Our Weekend Adventure

Our weekend began with a spur of the moment decision to go camping. We recently found an old camp trailer that was useable (meaning no sign of mice, looked decent, and didn't seem to need too much cleaning). We thought it would be fun to take it out on a test run to camp about 20 minutes from our house.

My husband hooked up the trailer at lunchtime, and the plan was for me to take it and the kids to our camping spot, and then my husband would meet me after work (being a rancher, that work stuff takes way too much time!).

While I was cleaning the trailer, I found some structural integrity issues that took awhile to resolve (it doesn't help that I'm not super handy with tools), so at 6 p.m. we were still sitting in the driveway. I was tired, and I was wondering if we should even go.

We decided why not. But no cooking. Off to the Border Inn for the Cinco de Mayo buffet. The music had already started and Desert Boy really wanted to dance. I was still eating, so I told him to take Desert Girl out on the dance floor. He did, and then I had to follow to see what they were doing.

Desert Boy was swing dancing. It was awesome.

Silver Sage Music was playing, and the kids were really getting into the music.

We're talking spinning, moving, and lots of laughing.

I'm so glad I went and peeked at what they were doing!

We didn't stay too long as we wanted to start the camping adventure. When we exited the Border Inn, we saw the moon rising. Even though I had read that the moon was only 8 percent larger than normal, it looked a lot bigger at first, as it rose over the mountains. I was glad the media had given it a lot of attention--I knew lots of people were out looking at the moon the same time we were, and that's kind of a neat thought.

We went and chased a good spot for a fancy moon photo and were attracted to a windmill off in the distance.

I never could get the photo quite how I wanted, but it was fun looking around the windmill. To my amazement, my husband had never been out to it, so he enjoyed exploring.

The old Aermotor made in Chicago was still spinning.

I wonder how many cowboys have watched its blades spin.

It was getting dark quickly, which meant we had to get moving.

To be continued...

A Rocky Hike

 On the way back from my triathlon in Orem last weekend (it was great, I really felt good on the bike portion, which was a nice change), we stopped at a rocky outcropping. Where I grew up in the Midwest, we would call this a mountain, but out here in Basin and Range territory, we get a little picky about what we call mountains.

Desert Boy wanted to go for a hike, and I've always wanted to explore this rock. So we took the road less traveled, went through the gate, and drove up the two-track road. Then we piled out of the van and started up.

 The storm clouds added drama to the stark scenery. Beams of sunlight highlighted limestone cliffs pocked with holes. Could any of them be caves?

 I really loved the clouds. I figured it might start raining before too long, so we couldn't dawdle. My goal was to get to the top of the rock. But when we decided we couldn't get to the top with the kids safely, we went to plan B: walk around the rock outcropping.

 Desert Boy enjoyed the rock climbing challenges.

I enjoyed taking photos.

 We found that there were ledges most of the way around the rock outcropping, and that made for relatively easy hiking.

 Most of the ground looked brown, but I found a few bright colors from small desert wildflowers, like the purple Arabis above, blue flax, yellow bladderpod, and orange globemallow.

 The desert looked so big.

 We found a little alcove that was cool.

 Here's another view of that alcove. Maybe it isn't so little!


The way the rock has eroded away makes for some interesting shadows.

Sometime we'll go back with helmets, harnesses, and a rope and see if we can get to the top. It doesn't look that hard to go up, but I'd like Desert Boy and Desert Girl to have a belay for the way down.

Now every time we drive past this rock, I'll think of the great lighting we had during our hike around it and our little adventure.

Advance Copy

 I received a special package today, from Utah State University Press. I waited till my husband got home so he could join me in opening it (and take some photos for me!). This is something I've waited years and years to receive.

 The package was a little tricky to open! Fortunately my husband had his knife handy.

 It's a book! But not just any book...

 It's my book! Welcome Great Basin National Park: A Guide to the Park and Surrounding Area!

 This was the first time I've seen it all put together. I've reviewed and edited so many versions of the manuscript, but this is the first time to flip through the pages in book form (6" x 9"), feel the heft (it weighs over three pounds!), and see the entire layout. The color photos look awesome!

 I can't remember the exact number of photos, but it's over one hundred.

We still have to wait a few weeks for the rest of the copies to arrive. They're literally on a slow boat from China, then a fast train to Chicago (to the University of Chicago Press Distribution Center), and then on trucks to various places that order them. You can see more about the book at the Utah State University Press website, my author page, or by clicking on the link to the right.

I have to admit it all feels a little overwhelming, sort of like giving birth. Thank goodness giving birth doesn't take as long as publishing a book!

Finding Frog Eggs

 A couple weeks ago, I had the opportunity to help the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (DWR) look for frog eggs in the West Desert. Above is a photo of a typical road in the West Desert. Actually, this is an excellent road in the West Desert. Many roads are just two-tracks. Wondering where the pavement is? There's a short section, about 100 m long. That's it. If you travel much in the West Desert, you invest in good tires. And you plan on a new windshield frequently.

I followed Kevin and Vanessa out into the marsh. We all wore hip waders and carried basic supplies in our packs.

We didn't see many frog egg masses at first, but I did like this snail shell.

The marsh alternates from alkaline soils to thick vegetation to springheads and channels. It makes walking a good workout.

While we were in the marsh, we heard aircraft. Dugway Proving Grounds is not too far to the north, and various military planes fly over this area.

Finally, some frog eggs! After frogs mate, the female lays a mass of eggs. Counting egg masses provides an estimate of the frog population. Each egg mass means two frogs. It's always amazing how many frog egg masses we find, because we never see or hear nearly that many adult frogs. Each egg mass has about 100 or so eggs. It takes a few weeks for the eggs to hatch into tadpoles.

We saw a number of these structures out in the marsh. The little white pipe holds a measuring device to measure the depth of water. Utah DWR is concerned about the water levels in this marsh because Southern Nevada plans to pump extensive amounts of groundwater south here.

Here's a view looking south. The highest snow-covered peaks are Jeff Davis and Wheeler Peak, part of Great Basin National Park.

The marsh is fascinating, with winding streams, a variety of vegetation, and quite a few birds. We also saw some fish: least chub, Utah chub, and speckled dace.

At lunch time I wandered over to a nearby spring. The water was an amazing color. Even more intriguing were the shifting sands on the bottom of the spring. The spiral soon changed into another shape. I could have happily sat in a lawn chair, drink in hand, under a sun umbrella, and watched that spring all afternoon.

I had forgotten to pack a lawn chair, so instead we headed to a different marsh to continue looking. Ahead of us was Gandy Salt Marsh Lake. Right now it has water, but by late in summer it's pretty much dry. Along its edge are numerous springs and marshes. It is an extremely hostile place, but even so, a remarkable amount of life can be found there.

We saw numerous northern leopard frogs.

We were mostly interested in Columbia spotted frogs, but we kept count of these guys, too.

I love being out in the West Desert. It is such a remote place, and I feel like I am in the wild. It is freeing, exhilarating, and just a little bit scary.

We had no problem finding frog egg masses in this area. One cluster had over 40 separate egg masses. That must have been one big frog orgy! (Or maybe they just all prefer the same habitat and feel the odds for their progeny to survive are best there. But that sounds a little boring.)

I was absolutely exhausted by the end of the day, but it was well worth it. Hopefully these frogs and their offspring will be able to continue to enjoy the wilds of the West Desert for a very long time to come.

Chasing Shadows

A few weeks ago I had the idea to go up in the mountains late in the afternoon and take photos of the mountain shadows extending over the valley. I really liked how the mountains reached out and stretched farther and farther.


The late afternoon shadows highlighted all the gullies and arroyos that break up the landscape, showing how rugged it is.


The kids were with me and wanted to hike, so I wasn't going to say no. Anything to burn off energy is a good plan in my book! We drove to the end of the road and the kids ducked through the gate.

Desert Girl thought this was great idea.

She started off enthusiastically, happily making little footprints in the skiff of snow.

 

It didn't take her long to figure out that this was an uphill hike, and suddenly she wasn't so thrilled.

The mountain shadows continued their invasion of the valley.

Some of the peaks looked exaggerated, almost like daggers piercing the air.

I made it up to the curve, where there was certainly a lack of snow at 8500 feet for early February. (It has since snowed, thank goodness, and the road is covered in white.)

 

Desert Girl started realizing that the walk downhill was more fun than uphill. She was fascinated by the yellow line, running down it.

The temperatures quickly plunged and we retreated to our van. We were glad we didn't have to spend the night out in the frigid clime.

At our next overlook, we saw that the progression of shadows had nearly terminated: the mountain shadows were now on the mountains across the valley.


The play of light was magical, with the twilight dancing over the mountains and valleys.

Good night, beautiful mountains.