Tag: carsonvalley

Here's the whole story on the motorhome fire I put up pictures of a couple of days ago. From the Record-Courier:

A U.S. Marine, who recently left the service, and his family lost most of their possessions in a fire at Sunrise Pass Road and Kincaid Avenue on Thursday night.

East Fork Deputy Chief David Fogerson said the Marine, his wife and four children had all their property in a roughly 28-foot long fifth-wheel trailer.

Fogerson said the family left to go into town and when they came home the trailer was on fire.

The Red Cross is helping out this family, and I'm sure they will accept donations if anyone wants to help out.

Last night I saw a huge plume of black smoke coming from the Johnson Lane area. Usually I'm on my way to somewhere else so I just pass these things by. But last night I decided to follow the smoke. It led me to a house on the outskirts where the fire department was just finishing up dousing a motorhome fire. There was nothing left but a charred skeleton. I didn't stick around to find out what happened, but I did get a couple of pictures.

Turns out the last week in June is a bad week for fires in the Western Nevada area. Kurt Hildebrand at the Record Courier brings this up while looking at three devastating fires that happened over the decades.

The Big Genoa Fire of 1910. On June 28, 1910, most of Genoa burned to the ground. The fire was started at the county poor house by someone trying to smoke out bed bugs. He smoked out the bugs, the bed, and several blocks of the town by the time he was done. When the smoke cleared most of downtown was gone, and the county courthouse was just an empty shell.

Autumn Hills Fire. Starting on June 23, 1996, a fire ravaged the Foothills region of the Carson Valley, right at the base of Kingsbury Grade. The blaze started with a couple of delinquent boys who were lighting lizards on fire for fun. One of the lizards escaped, rushed to the safety of a nearby bush, and in doing so started a fire that consumed 3,800 acres. Four houses were destroyed and the forest around Kingsbury Grade still shows the scars.

Angora Fire. While not in Nevada, the Angora Fire was one of the most devastating fires ever in the area. It started on June 24, 2007, in the forest outside South Lake Tahoe. It quickly grew out of control, burning 250 houses and 100 other buildings before finally being extinguished.

So this is a bad week historically, but this year we've been good so far. Let's hope the rest of the year is just as good.

This weekend is Carson Valley Days, the Carson Valley's big yearly celebration. Why they always schedule this and the Carson City Rendezvous on the same weekend every year is a mystery I'll never be able to explain. But that's just the way it is.

Carson Valley Days this year is a big one, it's the 100th anniversary of the celebration.

A list of all the events follows, but make sure not to miss the carnival at Lampe Park or the parade down Hwy 395 Saturday morning. They're putting on a BBQ Friday night at 6:00, launching hot air balloons at 7am Saturday, and there's even going to be a fireworks show Friday night at 10:00! The schedule can be downloaded here.

Thursday, June 10
Golf Tournament (CV Golf Course): 7:30 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Carnival (Buddy Day 2 for 1 wristbands): 5 p.m. - 11 pm.

Friday, June 11
Carnival: 3 p.m. - 11 p.m.
Music: 6 p.m.- 10 p.m.
Salute to the past BBQ: 6 p.m. - 8 p.m.
Firework Spectacular: 10 p.m.-10:20 p.m.

Saturday, June 12
Carson Valley Days Walk, Jog, Run Registration: 7 a.m.
Hot Air Balloon Launch: 7 a.m.
Carson Valley Days Walk, Jog, Run: 8 a.m.
Parade Registration: 7 a.m.
Carson Valley Days Parade: 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Craft Show: 11 a.m. - Close
Carnival: 11 a.m. - Close
Music: 12 p.m. - 11 p.m.
Grease Pole: 12 p.m. - 5 p.m.
Arm Wrestling: 1 p.m. - 2 p.m.
Kids Water Balloon Toss: 1 p.m. - 2 p.m.
Tug-O-War: 2 p.m. - 3 p.m.
Kids watermelon eating contest: 2 p.m. - 3 p.m.
Horseshoe Tournament: 3 p.m. - 5 p.m.
Kids 3-Legged Race: 3 p.m. - 4 p.m.

Sunday, June 13
Volleyball Tournament: 8 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Craft Show: 10 a.m. - 4 p.m.
Carnival: 11 a.m. - 5 p.m.
Music: 12 p.m. - 4 p.m.
Grease Pole: 12 p.m. - 4 p.m.
Glutton Bowl: 12 p.m. - 2 p.m.
Adult / Kids Tricycle Race: 2 p.m. - 3 p.m.
Carson Valley Days Raffle: 4 p.m.

Looks like road construction season is here. The major project is the widening of Hwy 395 at the south end of town. The northbound lanes, where it comes down the hill from Target to Bodine's, are being expanded to three lanes downhill to match the three lanes going uphill in that spot. This is supposed to go on until October, but hopefully they can keep the disruption to a minimum. They're usually good about working at night on big projects like this.

They're also working on Kingsbury Grade, and on Hwy 395 down by Topaz and Hwy 88 as they install rumble strips down the center line.

Nice little snowstorm to go along with the cold weather the last couple of days.

A new hiking trail has opened up in the Carson Valley, along the banks of the Carson River. The Bently-Kirman Ranch is a piece of land in the north valley where the river slowly meanders through the sagebrush. It is located east of Hwy 395, past Stephanie Way and the Cradlebaugh Bridge. This land was never developed as cultivated grassland like much of the rest of the valley was, so it has remained largely undisturbed. Centuries of flooding in this area has left a wetlands, riddled with streams and oxbows where the river is continually changing course. Until now this land has been off limits, but a partnership between Bently Agrowdynamics, the Nature Conservancy, and the Carson Valley Trails Association has led to a part of the wetlands being opened to the public.

Nearly four miles of hiking trail has been constructed through the ranch, starting at the parking lot at the southern edge and following the river north. These are strictly hiking trails, and there are no dogs, no bicycles, no horses, and no motorized vehicles allowed. This is still a working cattle ranch after all. But it's a good way to kill an afternoon and get some fresh air walking down by the river. Much of the trail stays inland by the sagebrush, but a couple of stretches do follow the river's bank, and there are a few sandy beaches that can be reached by the trail.

This is probably the perfect time to get out there, since the temperatures aren't too hot yet and the river is just about at its peak flow. If you want to go, you take Hwy 395 to the Stephanie Way light, and travel up Stephanie to Heybourne Road (just past the church). Turn left on Heybourne, then make another left to get to the trailhead. I haven't been out there yet, but I'm sure I'll make it some time this month and bring back pictures and a report of the area.

A trail map can be found here.

The Carson Valley Trails Association has several other hikes you can take around the valley.

This is funny because somebody asked me about this just last week. The Record Courier has published the schedule for this summer's Minden Park concert series. They're also looking for sponsors still, so if you're a business owner that would like to sponsor the concerts, get in touch with Sheryl Christian at schristian@co.douglas.nv.us or (775)782-9828.

May 28 - Shane Dwight

June 18 - Beatles Tribute Imagine

July 9 - Trey Stone Band

July 30 - Mumbo Gumbo

Aug. 27 - Big Bad Wolf

As part of their new ownership and remodel project, the Carson Valley Inn will be getting a brand new sign. The new sign is going to be a little bit down the road, instead of right at the entrance like the current sign. And it will include an electronic readerboard that has many residents concerned about light levels.

The new sign will be 26 feet high, the same height as the current sign. But because it's a new sign in a new location, special approval needs to be had from the Town of Minden and from Douglas County to install the sign. Minden approved the new sign this week; the county planning commission reviews the request next week.

What a crazy week it's been, huh? We're so used to snowstorms that fizzle out over the mountains, or that give us half an inch of snow before blowing away, that it was quite a shock to see a real winter storm come into the area for once. It started out small Sunday evening, but it really kicked into overdrive that night and we woke up to over a foot of snow in some areas of Carson, the kind of snowfall we really only get every two or three years. Most schools closed on Monday, except for Douglas County, which kept their "no snow days - ever" policy alive by holding all classes right on time. Quite a controversy erupted over that decision.

And then came the cold. Temperatures dipped below zero day after day after day. Depending on what thermometer you choose to trust, we hit as cold as 14 below some nights! Even during the day it was cold, as cold as our lows usually get during the winter. I don't think we broke 20 degrees during the whole three-day period. I'm sure if we have any readers in Minnesota they're laughing right now, but these is unusual for us. Most winters we rarely even reach 0, much less dip below.

But, I think the worst of it is over. Another storm is scheduled to blow in this weekend, but it sounds like it will be smaller and warmer. Temperatures in the 40s sounds like a Bahama vacation after the last few days we've been through. And we might get a couple more inches of snow dropped on top of what we already have, but I don't think we'll get a full foot all at once. Not this week, at least. Storms like this are nice to remind us what a real winter feels like but when you spend too much time below zero you start being thankful for how mild it usually is around here.

Here are a few more pictures from around town. Go to Flickr to see the whole set.