Snowshoeing in Truckee, CA

After spending Thursday and Friday killing time in a conference room at DeMartini RV while we waited for news about the progress of the repairs to our motorhome, Saturday we were ready to take a drive.  We chose to go to Truckee, in the Sierra Nevada mountains near the Nevada border.

Viewpoint from Highway 20 on the way to Truckee

We took our snowshoes with us, and we found lots of snow in Truckee.  After lunch at a interestingly named place called "Coffee And", we visited Donner Memorial State Park.   Most everyone knows the story of the infamous Donner party of emigrants who took a "shorter" route and ended up being stranded without food during the winter. 

Donner Lake

The small Emigrant Museum at the park features exhibits about the Truckee Basin, local Native American life, the overland immigration of the Donner party in 1840, construction of the transcontinental railroad, and lumbering and ice harvesting.

Emigrant Trail Museum at Donner Memorial State Park, Truckee, CA 

Truckee is at an altitude of over 6000 feet and is full of natural beauty, especially when the area is full of snow.  We strapped on our snowshoes and went for a walk on the nature trail at the state park, following a marked guide written for winter viewing.

Dave snowshoeing on the nature trail

A winter scene along the trail

Donner Creek (next three pictures)

We didn't mind spending the weekend in this area and now we are refreshed and ready to spend another day hanging out in the conference room at DeMartini.   Hopefully the motorhome repairs will be finished on Monday and we will then head on to our next adventure!

Walking at Union High School

Dave and Tom walking ahead of Cheryl and I on the track.  They are faster than we are!

In order to encourage one of Dave’s fellow football officials, Dave and I have been walking with him and his wife at the track at Union High School which is near our house.  Steve had knee surgery a few weeks ago and is trying to get his knee back in shape in order to referee this season.  Some other friends from football, Tom and his wife, Cheryl, also joined the walking group.  They have become the unofficial leaders of the group, but we all try to walk together when we can. Tonight I took my camera along to take a few pictures.

 

A pano of the eastern view from the track.  We walked at 7 pm tonight, so the sun was getting low.

Nordic Walking

Our newspaper, The Columbian, had an article today about Nordic walking.  Using lightweight poles when you go for a walk can give you a better aerobic workout because your arms are moving, too.  The poles also help your posture and can help relieve back pain.  I plan to give these poles a try.  I'll let you know what I think.  Another article about using poles.  No, this isn't a picture of me: