With another scheduled Club ski trip, we carpooled out to the north-central part of the state of Nevada, motoring over Donner Summit and traveling at night along Interstate 80. Reaching Winnemucca, NV, we headed north along U.S. 95 and turned off to drive to a desolate spot in the valley to the east of the Santa Rosa Range. Throwing out our bags and setting up tents, it was to get to near zero that early morning. I had my Bolex 16 mm camera and did some movies, along with my winter Nikon 35 mm still photography.
Making breakfast, we shortly headed out to do our ski tour. We proceeded till we could no longer drive on the snowy road, and then donned our backcountry skis to head for Hinkey Summit (7,867'). It was a steady pull up the road, gravel or dirt in summer, but nicely covered with fine powder that didn't preclude our making fast tracks. We shortly had to strip off some of our clothing, and the sun appeared through the clouds.
Finally, we made it to Hinkey Summit, and I took photos and movies. It wasn't a good bunch of skiers, being that they could hardly make it down a bunny hill without falling. So, an ascent of Granite Peak was out of the question. I filmed their agony of trying to ski, but we were able to glide back down the gentle road without too much problem. Some snowmobilers came up and roared past.
We came back to our car, and had a fantastic sunset. We decided to head for the small town of Paradise Valley, NV, which had a bar. Being a drinking sort of skiers that we were, some stayed up and danced to pass the long night. It was a holiday Saturday night, and we had the company of some real cowboys. We went back to our desolate area to camp again, and I had some satisfaction of spending nothing.
Up at dawn, we motored back to walk about the town, and I shot photos. Then, we headed south to be blocked by a burning truck which had caught fire on the highway. Cowboy firemen put it out, and I had it all on film.
We motored over to the town of McDermitt, which is on U.S. 95 and the Oregon border, and I had my first time in that state. A rock shop made for some photos, and then we toured a cemetery.
Heading south again for better weather, we passed back through Winnemucca, and then headed for Kyle Hot Springs east of the Humboldt Range. Making another camp, we enjoyed the hot water, and soaked our cold bones. The snow fell and the clouds descended, and this was another desolate scene.
Finally, we started back home. To avoid some of the traffic, we took the highway over Beckwourth Pass, where we made a photo stop. Then it was down the Yuba River Canyon on Highway 49 to stop in Downieville, CA, for more photos and rest. Back home all safely we thought to do this every year, but this was the only time we were to do this. One participant had come with a cold, and due to the extended contact, we all had the same cold at the end of the trip.
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