It sounds strange, but we were excited to escape to Nevada to get away from the heat. Back in Hurricane, Utah, we saw temps around 120 degrees! So heading northwest to the sub-100 degree heat near Great Basin National Park was a treat! Plus, who can argue with the beauty of Great Basin National Park, the Lehman Caves and Lake Tahoe?!? Not us!
Memory #1 – The Lehman Caves in Great Basin National Park
This was a about an hour drive from Ely, Nevada and the KOA we stayed at and was definitely worth the drive. In fact, Scout said it was his favorite place 4 weeks into our adventure. That’s saying something since we have been to Bryce Canyon, Zion Canyon, Flaming Gorge and the Sawtooth Mountains!
The tour of the caves was about an hour long, but it wasn’t a long walk. It was mostly the Ranger describing the history, different formations and geology of the caves. It was a great tour and wonderful destination for sure!
Memory #2 – Gipzee’s Tatoo
As we made our way from Ely, Nevada to Lake Tahoe along the “Loneliest Highway” we had a lot of time to think. About the mirage of life. About the stars. About needing gas. Sometimes you need gas, you know. And sometimes you NEED gas. We NEEDED gas so the first town we got to on the other side of the “Loneliest Highway” we made an immediate stop. Unfortunately for Gipzee, this gas station was not for big rigs. We pulled in and got Zeke lined up with the diesel pump and went at it. The family hit the restrooms. All was good in the world.
Once Zeke had enough, it was time to navigate safely out of the parking lot. Not… Unfortunately, I didn’t have much room in front so I had to cut the wheel hard right. As I did, Gipzee’s big butt swung around rapidly and she got a bit of a tatoo from the red pillar protecting the gas tanks.
We heard a crunch. I thought, “what the #!&$%?”. Jumped out quickly and felt all kinds of emotions that we won’t discuss on this family blog. Our first major oops. 1 month in. But, no time to dwell on the bad.
We pulled Gipzee through the rest of the pillar and continued on down the road…
Memory #3 – Lake Tahoe
With Gipzee still feeling the effects of her encounter with a pole, we continued west toward Tahoe. It was quite a drive, and I was fuming mad. But, as we finally started pulling up the highway hills with the lake only a few miles ahead, my temperature was coming down.
I can still see it in my head, when we came around a certain corner and off to the right was this amazing large, blue lake. It was beautiful. And relieving all at once.
We actually missed our turn into Zephyr Cove RV Campground. That kind of got me going again. Then, we realized how small the spaces were at the campground. It took us almost an hour to get Gipzee’s tattooed self backed into our space. With a lot of help too. But we didn’t give her any additional tattoos, no one was injured and we didn’t cause any explosions. So, all in all, life was good again.
Memory #4 – Reno-Sparks Gospel Mission
The next morning, we got up EARLY to get into Reno by 8 a.m. to serve breakfast to the homeless at the Reno-Sparks Gospel Mission. We didn’t realize it, but found out very quickly, that the location that we were serving was actually served by a number of organizations.
Mistakenly, we talked to the first person who looked like they knew what was going on. He was a nice guy, and grateful that we were there to help. He told us where we could park, so we did that, got out and went to him for instructions.
He kindly asked us where the food was. Uhm, what food? We were simply there to serve. We finally figured out that he was with a different organization and that we needed to park a few 100 feet back the way we came – much to the dismay of the hungry folks expecting us to provide them food. We got many dirt looks and it was a bit uncomfortable – but what can you do?!?
Once we got to the right facility, things went much smoother. I helped serve outside to the men while the rest of the family stayed back and prepared to serve the ladies. I was told we served about 200 men outside.
When to kitchen opened, we all dished out ham and cheese breakfast sandwiches and bowls of oatmeal to about 100 ladies. We hung out behind the counter while a youth group actually took the food to the ladies sitting at the tables. It was a pretty nice setup.
This place was different than Boise, however. Boise seemed to serve people who had some means, but needed a hand. In Reno, we were serving the homeless. We were told that there was a lot of drug and alcohol abuse in the community and we almost witnessed a physical scuffle with a disgruntled homeless lady.
The lesson to the kids was simple. Too often, the end game of alcohol and drugs was right in front of them. People who truly had nothing but the clothes on their back. Angry. Addicted. Destitute. Thankfully, there are places to help like the mission we served at.
The kitchen manager, Paul, gave a bit of his testimony. He had been at the mission for 11 years. 7 of those years he had been running the kitchen, among other things. Before he came to the mission, he was a chef in Sacramento – making good money. But, as he put it, his parents never lived to see him sober. He got caught up in drugs and alcohol and eventually hit bottom. He came to the rescue mission and has been clean for 11 years! Another great example of God’s grace and mercy being delivered through a local rescue mission!
Memory #5 – Tallac Historic Site
Our last full day in Tahoe was a lot of fun. We served, shopped in Carson City, hung out at the lake and visited Tallac Historic Site. This place was a gem buried along the south shores of Tahoe. It is the location where two wealthy families, the Baldwins and the Popes, built a beautiful spot to live and vacation. We got to walk around the outside, and, in some cases, the inside of these amazing historic sites. Cabins. Servants quarters. Kids playhouses. Expansive homes. Right on the shore. The also had an old fire engine and many old cars on display. This was a fun, historic tour taking us back to the early 1900’s.
The Wrap
We didn’t get to spend as much time in Nevada as we would have liked. Because of a celebrity golf tournament, we couldn’t get reservations through the weekend. But, the time that we did spend there was awesome. It felt great to help those less fortunate than our selves and the scenery was top notch.
It was sad to see Gipzee go through so much, but she made it through. We all have bumps and bruises from the trials of life – but all you can do is keep on keeping on. We loved Nevada! We can’t wait for the next stop on our 52 week adventure!