Ken and Marie invited us for a week at Lake Tahoe for the second year in a row, and again we had a fantastic time. The weather was perfect and there is so much to do there that one should never get tired of visiting. We hit the beach twice, took a side trip to Virginia City, and Ken and I went hiking. In between there was shopping, eating, games, the pool and jacuzzis, movies, arts and craft fairs, and a classic car show. A lot packed into one week. Here are some pics:
Ken and Marie brought 4 of their pups on the trip and also brought along these snazzy strollers for the boys to cruise in.
The classic car show was held in the parking lot of the Montbleu hotel/casino. I know nothing about cars, but there were some really neat ones there.
Case in point.
Another cool ride. At one point, while I was admiring a certain car, its owner sidled up to me and said simply "Stock." "Pardon me?" I responded. Silvie later informed me that the guy was telling me that the car had its original engine parts. Geez, I'm really pathetic sometimes....
Church steeple in Virginia City.
The woman's dress in this painting is made of silver dollars. I put a cute girl in this snapshot to give the painting some perspective.
Virginia City was once a bustling silver/gold mine town. The output of the Comstock Lode was some 1.2 billion dollars, and the city financed the government during the Civil War. These days it's a tourist trap with saloon/casinos and gift shops galore, all lined up conveniently along one strip.
The highlight of the trip to Virginia City was the cemetary (which is actually several distinct graveyards side by side).
Some of the plots were bordered by iron or wooden fences and many tombstones were weathered, vandalized, or missing altogether.
One of the more striking statues in the yard.
While many of the stones had dates from the 19th century, there were some more recent markers to be seen too. This was one of my favorites. The inscription reads, "I lift my eyes toward the hills whence cometh my strength."
This place was equal parts fascinating and creepy. Just look at this shot and imagine having to spend a night here curled up in a sleeping bag on the hard ground, listening to the wind whistle through the chaparral while an iron gate squeaks on its last hinge; and thinking all the while that you can make out a low moan and approaching footsteps....
Okay, as a remedy to the creepiness I give you a hot chick sunning herself against a boulder at the base of a ski run at Heavenly.
We rented bikes and rode a path through woods a few hundred yards from the beach.
Marie pulled the chihuahuas in a cart attached to her bike.
I think they enjoyed the ride!
Ken, Marie and Silvie taking a break while walking the pups.
Our gracious hosts Ken and Marie, with Biscuit, Piglet, Teacup and Rusty.
Silvie lookin' hot in her Freshies T-shirt in one of the casino parking lots. Freshies is a vegan-freindly restaurant with some fab dishes.
Sil and I hit the beach and preferred to hang in the shade when not in the water. The temps were in the 80s with minimal clouds the whole week we were in Tahoe.
I located a hiking trail in the area of our resort and Ken and I took a three-hour hike.
We started out for some place called Castle Rock, but as we were walking on a boring forest service dirt road, we decided to head up through the trees and brush and walk along the ridge line until we were free of the trees.
Once above the treeline, the views were spectacular.
At the top of the hill there was a mass of boulders which offered a panoramic view of not only the Lake Tahoe basin, but of the farm fields which stretch out for miles in the opposite direction...
... as well as the intervening mountains and valleys. In the very center of this picture are the tiny rooftops of the distant Ridge Tahoe where we were staying. The lines carved in the mountain are the ski runs of Heavenly.
A partial view of the Tahoe basin. As I was first climbing atop the boulders, a helicopter passed by at eye level, close enough for me to see the people inside it. I wish I had thought to whip out my camera and get a shot of it.
This is a shot from the window of our suite at the resort. The second (and a bit distant) nub from the right on the horizon is the hilltop that Ken and I had hiked to earlier in the day. On the far left of the horizon is (I think) Castle Rock. I read that it takes professional rock-climbing skills to mount Castle Rock, so I'm not disappointed that we climbed the other mountain instead. Ours was higher anyway :-)
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This is a Grace Wireless Internet Radio. It allows you to tune in thousands of internet radio stations from all over the world, much like the Aluratek USB stick we have, except this is a stand alone radio, and you needn't have your computer on in order to access the stations. The sound is great from the single speaker, but it also can be connected to the external speakers we keep on the side table near the couch. I already set four of the presets: an ioradio all-Grateful Dead station, a fantastic ambient station from Bratislava, a catchy station called Sacred Sounds (from who knows where) and a rock station from Pittsburgh which carries the Penguins games. Sweet!
The Woody Allen Collection! 19 DVDs! Unbelievable. I'd seen all of these films before, but only had two on DVD. This collection has most of the all-time greats, and I can't wait to watch all 19! Oh, and soon after this picture was taken I did un-plastic them and put them in chronological order.
The Complete Annotated Grateful Dead Lyrics. This wonderful, thick book is taken from the website started by David Dodd to, well, annotate the bands many lyrics. Full of insights, illustrations, and most importantly lyrics, this is a fantastic book, and one I'll keep, for easy referencing, on the coffee table's bottom shelf with the massive Illustrated Trip (also a gift from Silvie).
A Big Lebowski kit(!), containing an oriental rug mouse pad (which would presumably really tie my work cubicle together), a Walter and Dude coffee mug (I suppose caucasians could be served in it as well), a Dude name patch (for my overalls), a customizable Little Leobwski Urban Achiever certificate, and the real treat, a (fake) severed toe, complete with green nail polish.
Super Mario Galaxy 2 for Wii. I am part-way through the first installment of this game, which I find to be very fun indeed. It's great to know that when I finally get throught part 1, there'll be no let down, as part 2 will be waiting!
A Terrible Towel. Just in time for the playoffs, as the Steelers clinched their postseason spot last week. I used to have one of these, but managed to leave it behind when I moved out here to Seattle. It's nice to have one again!!
A dozen(!) Lindt Swiss Bittersweet dark chocolate bars. This is probably my favorite chocolate bar, just scrumptious!!! Oh, I had opened one almost immediately, which is why there are only 11 in this picture.
Silvie in the rain at the Furthur show in August.
