Some Recent Photos to Share

I’ve shared most of these on TwitPic, but I wanted to put them in a post. I’ve decided to do this occasionally, as I take the odd photo here and there while not strictly on an outing.

On the evening of 13 August, smoke from a forest fire began pouring in to the Truckee Meadows. As DW pulled out of the driveway the next morning, she called me and said, “Look at this sun!” So I grabbed the camera and walked out on the patio in my boxers–hey, it was not even 6:30 am, and nobody was out jogging in that smoke! Anyway, this is the resulting photo.

On Friday, 14 September, the Reno Ski & Recreation Club had our weekly TGIF gathering at Idlewild Park in Reno, where the food trucks were selling all kinds of goodies. I got there a bit early and, not seeing any other members yet, I decided to walk around the park. I came to a nice quiet spot by the river and snapped this shot.

Early in October I was driving home, and we happened to have some clouds in the sky–very rare through the summer. Suddenly the sky lit up with the orange glow of the setting sun, and I had to pull over to take a photo or two, the second one a panoramic experiment.

Finally, also in early October, I had occasion to visit the Grand Sierra Resort here in Reno. Since October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the hotel tower was lit up, not brightly in white as usual, but in a nice rosy shade of pink.

I expect this will be one of many posts like this, unless you, gentle viewers, tell me to stick to the narratives. There will be more of those as well, to be sure. Please leave a comment with your opinion either way.

Dry Pond, Mt. Rose Wilderness

On the 27th of August, I took the day off and met a few friends for a local hike. We gathered at the trailhead for the Thomas Creek trail that is on Timberline Road, at the foot of Mount Rose. We started briskly up the trail; I had to shed my long-sleeved Henley pretty quickly. We were hiking the Thomas Creek-Whites Creek loop, using the connecting trail through the Dry Pond area.

I didn’t take any photos until we were nearly to the flat area that is Dry Pond. We paused at the first spot you can see the Truckee Meadows (as the valley that Reno lies in is called).

We stopped at Dry Pond for a snack before we headed down the other side to Whites Creek.

Coming down the south side of the Dry Pond trail there’s a nice view of Washoe Valley. If you look carefully, you may even see part of the new I-580 freeway that goes to Carson City. (I think it’s hidden behind that green ridge, though.)

This is a moderately strenuous 6.5 to 7 mile hike, easy to do in a half-day. Come see me in Reno and we’ll go!