W.M. Keck Museum--Fun with Minerals, Fossils, and a Tea Service

 During our fall break with its focus on culture, I told the kids we were going to concentrate on museums instead of hiking. Believe it or not, they were happy about that. Our first museum of the trip was the W.M. Keck Museum in the Mackay School of Earth Sciences and Engineering. We had looked at their website before we went to get the address, and went there. But that ended up being the general address for the University of Nevada-Reno. After wandering in circles for awhile we got directions, left the parking garage, and drove to the other end of campus, where we fortunately found a parking spot and then did the short walk to the museum.

We had the museum all to ourselves, which after our experience at Sand Mountain, was quite welcome.

On the first floor we saw hundreds of different minerals. We oohed and ahhed as we went past.

Then we headed downstairs, where we saw real gold--both on rocks and on the Mackay tea service. The kids were more interested in it than I thought they would be.

Next we headed upstairs, to see some fossils.

I was also quite interested in the carbide lamp collection, as that became the primary lighting source for miners in 1896 (before that they used candle lanterns). Cavers used carbide lamps for decades. I even used one when I started caving, but after having super hot water run down my face because I didn't have it adjusted quite right, I decided to stick with electric. Nowadays most cavers use electric lights, which over the years have become smaller and brighter.

As we were leaving the museum, a staff person stopped us and let the kids pick out a rock. They were both delighted! We used the restroom and I admired the beautiful radiator. A heating duct next to it blew hot air.

Then we took a little detour into the library and found this electric vehicle that had been built for Burning Man. The sign welcomed folks to give it a ride.

It only took about half an hour to see everything at kid speed (we didn't read much), but we all had a good time. Then we got back to the van before the parking meter ran out (we didn't have many coins with us). I was so impressed that I had actually parallel parked. That's not a skill I need out on the ranch!

A Visit to Sand Mountain, Nevada

 Over Desert Boy's fall break we headed west across the very wide state of Nevada to go to Carson City, the state capital, to celebrate the 150th birthday of the state. On the way there we stopped at Sand Mountain, east of Fallon. About four years ago we stopped there and let the kids play in the sand and thought it would be a fun place to return to. I even planned to camp there. But when we got to the turnoff, we could see that things had changed. A sea of RVs was parked at the base of the sand dunes.

 Even though it was Wednesday, hundreds of people in RVs with trailers and off-highway vehicles were spread out. It turns out that Tuesday and Wednesday are free days. Otherwise it's $40 for a week or $90 for the season. The pricing structure was obviously not for the casual nature observer wanting to take a jaunt up to the top of the dunes. It appeared that there weren't any specific time frames for vehicles at the dunes (unlike Coral Pink Sand Dunes, where hikers didn't have to worry about getting run over until 10 in the morning).

I was a bit floored when I saw the Papa Murphy's pizza vendor. I guess we didn't need to bring that top ramen!

The kids really wanted to play in the sand, so we carefully made our way out towards the dunes, where I stood guard while the kids played. When we saw vehicles coming our way, we scurried out of the way. It wasn't exactly relaxing.

Despite all the vehicles on Wednesday, when we drove by again on Sunday morning, there were probably double the amount, plus a constant stream leaving the dunes. Over half had California license plates.

I had quickly decided not to camp at the dunes, as the noise level was quite high, and there clearly wasn't a tent section. We went back down the road and checked out the nearby Pony Express Station, where we saw the dunes with some awesome light.

Desert Girl really loved playing in the sand.

The Pony Express Station was neat, but not a place I'd like to stay at. Driving across the state at 70 mph is long these days, I can't imagine how hard it would have been back in 1860. And the signs by the Pony Express Station said it didn't have a roof and the water tasted terrible. Not exactly a rousing endorsement.

We ended our evening at Sand Mountain with a really pretty sunset. I thought the OHVs would get off the dune, but they just continued roaring up and down the dunes. albeit with their lights on.

If you like OHVs, this is definitely the place for you. If not, it's very pretty from a distance.

Oak Creek Canyon

 East of Delta, Utah is Oak City, Utah (check out the link for an interesting tidbit about the country's atomic history), and east of it is a beautiful canyon called Oak Creek Canyon. I never paid much attention to it until it burned in a huge wildfire a couple years back. When we had some extra time one Saturday, we decided to go drive up the canyon and see what was there. We were impressed.

Even though it was obvious that the fire had burned really hot, taking out whole hillsides of trees, the vegetation was coming back well. The oak trees were already several feet tall, and colorful maples dotted some of the areas. A big section of ponderosa pines had been protected from the fire. Those that did burn may produce the next crop of ponderosa pines, as they require fire in order for their seeds to regenerate.

We eventually turned around and came back to the lower campground. We found an old picnic structure.

Behind it was an impressive amphitheater. I let the kids play in the leaves and use their imagination while I wandered around taking photos.

I'm not sure who uses this amphitheater, but I'd sure like to be there for some performance.

The leaves were spectacular.

I was a bit surprised to see signs announcing bears in the area. I guess the acorns help provide enough food for them.

The campground host has a cabin. It looks like a great place to spend the summer. We will definitely be adding this canyon to our summer camping list.

The canyon is located in the Fishlake National Forest. Activities include camping;  fishing (for introduced trout); rock climbing; hiking Fool Creek Peak, the highest peak in the Canyon Range; wood-gathering; hiking Devil's Den memorial trail; and checking out the fire rehabilitation.  When you drive the road, there are places where they tell you not to stop for the next mile because of flood damage, and when you see how they had to bulldoze through all the debris to reopen the road, you don't slow down too much, even on a sunny day!

It's so fun discovering places that aren't too far from home and yet are so interesting.

Happy 150th Birthday, Nevada!

Tomorrow is the state of Nevada's 150th Birthday. It entered into the Union on October 31, 1864 as the 36th state.

I sure never imagined I would be living in Nevada. I always had visions of it being a barren wasteland. Little did I know that it's an amazing place, with so many secret getaways and treasures.

Apparently Nevada has a state song. I never had to learn it to live in Nevada, but perhaps schoolchildren do learn it. And in case you wondered, here it is (and if you'd like to be part of a world-record attempt to have the most people singing a state song, at 10 am today, click here):

Home Means Nevada

OFFICIAL SONG OF THE STATE OF NEVADA (NRS 235.030)
Written & Music by Bertha Raffetto

---

Way out in the land of the setting sun,
Where the wind blows wild and free,
There’s a lovely spot, just the only one
That means home sweet home to me.
If you follow the old Kit Carson trail,
Until desert meets the hills,
Oh you certainly will agree with me,
It’s the place of a thousand thrills.Home means Nevada
Home means the hills,
Home means the sage and the pine.
Out by the Truckee, silvery rills,
Out where the sun always shines,
Here is the land which I love the best,
Fairer than all I can see.
Right in the heart of the golden west
Home means Nevada to me.

Whenever the sun at the close of day,
Colors all the western sky,
Oh my heart returns to the desert grey
And the mountains tow’ring high.
Where the moon beams play in shadowed glen,
With the spotted fawn and doe,
All the live long night until morning light,
Is the loveliest place I know.

Home means Nevada
Home means the hills,
Home means the sage and the pines.
Out by the Truckee’s silvery rills,
Out where the sun always shines,
There is the land that I love the best,
Fairer than all I can see.
Right in the heart of the golden west
Home means Nevada to me.

Happy Birthday, Nevada!

(We will be celebrating for a few days and will have some posts about how to celebrate a state's 150th birthday coming up soon.)

Oak City Cave

 A few weeks ago I took the kids to a cave I've been meaning to go to for many years: Oak City Cave. The entrance is a little crawlway. It's also known as a rattlesnake den, so I was glad that it was pretty late in the season and we didn't see any snakes.

We did see lots of pillbugs. I couldn't believe how many were in the entrance!

There were also lots of cobwebs.

And, unfortunately, lots of graffiti. I don't think some people realize how fragile cave environments are. The cave walls don't have the sun and wind like outside rocks, so it takes so very long for anything to wear away. And it often takes so long for a cave and cave formations to form in the first place.

Not far from the entrance was a six-foot drop I was expecting. It was something too hard for the kids to negotiate by themselves, so I made them hasty harnesses out of webbing and gave them a belay. Desert Girl was not at all sure about going down the big hole, but did fine.

At the bottom we were rewarded with some cave pretties.

The cave was larger than I expected. We didn't even have time to see it all before we were due out. Passages went in several directions, and even though they weren't long, we wanted to explore them thoroughly. I was very glad to have my kneepads.

We found another small pit, but it was easier to negotiate. I was starting to get quite warm by this point. I didn't have a thermometer, but guessed that the cave temperature was in the mid to upper 50s.

The kids found a cave cricket. They are becoming well-trained cave biologists!

When we came out of the cave, our nearby surface contact greeted us with bottles of water. That sure was welcome! Then it was time to call another surface contact. It's always good to let people know where you're going! It was a fun cave. I just wish that people who went into it treated it a little better.