Back Roads

The last time I was on this road was back in 1980 on the Elephant Fire. I drove a fire engine down it, but it was green and lush back then... and was until last year, I might add. As I was riding along I was wishing I had tried riding this road before the fire screwed it up beyond recognition. Too late for that now, but it still made a really nice ride.

Coming down along Last Chance creek the scenery always beckons me to take pictures.



I had to ford Last Chance Creek in one spot so I took off my shoes and waded across. I was surprised at how warm the water is. It's no wonder that certain kinds of trout don't make it here. Still, I have waded this creek many times and it seemed warmer than usual to me... There wasn't much flow anyway.


The wind shifted today and for a change, this wind shift you could watch happening... thanks to all the smoke from the fires still going. Just visible in the smoke in this last picture is Babcock Peak, where I had just come down from. The smoke moved across and as I type this the whole Honey Lake Valley is full of smoke. Tomorrow I'm heading back up to the top of Janesville Grade to explore all the roads... Life is good!!

Fishin' in the smoke!

Wow.... smoky??? Ya think??? Other than the fact that the air was so thick you could cut it with a knife, it was a nice day. There was sun up there somewhere and I could feel some warmth from it but the smoke really cut down the heat a little. It wasn't quite warm enough for swimming as far as I was concerned, but I saw other people swimming and water skiing.

Looks like a little less smoke this morning so I'm hoping for a little more clear air up there today... tomorrow bike riding!!

Oh, I only caught 37 fish... a little slow!

Smoky...

The air, not the bear. But then good ol' Smokey spells his name a little differently... with an "e."

Went up toward Cheney Creek today and got on some roads I had never been on before, and didn't even know they existed. Had some nice views of the Susan River Canyon... well, they could have been really nice if the air had been clearer. There was a yellow tinge to the sunlight from the smoke, and that is a sight I am quite used to seeing. I'd rather it wasn't smoky, but you have to take what you get, weather-wise, so it was all good.

Other than the smoke, the sky was clear.

There was very little good information on the fire over by Sloat, that one is called Cold. They said there were 1200 acres on fire, but I think that is in the complex, so I'm not sure how much of that is the Cold fire. Most of the smoke we are getting is coming from over by Chester, I think, more fires over there. The smell reminds me of fire camp. Ya gotta love those great memories!

Fire... again!

Well, a little thunderstorm episode the other day and now the air is filled with smoke again. Information this morning is sketchy but I know of one big fire over by Sloat, where my friend Chris lives. His crew was coming back from Nevada yesterday, he called and left a message on my voice mail when I was out bike riding. The fire near his place might cross highway 70, or so the speculation goes. Quite the lack of information right now, but by this afternoon I should be able to find out a little more about what is happening.

My ride yesterday was up above Lake Forest and down Piute Canyon. My map said there was a road in the bottom of Piute Canyon, and indeed, I did find a really good trail there. No vehicle tracks and a really good bike riding trail. I will be returning to explore this area again in a few days.

Today I have a few errands to run this morning, then I'm heading up toward Cheney Creek. There is a hazy smoky filter on the sunlight here in the valley this morning, but I'm hoping the smoke will blow into Nevada and clear up a little... ahhhh, the smell of the forest on fire... memories!