: Bloodline (Storey County, Nevada)

Note: All Photos in this post courtesy of Red Run

For the second year in a row, I and some friends decided to save the world from the zombie apocalypse during Virginia City's annual Red Run event. This year team Whiskey Rebels was composed of Lacey (who joined me last year) and her boyfriend, Josh. We had all three put time into researching and building study guides in the days leading up to the event. Red Run combines a run with an escape room with a few brain-craving zombies thrown into the course for good measure. Last years event was a tremendous amount of fun, and after taking third place, we decided to actually put some effort into it this year in the hopes of winning it all.

I met up with Josh and Lacey about an hour before our launch time. Enjoying some beers in the Virginia City Brewery, we went over strategy and got our bibs and flags attached. As launch time approached, we headed over to our starting location and were directed into a large shipping container as zombies above banged on the roof and sides while dumping red corn starch on us for effect. As the seconds ticked down, the zombies grew more restless until finally the doors at the other end sprang open and we, along with a few other teams, made a mad break down C-street through the zombie horde. From the sidelines, a number of guns fired and red smoke filled the air. Only Lacey lost a flag to the undead in this first section. 

Once we reached a safe zone, we re-read our clue as we walked downhill and towards the city's sports fields. As we soon discovered, this year's event was more focused on running and less focused on the puzzle. Upon reaching the field, we again had to jook and spin our way through a horde of brain-hungry zombies all trying to grab our flags, but we made it through safely. Signs direct us to go one direction while some other teams are directed to go a different route. As we will later find out, all teams must do both parts, but some teams do the blue route first followed by the white, while other teams do the reverse order.

Along the route, symbols are placed in sometimes obvious and sometimes less-than-obvious places. Our immediate goal is to collect symbols numbered one through five. As we proceed down the jeep trail away from the field, we encounter a very narrow section with a number of zombies just waiting to grab our flags. In this narrow choke-point, it's practically impossible to escape the undead without some loss. We lost a total of four flags in this section, leaving us with only one flag remaining attached to Josh. We take a quick water break before continuing on to find the final three symbols. After collecting those three, we figure out the clue and learn that we need to go to the Delta Saloon, where we find a key to the cipher. It's a simple replacement alphabet and our symbols spell out the word 'black'. 

With our password at hand, we return to the Game-master. Here we learn that we must now run the second half of the course. We decide to visit the second half's key before collecting symbols this time. As Lacey is struggling with all of the uphill, we decide that she will stay behind and function as central command while Josh and I collect the next five symbols. We make a bit better time with this strategy. For one of the clues, Josh has to go into one of the old abandoned silver mines. I would go, but I'm wearing prescription sunglasses. If I remove them, I loose my distance vision, but if I leave them on, I won't be able to see anything in the dark mine. Josh goes in and quickly returns with the symbol.

After collecting a couple of symbols, we determine the second letter is 'i' and the fifth letter is 't'. We call Lacey and she begins looking at all of the possible five letter words that fit this criteria. The cell service in Virginia City is not very dependable and while Josh and I make our way to the next symbol, I start to think that perhaps the two words are somehow connected. We had already considered that most of the words that fit the criteria of word two are those in the 'ight' family (fight, might, wight, etc.). As last year's puzzle had us applying black-lights to our clues to find hidden notes, I'm forced to wonder if that may be the second word, "light'. 

My hunch turns out to be right and Lacey has already confirmed it with other teams, we make a mad break for the game-master, who provide another clue that must have black lights applied to it in order to read it. When we finally get to the crypt where the facilities are set up to do this, we learn the location of the survivor who we are looking for. We make a mad break for it and finally get the antidote. As it turns out, Lace and Josh both think I'm faster than they are and since I have the official tagged bib, it makes sense that I make a break for the finish line with the antidote. As soon as we clear the boarded sidewalk, I sprint at full speed down the center of C-street for the finish line. As I have no flags left for the zombies, I don't fear the dead and dying. Lacey and Josh cross the finish line just moments after I do and we are all given our award medal and take advantage of our free beer.

Staying for the awards ceremony, we learn that we didn't place this year, but also figure out that several teams sort of cheated by trading the passwords between them instead of figuring both out for themselves. While still a great deal of fun, Lacey and I both think that last year's event was substantially more fun, as the puzzle was much more difficult and there was less running. In total, I think we ran about six miles, but since it isn't a constant run, I didn't bother to time myself. Hopefully, next year they will tweak the event to be less cheatable and have a more challenging puzzle.