The up-coming weekend is the big Memorial Day holiday weekend. It marks the unofficial start of the long summer vacation period across the United States.
The Memorial Day weekend is traditionally when huge numbers of Americans, including many thousands of Nevadans, look forward to sneaking away from home on their first trip of the year to the Great Outdoors.
With the holiday officially celebrated on a Monday, that creates a first-time-of-the-year, three-day period of time to have an enjoyable outing in the outdoors.
So, where are you going this weekend?
You don't know? Oh oh!
Would you like to go somewhere but don't know where?
Well, if you have not yet decided on where to go, your choices are limited.
Many, if not all, of the more popular campgrounds, resorts and lodges in this area have been booked solid for a long time. Your chances of getting into one of those locations are comparable to my winning the California Lotto.
However, there is still a ray of hope.
Here are several "Donnie Q" suggestions for some last-minute, get-away locations, both near and far.
-JUST MINUTES AWAY:
Davis Creek Park:
A Washoe County park located in Washoe Valley, just north of Bowers Mansion. It's midway between Carson City and Reno, just west of U.S. 395.
The park has a campground with 63 sites. Those sites consist of 44 tent and small trailer sites and another 19 pull-through trailer sites.
No reservations, on a first-come, first-served basis.
This campground is one of a very few in this area that feature hot showers.
Davis Creek is a neat get-away for someone taking their very first camping trip and who is not really sure of what to expect. If the camping is not up to your expectations, it's a very short, quick and easy return home.
This park offers hiking trails and also a small pond for trout fishing.
For information, call the Davis Creek Park Ranger at 849-0684.
ABOUT A ONE-HOUR DRIVE:
Desert Creek:
This is in a remote portion of Douglas County and offers primitive camping opportunities along small, crystal-clear Desert Creek.
Take U.S. 395 south from Carson City for about 35 miles to Holbrook Junction, just north of Topaz Lake. At Holbrook Junction, take Nevada S.R. 208 east to Wellington. At Wellington, take Nevada S.R. 338 south toward Bridgeport, Calif. Then, after a few miles, look for the sign on your right that marks the Desert Creek Road. Follow the road to the creek.
No improved camping facilities.
Nice high-desert scenery, the water in the creek is ice-cold and the fishing can be good for average-sized German brown and rainbow trout stocked on a regular basis by the Nevada Division of Wildlife.
- ABOUT A TWO-HOUR DRIVE (ONE-WAY):
Sportsmen's Beach Campground:
Located on U.S. 95, about 10 miles north of Hawthorne.
Take U.S. 50 east to Silver Springs. At Silver Springs, take Alt. U.S. 95 south to Schurz, via Yerington. At Schurz, take U.S. 95 south for about 20 miles.
Walker Lake offers great water skiing, jet skiing, sail boating and speed boating opportunities.
It also offers excellent fishing for Lahontan cutthroat trout. The cutthroat are nice-sized, with trophies up to 9 pounds.
This is a place where you will need to carry your own shade.
This Bureau of Land Management (BLM) campground is a fee area.
There is no charge for the use of the boat launching facility.
For information, call the Carson City Office of BLM at 885-6000 or Bob Tompkins at the Gun and Tackle Store in Hawthorne at (775) 945-3266.
Obsidian Campground:
Drive south from Carson City for 66 miles on U.S. 395 to the junction of California S.R. 108 (the Sonora Pass Highway). Continue south on U.S. 395 for one-half mile. Take the dirt road on the right and drive about four miles on a dirt road to the campground. This U.S.F.S. campground offers great hiking opportunities into the nearby Hoover Wilderness Area. It also features good fishing for small Eastern brook and rainbow trout in the nearby Little Walker River and smaller streams.
No services available.
For information, call the U.S. Forest Service office in Bridgeport, Calif., at (760) 932-7070.
-ABOUT A THREE-HOUR DRIVE (ONE-WAY):
Berlin-Ichthyosaur State Park:
Take a combination of U.S. 50 east to Silver Springs, Alternate U.S. 95 to Schurz and U.S. 95 to Hawthorne. From Hawthorne, continue south on U.S. 95 toward Mina. Just before Mina, take S.R. 361 to Gabbs. Just past Gabbs, take S.R. 844 (partly dirt) to the park.
Berlin is a turn-of-the century mining town that has been preserved in a state of "arrested decay."
The park features an unique collection of fossil remains of a pre-historic sea-creature known as an Ichthyosaur. That creature was a marine reptile that swam in an ancient ocean that covered Central Nevada 225 million years ago. It is Nevada's official fossil.
For information, call the state park ranger at (775) 964-2440.
- ABOUT A SEVEN-HOUR DRIVE (ONE-WAY):
Wildhorse Reservoir:
This is a long drive from Carson City but well worth the time and effort.
Drive east from Carson City on U.S. 50 to Silver Springs. At Silver Springs, take U.S. Alt. 95 north to Fernley. At Fernley, take I-80 east to Elko.
In Elko, take Nevada S.R. 225 (The Mountain City Highway) north for 64 miles to Wild Horse Reservoir.
This will be a trip of about 364 miles (one-way) and about seven hours.
It has a number of campgrounds (BLM, State Park, Tribal and U.S. Forest Service), plus the Wildhorse Resort.
The reservoir has outstanding fishing for German brown and rainbow trout, bass, crappie, perch and channel catfish.
Call the state park at (775) 758-6493 or Dennis Dunn at the Wildhorse Resort at (775) 758-6472.
-SO YOU SEE:
You still have some last-minute choices on where to spend Memorial Day.
If none of these choices suite your fancy, then you can always have a nice, quiet, barbecue in your backyard.
Whatever you do, be sure to have a Happy Memorial Day.
-Bet Your Favorite Pigeon
Bet your favorite pigeon that he can't tell you which of the above areas has the best overall fishing.
If he grins and says, "Heck, that's easy. It's Wildhorse Reservoir," he is a very knowledgeable fisherman.