Well, I haven't posted for a minute. :-) So we'll do a flashback to part II of my trip to the Reno Hot Air Balloon Race. After heading West after the balloon race, I decided to stop at the Donner Party Memorial State Park off of Interstate 80 to do an early morning walkabout.
This was a somewhat abbreviated stop as I'd been up all night and also had some things to get to later in Sacramento. The park has quite a bit to offer in the way of recreation but, in my opinion, is best visited in the summer so you can include water activities at Donner Lake. I will definitely be going back for a longer trip with some camping involved. And a hike on part of the Pacific Crest Trail which is accessible nearby.
Unfortunately, on the beautiful September morning, some of the paths were closed for construction but I did spend about an hour walking around and taking photos. The area is quite beautiful with the lovely Donner Creek flowing through it and the varied flora that comes standard in the Western Sierra Nevada.
Another standard feature in the Sierras are gorgeous Stellar's Jays with their bright blue feathers and jaunty crest.
I named this one Bart Simpson.
There is an extremely large statue called the Pioneer Memorial. It's pretty cool and dominates the area near the Visitor's Center (which was not open while I was there). The metal statue was completed in 1918 and stands on the spot of two former cabins built by pioneer families making the arduous trip West.
On this early morning, most of my company was in the form of Jays and adorable chipmunks.
There was some really cool flora there! I wish I knew what some of this stuff is.
This is what remains of one of the Donner Party's cabins. What a tragically fascinating story of bad decisions that is! For a good Clif's notes version, see this brochure.
And their dreams shattered like fissures in granite, with only some of their party blooming through the cracks to live.
Sad. But reminders of the dead should spur us to celebrate life. Which is why I love to get outdoors at any opportunity to see all the beauty that God placed on this amazing world we are blessed to inhabit.
And speaking of blessings, water definitely qualifies!
Donner Creek
I love these. I guess they are a type of thistle, but there weren't any sharp parts so IDK.
These flowers looked like they were made out of straw and it was very cool!
After walking around and talking to a good looking vagabond, I headed out. What's that? You want to hear about the vagabond? Okay. I actually thought he was a ranger so I asked if there were any restrooms that were open.
He started telling me how he travels all over the Western United States with his dog, backpacking and occasionally catching rides with friends from place to place. He suggested that I was too girly and citified to "pee in the woods" and I assured him I am not afraid to do it when need be, but I do prefer a bathroom. Sorry for the TMI but it was a very weird conversation to have with a strange man.
We talked about the outdoors, my job, and my daughter. He said maybe someday when my daughter is set in her life, I might retire and wander like him seeing as how I like to do that in my spare time anyway. We agreed that it was a definite possibility and parted, saying "see you down the road!" instead of goodbye. It was really nice.
I made one more stop at the Emmigrant Gap overlook to take some photos and pretend I was in the Misty Mountains of Lord of the Rings.
It looks cool, but it was actually smoke from all the fires because California was in the process of burning itself up, thanks to the drought. If you would have told me that I would be standing here almost 5 months later looking at snow, I would have thought you were crazy. But I was.
xoxo
Nikon D3000
