Rubicon Trail in the Rain (El Dorado County, California)

 

Once again, rain has been forecast for most of the immediate area around Reno, but once again, I refuse to let it prevent me from my wanderlust adventures. Meeting up with my friends Linda and Cassie, we make our way up Highway 50 towards Lake Tahoe. This will be Linda's first visit to the late since moving to the area a little over a year ago. While we all know that Tahoe is sunny most of the time, today is pretty overcast. Still, I think she will enjoy the view. 

We drive through South Lake Tahoe and head up to the Vikingsholm parking lot to start a trail I have been trying to do for a couple of months. The Rubicon Trail, not to be confused with the famous 4x4 trail, is a 4.5ish mile trail that traverses the perimeter of Emerald Bay and heads up Tahoe's shoreline towards D.L. Bliss State Park. As we descend down the switchbacks to lake level, Linda expresses concerns with coming back up, but we offer encouragement and continue on.

Arriving at the shoreline, we are faced with multiple forks in the trail, as it meanders in and amount Vikingsholm and the Emerald Bay Boat Campground. Navigation isn't terrible and we quickly find our way. All the while admiring Fannette Island and it's tea house in the center of the bay. What a remarkable structure.

Continuing on, Linda comments on the blueness of the water, to which Cassie and I voice our agreement. It is what Tahoe is known for after all. We make our way across the point and start the final two miles of the trail, only to meet rain turning to small hail. Luckily, we had all packed accordingly and retrieve our rain gear from our respective packs. After some discussion, we decide to turn back towards the car in case the storm gets any worse. 

Luckily as we arrive back at Vikingsholm, the clouds part and the sun begins to shine through once again. We rest for a short time and admire the mansion before heading back up the series of switchbacks towards the car. All in all, we only knocked out a little over six and a half miles, but the views make it all worth while. I plan to try this trail again later in the summer when this persistent overcast and rain shower weather finally depart.

Obsidian Dome (Mono County, California)

Spring has come late to the Sierra Nevada. Reno has gotten at least some precipitation every day for the past three weeks and it's really been putting a damper on my weekend plans. No more! Rain or shine, I decided I was going to finally check out Obsidian Dome, south of Mono Lake and one of the Mono-Inyo Craters.

This entire region is a hotbed of volcanic activity and I have visited many other sites nearby over the years, but this one has eluded me due to weather or time constraints in the past. Luckily, today was a pretty good day to finally hit the site. Making may way down the rough gravel road for about three miles and dodging other site-seers along the way, I finally arrive a small parking lot alongside an obvious trail into the crater.

Reaching the top with minimal effort, I'm immediately struck by the amount of volcanic glass (obsidian) strewn about the landscape. Obsidian boulders the size of cars and washing machines are scattered all about the area. No wonder this crater was named so. I'm also struck by the area of the crater. I've visited many volcanic craters in the past, but this one covers a huge area. Walking around the barren landscape on a makeshift trail, I would estimate the top of the crater occupies an area approximately the size of a football field. At one point, I encounter an nearly-solid obsidian cone jutting 30 feet out of the ground - Amazing. 

I wander a bit more realizing that I've lost track of my entrance point to the crater, but no worries, there are several trails I had seen from the entrance road. I find the nearest one and descend into the forest below. Following the road, I arrive back at the parking lot after only about half of a mile. It was a relatively quick visit, but well worth it.

Rock Lake in Spring (Washoe County, Nevada)

Every since reading about the presence of lily pads on Rock Lake in the spring, I've wanted to hike back up there. I made the 8-ish mile out-and-back hike back in February and loved the lake, but it was still full of snow and slush at that time of year and not very hospitable to spring growth. I decided today was the day. I mean after all, I had only run the Biggest Little 5k yesterday and the Moms on the Run 5k this morning. I figured my legs could use a little more exercise (I'm sure I'll be paying for that tomorrow).

Starting up the well-maintained and now reasonably familiar trail from Davis Creek Regional Park, I decided to take it fairly slow. I was already a little sore from my earlier run, but I still made pretty good time up the steep trail. I was afraid that there might be a bit of snow or at least mud on the trail, as we have recently had a little bit of rain/snow fall, but it was bone-dry; another reminder of the drought conditions were are in. At about the two-mile mark, I hit the now very familiar crossing of Ophir Creek. As always, crossing the fingers of this creek is a matter of patience, balance, and path-finding, but as I hopped from rock to rock and balanced across some small fallen logs, I made it to the other side and safety without incident.

As I start up the steepest part of the trail, I start to question my common-sense in doing this today, immediately after running two 5k's, but as I'm planning on doing an overnight-er next weekend, I really need the workout. Arriving at the fork and spotting the sign for Rock Lake, I make the right turn and start down the hill to my destination. It's only about a quarter of a mile until the lake (or at least the stained boulders submerged in the lake) come into view. Unlike many alpine lakes, this one is unusual in that it is littered with giant granite boulders that have, over the eons, been stained to a rich golden yellow color, presumably by something mineral or biological in the water. 

Unlike my last trip to the lake though, I decided to really embrace the rock crawling/climbing this time and maneuvered my way all the way out to the largest visibly open spot on the lake. And to my satisfaction, there they are . . . lily pads. As I admire the plants, I'm greeted by a small group of mallard ducks flying around and landing and then flying again on the lacks surface. I take a few minutes to relax and eat a snack before heading back over the rocky terrain and making my way back to the jeep. All in all, it was only 8.5 miles, but with already-tired legs, it seemed like a bit more. 

Independence Trail (Nevada County, California)

 

Today, I spent the morning tramping around the woods at the Taylor Ranch Preserve as part of REI's Backcountry Navigation class. It was fun and educational, but certainly not much of a workout. We probably covered 2 miles, at most, during the 5 hour session. And with the day being young, I made plans to meet up with my friends Bill and Linda to do a short trail along the Yuba River, the Independence Trail.

The drive from my class location was only about 20 miles and finding the trail head was a piece of cake. I have hiked with Bill a few times before and I know he's an animal out here, but this was my first time hiking with Linda, who is relatively new to the area. We started the well-marked trail at a moderate pace, but Linda quickly proved that she was up to it, as we traversed a couple of wooden trellis walking bridges. We increased our pace. The trail in this area is pretty unremarkable, but pleasant nonetheless. The vegetation is thick, but still offers the occasional view of the magnificent river below.

As we continue along the trail, we walk across a couple of steep ravines and past some small waterfalls. Eventually, we reach the end of the main trail and Bill suggests heading down a rugged dirt road that he knows leads to a mining shaft below. The road is really steep and we all discuss how much fun it would be to take our jeeps up and down this gauntlet. Reaching the bottom, it's obvious that some other folks have beaten us to it, as the make shift parking lot is full of 4x4's. 

The view from this spot is outstanding. White granite boulders the size of cars and houses below, make for a obstacle course for the crystal-clear bluish-green waters of the Yuba. We maneuver around on the slippery rocks, making our way down to the entrance to what Bill refers to as a mine-shaft. I'm sure he's right, but it's unlike any other mine-shaft I have ever encountered (and I've seen quite a few). The shaft is a long, straight circular tunnel of a roughly 20-foot uniform diameter. The river, or at least an off-shoot of it, runs along the base of the tunnel and at the far end, it opens up to the daylight. Not having the proper shoes to go do far along this slippery surface, we turn back around and precariously make our way back to the 4x4's.

While Linda stops for a quick break, Bill and I head around to the other side of this small point we are standing on. Below, we find a gorgeous blue pool with a granite lounger sitting right in the middle of it. It would rival the man-made pools at any vacation resort. Meeting back up with Linda, we turn and begin making our way back to the parking lot. The return trip is uneventful, but good company always makes a trail more pleasant. All in all, we covered about five miles. Overall a great trail with good friends.

Hidden Cave (Churchill County, Nevada)

Last year, I had attempted to visit this ancient Native American site just east of Fallon, NV, but unfortunately, the tour guide was unable to get the locked door to the cave open. As the Churchill County Museum offers this tour free of charge on the second and fourth Saturday of each month, I decided to give it another go and hope for better luck.

Arriving at the museum just before 9:30, the tour starts with a short (but well-produced) documentary viewing, which explains the origins and history of Hidden Cave. It is believed that the cave was formed by the now long-dry Lake Lahontan. Around 21,000 years ago, waves from the large lake gouged out the cave, which remained flooded for much of its history. Then about 4,000 years ago, the local ancient Native Americans began using the cave, not as a shelter, but for storage. Archaeological digs inside the cave have yielded a wealth of information about the peoples living in the area, including an abalone, which indicates that trade was occurring with coastal peoples. 

After the short video, we caravan out to the site and begin the short hike up to the cave. All along the way, the well-informed tour-guide stops to offer insight into the regions history, geology and plant-life. Overall, it makes for a very interesting experience.

Reaching the cave, our guide sets up a small generator to power the interior lights and we begin to shuffle through the entrance, something of a task for those of us not overly vertically challenged. The cave is filled with a pretty strong smell of ammonia, which as the tour guide explains, is the result of bat and rat guano and urine over the centuries. The cave itself has been preserved in a semi-excavated state to demonstrate how archaeologists perform digs of this nature. Ash layers in the cross-sections have been tested and found to be from well-known volcanic eruptions such as Mount Mazama (which formed Crater Lake). By correlating the dates of these eruptions, a rough time line of the various artifacts found in the cave can be arrived at. The guide points out several items as he continues the tour. 

After about 15 minutes inside the cave, we head out and return down the hillside to the gravel parking lot. The area around Reno is filled with history like this. It's simply a matter of getting out there to see it, and like this opportunity, I try to take full advantage of it.

Tuzigoot (Yavapai County, Arizona)

Continuing the exploration of some of the national monuments near Phoenix with the last stop of this trip, I head to Tuzigoot. This monument protects a pueblo ruin set atop a small ridge above the Verde River floodplain.

Not know exactly what to expect, I hit the visitor center and then proceeded on the paved trail up the ridge line to the ruin. The structure itself, or what is left of it, is an entire complex of rooms, most of which have their own fire pit. The trail leads in and around pretty much the entire site, offering wonderful views of the remaining walls.

At the summit of the hilltop, a connected two-story structure is reminiscent of a watch tower. From the informational signs posted around the site, the structure was built in stages between 1125 and 1400 CE by the Sinagua people and has a total of 110 rooms.

There is so much history in this country and I'm so very glad that I get the opportunity to visit and learn about it. Well worth the drive up there, but alas, I have a plane to catch and it's time to head back home.

Montezuma Castle (Yavapai County, Arizona)

While in the Phoenix area for the weekend, I had to take a little extra time to check out at least a couple of the numerous National Monuments in the surrounding area. First stop - Montezuma Castle and its nearby, but disconnected portion the Montezuma Well. We stopped at the castle first. 

Having visited Mesa Verde in southwestern Colorado a few years ago, I'm somewhat familiar with the amazing architecture of the Ancient Puebloan peoples and their cliff dwellings in this part of the country. That, however, does not make their legacy any less impressive. 

To get to the actual castle, one must walk through the Park Service's visitor center and then follow a short paved trail that passes through a grove of large sycamore's before opening the view to Montezuma Castle above. Five stories in height, the structure is misnamed on both accounts. It is not a castle, but most likely a multi-family dwelling and it had nothing at all to do with Montezuma. In fact, believe it to be have been built between 1100 and 1425 AD (probably in stages), which would mean it predates it's namesake Aztec leader by a couple of hundred years, at least.

Approximately ten miles from the castle, we approach Montezuma Well, which is a natural limestone sink hole. The ancient cultures built dwellings into the surrounding cliffs here as well. The sinkhole itself is water-filled and surfaces some 1.5 million gallons of water each day.

The ancient peoples, resourceful as they were, utilized this water to irrigate many of their crops on the surrounding plain through a series of canals draining water from the sinkhole. Still, it is amazing to me that an entire culture could develop and flourish here for so many centuries in this sun-baked desert climate. It's a true testament to their ingenuity and tenacity.