Snake Valley Festival--Part One

Well, the much-anticipated weekend arrived! We went to a fantastic dinner at the Garrison LDS Church. Unfortunately I forgot to take any pictures--the food really was that good that I didn't think at all about photos. There was a wonderful array of dishes from many accomplished cooks.

Desert Boy was tired, so we weren't able to go to the music and cowboy poetry evening program, but the next morning we were up early to drop things off at the yard sale. 

There was good business at the yard sale, with lots of donations and lots of shoppers.

Nearby was a reminder of why the Snake Valley Festival was happening--to raise money for the Great Basin Water Network to help protect the area.

The size of the pipe is absolutely enormous (84 inches in diameter), the actual size some of the pipeline is slated to be to take water from rural Nevada towards Las Vegas. When you look around the rather dry valley, you wonder where that water is expected to come from.

Another morning stop was the pancake breakfast.

There was a good turnout for some tasty food. It's always fun to eat with community members, and some I haven't seen in awhile came.

The menu was pancakes, ham, eggs, and coffee.

I haven't eaten such a large breakfast in a long time!

We had to go back to the yard sale to see what else was there and found a fun bucket with kids' tools for Desert Boy and Christmas ornaments for all of us. We kept revisiting the yard sale throughout the morning and found some more treasures.

The Cub airplane flying around reminded us it was time for the parade! It's been several years since there's been a parade out here.

The Garrison Fire Department truck led the way.

Then came Partoun's, with a bunch of kids on the top.

We had one intrepid walker, carrying a canoe with a sign that says, "Where's the Water?"

This patriotic float brightened the street.

The old Jeep brought back memories of early days in the valley.

Following it was quite a contrast, a convertible with a bunch of waving folks. And although we didn't have a Princess contest, the pretty girl on the rear sure looked like a princess!

A golf cart was a perfect place to launch water grenades from.

The other golf cart wanted them to be first so they didn't get sprayed!

But following was one of the Baker fire trucks also spraying water.

A fire truck from Great Basin National Park was in the parade.

And then some horse riders, who were quite unused to riding with so many people around! They all did great, even the second grader!

We had no shortage of fire trucks, and the lights and sirens made the route seem very festive. 

This is a new wildand engine for the community.

The ambulance was all shiny.

The old Model-A Ford had to be jumpstarted, but it ran. My husband drove it, while Desert Boy, Grandpa, and his friend rode in the back. 

Desert Boy was so excited about throwing candy. One of the funniest things about the parade is that since we have so few parades here, the kids don't know what to do when candy is thrown. As a result, the street was littered with candy.

When Desert Boy realizes Mama is taking a photo, he smiles.

A parade in an agricultural community isn't complete without a tractor. Following it was an old loader, which didn't make the return trip through town. The parade route was go from one end of town to the other (all three blocks), turn around and go back. So everyone got to see the parade twice, from two angles!

The huge loader brought up the end of the parade. No one got in its way!

I jumped on the loader at the beginning of the parade to get a shot of heading into "downtown."

You can see the old loader just ahead of us. Things have certainly progressed in terms of technology!

And here you can see some of the booths and people downtown. We haven't had such a crowd in a really long time. 

There's more to the festival, so check back later for more photos and descriptions!