Fast Forward!

bye-bye Paonia…

We’re gonna jump ahead a bit here. A lot of time has passed since I left Colorado, but most of it was vacation-time for yours truly. Here’s how it went, in glimpses and photos:

Paonia, CO » Winnemucca, NV

I found myself yet another successful rideshare, with Howard from Abundant Life Farm (word to the wise: if you see Abundant Life at any farmer’s markets this summer, try the melons). He and I drove to Grand Junction, where I caught the California Zephyr headed west.

The train ride was lovely, except that dusk fell just as we entered Gore Canyon. The tracks wound alongside the green water of the Colorado, past rafts pulled up onto shore for the night. Families in outdoor wear waved at the train as we cruised along the red-lined canyon walls. I saw a few rock formations fading into the dark, and then the sun was gone.

When the light came back, we’d passed through Utah into Nevada. Insane met me at the train station in his Subaru Brat, and we motored out to meet Quiet Earp at the Art Car Farm. It’s an undeveloped 20-acre lot with a view and little else, which Insane bought two years ago and is working to turn into his own off-grid home. Right now it’s mostly unorganized “treasure”, so we spent some time building a shade structure for storage, then went to check out the nearby Humboldt River.

Insane and the train

Insane, Earp and the mystery truck

The Brat

the Headhunter trailer

Crow at the river

Winnemucca, NV » Nevada City, CA

Next morning it was back on the train, and every minute I felt closer to home. In Reno, two volunteers from the Sacramento Train Museum boarded, and we had a bona fide guided tour down the mountain. The stretch of track from Reno to Sacramento is beautiful and historic, but more importantly it’s home.

Trainin’ thru the Sierras

Donner Lake

I detrained in Colfax, where my mom picked me up and took me home to Nevada City. Spring was in high spirits there: birds nested in houses, trees, and tall grass. Everywhere you looked there was an iris or a poppy. I spent ten days there celebrating my dad’s birthday, visiting the Yuba River, working in gardens, watching the stars and (last but not least) repacking my pack. Time for summer clothes!

Rufous Sided Towhee chicks!

California Golden Poppies

Swallowtail from Grandad

Nevada City, CA » Austin, TX

On the way out of California, I stopped off in Oakland to hang out with Jen and the gang, and to visit Hollis in the hospital. Then I headed out to Austin for Flipside.

it looks a little something like this

And there we are! After Flipside, I spent a little while decompressing before getting back to work. I’ll tell you all about Austin, then, in the next few posts.