Water - Colors

The drive south on Hwy 395 from Carson Valley takes us across more pastureland; past huge, old growth cottonwood trees; through pine forests; and alongside the West Fork of the Walker River. Fall color shows up here as rivulets of yellow and orange high on the mountainside, and walls of chartreuse along the river.

As we enter Bridgeport Valley it is easy to see why it has also been known as Big Meadows. Flat miles of gold spread out from the majestic Sierras on the west, and rolling, dark hills on the east side. A patch of green and yellow trees marks the small town of Bridgeport.

Our destination is the Bridgeport Reservoir just north of town, but even as we turn on Hwy 182 there is no sign of water. By now we aren't surprised.

About the time our GPS gives us the "in a half mile" heads-up we see a bit of blue. While the Paradise Shores RV Park has water to look at, the "shores" are now 400 yards away. Still, the views from our site are incredible, and I'm glad we have a week here.

Tucked in for a week

with nice views

in all directions

at all times of the day

Less glad that the dining room slide won't open (catches on the right side, but doesn't jam so we can close it tight). Fortunately it's the one that doesn't block anything while it's in, so we'll test my theory that a smaller rig would be just fine  :-) Our appointment at Camping World is in a couple weeks so we can live with it if necessary.

Saturday we avoid the more popular spots nearby, and head 13 miles up the road to Twin Lakes. Along the way we enjoy the rugged peaks of the Sierras with small amounts of snow clinging in the shadows, and the drizzle of fall color captured in the ravines of the foothills.

Rugged beauty

Colors!

We round a corner and find - a nearly full lake! The two lakes are only separated by a small piece of land, and the road runs tight to the water until it ends at a small resort on the southwest side. 

Water!

Several folks are fishing from the road side, but the wind is blowing hard and the water has white caps, so we don't bother taking out the poles.

Instead we drive back through Bridgeport, pass by our campground, and see what we can see on the other side of the reservoir. 

We can hear the East Fork of the Walker River as we pass the small dam and follow a dirt road into the deep brush. After pushing through on foot, Bill finds access to the water while Tessa and I turn back to the Jeep. It's less than ideal so we continue up the road.

Not only do we find a few spots to return for fishing during the week (earlier in the day), but we also find another beautiful valley. We watch a pair of hawks riding the winds around a large cottonwood, their calls the only sound in this peaceful place.

A few more miles and we come across several pockets of intense colors.

It is so quiet here, there are views in every direction, there's water in the small lakes, the stars are brilliant at night, the fall colors are starting to pop - I love this area!

In every direction