MOUNTAIN RETREAT

FACES OF TAHOE

     Here's the moon over that "Mystery Pier" some of you guessed at yesterday. It's in South Lake Tahoe.

     It's our first visit to the beautiful blue lake on the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada range.
     TAHOE FACTS
           Elevation 6229 feet
           Maximum Depth  1645 feet  Average Depth 989 Feet
           Length 22 Miles   Width 12 miles
           71 miles of shoreline--42 in California 29 in Nevada
           Annual Snowfall  18 feet

     The legendary blue is indeed beautiful and the water is incredibly clear.

     The top half of the frame below is underwater.

      In the winter the mountains become a ski and winter sport playground. The lake never freezes.

     The surface water temperature ranges from 68 to 41 degrees. It is easy to see why generations have delighted in

Lake Tahoe.

      See you down the trail.

A WONDER OF THE WORLD

ONE OF THE WONDERS?

     The sculptures at the Hoover Dam are the centerpiece of a tile inlayed plaza that is a type of earth calendar and cosmic communication piece.  It places the Hoover Dam in a league with the Pyramids and the Roman Coliseum. And
there is some truth to that.

   More than a hundred humans lost their lives in the building of the Boulder Dam from 1931 to 1935.  Later dedicated to former President Herbert Hoover, it was the largest concrete project ever undertaken and employed thereto for untested techniques.  It remains a colossal achievement.

    Built in Black Canyon on the Colorado River, it impounds Lake Meade.  Constructed under President Franklin Roosevelt, it is a hydroelectric generation source. A consortium of parties, Six Companies, won the bid and built the project for around $42 Million.  They finished almost a year early.
    Nearly a million people visit the Hoover Dam, now a tourist site as well.  Highway 93 used to run across the top of the dam, but the traffic has now been diverted to another amazing construct, the by pass bridge, just recently opened.

    Here on the border of Nevada and Arizona are a couple of
examples of human endeavor, built large and indeed planetary markers.

See you down the trail.

DO THEY KNOW ABOUT THIS PLACE ON THE STRIP

ENTER ONLY IF
YOU WANT TO SEE ANOTHER SIDE OF VEGAS
BEAUTIFUL RED ROCKS

    Less than an hour west and north of the strip is a world

apart from the Vegas that comes to mind.  Magnificent mountains, light and the interplay of both.  To take you "close to the action" there is a loop drive and a dozen options for hiking, walking and climbing.

     The only special effects here are provided time and nature.  These old Yucca heads look like old shrunken heads indeed.

     As one in our party noted, they look like old spirits.

     This trail takes you over and through slanting rocks.

     Look carefully in the frame below.  How'd you like that view?

On the mid horizon line and you can
see the beginnings of the Vegas most people think of.
See you down the trail.

THE SANTA ANNA WINDS

HISTORIC WINDS RAKE CAMBRIA

The strongest blast of the infamous Santa Anna winds in more than a decade has complicated life from

this idyllic village of Cambria to Los Angeles and beyond.

Winds from 60 to 140 miles per hour have knocked out

power to hundreds of thousands.  This post is coming

from a hot spot in the village as we wait for power

to be restored at home.

High wind warnings are posted from Southern California north and into Utah, Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico.
The Santa Anna's are extremely dry and gusty blasts
that come from off shore in Southern California and 
the Baja. They create a significant fire hazard and mental
health officials says the hot and dry winds can have
and adverse affect on some.
Most roads, drives, sidewalks, decks and roofs are 
littered with Monterey Pine needles and
other debris.

People talk of hearing trees groan and whip in the high winds.

Several of the shallow rooted and rare Monterey Pines were downed in the winds. 

In several instances the falling trees took out power lines in their tumble.

 A lot of sweeping will be underway.

Flags and banners needed to be well mounted or they too took a ride on the wind.

 Workers at the Community Presbyterian Church of Cambria
battled the winds as they set up for the annual
December Thrift Shop sale.  They spent a lot of time
chasing merchandise across the parking lot.

If your power is on, appreciate it!
See you down the trail.