Vizslas in a Little Nevada Town

 Sunrise looking over the hills east of Beatty, Nevada  (120 miles northwest of Las Vegas). 
 Population: 1,010 hearty souls.
Wikipedia on Beatty

Beatty is one of the "big" little towns on Hwy 95.  Interstate 95 runs north and south through all of western Arizona and Nevada.  Here we laid over for the night after 280 miles and 6 hours from Quartzsite.  Next town, Tonopah, was 90 miles further north.  Final stop was Boomtown just west of Reno before heading west on Hwy 80 and home.

 A cool January morning as I walked past the visitor center to the only breakfast place in town.  Mel's Diner.

"The Space Station" was right along the highway.  Warm shower and hook ups.  First hook-ups I had used since I had left home 11 days earlier.  Dinner and drinks at "The Sourdough" with Jim and Pam that had headed north with me out of Quartzsite in their Lazy Daze. Met some interesting "locals" in the bar.  Had some ribs with cold slaw and beans.  First meal I didn't cook since I left home.

Bailey looks down and in the distance is our Lazy Daze at "the Space Station"

Four pictures of Bailey and Chloe overlooking the town of Beatty.  Not much to see and actually less to do.

What 98% of Hwy 95 looks like through the front windshield of the motor home as we headed north.  Glad I took this route.  A slice of America not seen my many people.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Football Evening in the Arizona Desert

Sunday's NFL play-off game between San Francisco and Seattle was exciting.  A group of about 20 of us gathered around and watched the game on a 32 inch big screen outside one of our groups motor homes.

 

 Then the sun started to set and nature sure had a way of showing up the best show on TV.  This program was the only TV or radio I watched or listened to during the whole eight days I was in Quartzsite (my choice to disconnect from all electronic media).

 

" Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."

 

San Francisco 49ers had lost the game (bummer) in the last minute, and the Seattle Seahawks had won the game.  But, for the thousands of RVers out in the desert this warm January evening,  I am sure we all felt that we had the best seats in the world.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Vizsla Hunting in the Arizona Desert

Another wonderful sunrise over the Lazy Daze group camping area in Quartzsite, Arizona in mid-January.

 

The full moon was setting as we got ready for our morning desert hike.

 

The dogs had slept well in their crates, had a good breakfast and were ready to go.

 

The cover was perfect for birds.  We came across many dove, and a few quail.

 At one point Chloe, my gun shy bird dog, went on a perfect point facing into a big bramble of a bush.  As she was on point, Bailey came around and honored her point!  Both those things were a first.  As I watched, a group of quail ran from the back side of the bush and then 10 more took to the air.

 A little later in the hike it was Bailey's turn and went on point on another bush. Out popped six more quail.  I made a loud clapping sound as I carried no gun in this part of the desert.  The area was much too close to motor homes.

 

The dogs ran from bush to bush watching and smelling the air.  At one point a cottontail rabbit popped up and Bailey and Chloe took off at full tilt.  

 They were so happy in the desert.  The smells are everywhere and the air is fresh and clean.

 

We did this type of hike each and every morning.  All three of us loved it.  We plan to do it again next year.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Quartzsite Mountain Hike

Lazy Daze, Honda Trail 90 and mountain bike ready for use.

Quartzsite, Arizona, January 15, 2014.  After 659 miles on the road, we arrived at our camping area where Bailey, Chloe, and I would boondock with other RV owners for the next eight days.

The next morning, we watched from the motor home as the full moon set over the tallest peak overlooking Quartzsite. 

 

 
 

This peak was going to be our first desert hike.  This was going to be about a nine-mile round trip.  I made sure my Camelback was full of water.

 

For the first few miles, we could follow ATV and off-road tracks, but as we got up into the actual mountain area, there was no trail to follow.

 

 

The vistas of the surrounding desert were fantastic. 

 

Down below were thousands upon thousands of folks enjoying the desert in their motorhomes.

 

 

 

This was a tough hike on loose shale and rock.  Great way to start our vacation in the desert.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Hidden Treasures - Tahoe Meadows

In South Lake Tahoe, Tahoe Meadows has been around since 1924.   Very dog friendly and safe area.  You enter the area through one gate with a pass code.  Once inside the area, there is maybe a hundred acres to enjoy.  As we walked the dogs a couple came up and said they lived in Tahoe Meadows and owned their own two Vizslas.   We exchanged information and said we should try to get together this summer.  Sounds fun.

 

 

For four days Joanie and I hosted a family gathering in a VRBO (Vacation Rentals By Owners)  pet-friendly house we had reserved six months ago. Each day the dogs and I would head out for some exercise in the gated community.

 

The area has seen SO LITTLE snow this year that the cover is very light.  Three years ago the lake had ice about 100 feet into the late from the shore.  This year there was no ice on the lake at all.

 

On the third day the clouds came in and the snow finally came down for all of two hours.  It was very light and didn't stick. 

 

The next morning the snow and clouds had passed by and left the sky blue and the air crisp.  The dogs enjoyed a run through a few meadows.  This is a "dogs on leash," area but there was no one there so I let Chloe and Bailey do some running.  They loved the smells on all the bushes and followed scents from bush to bush.

 

From the house the dogs looked out and watched squirrels darting from tree to tree. 

This was a wonderful vacation with dogs and kids and grandchildren.

reade more... Résuméabuiyad

Canada Geese and Vizslas in Tahoe

Early January 2014 found us in South Lake Tahoe in a very nice rented five-bedroom house in the Tahoe Meadows. A long-established gated community just one half mile from the casinos.  Being the second week in January, it was almost deserted because of the lack of snow at the ski resorts.

Hooking Bailey and Chloe to my mountain bike, via "the Springer," with them wearing their mushing harnesses, we headed for the short ride to the lake shore.

There we found two flocks of Canada

 Geese relaxing along the water's edge this cold January morning.

 The mountains to the west had snow cover and the sun came out and lit up the eastern slopes before the sun hit the lake.

Since this was a "on-leash" complex, I followed the letter of the law and left the two dogs leashed up together in their mushing harnesses and lead.

After sending the birds drifting out into the lake, Bailey spotted the second flock to the east. 

Of course, they had to send these birds away from the shore also.  Chloe thought for a second to try out the water, but it was COLD!

reade more... Résuméabuiyad