The Sun Came Out!

Yesterday was cold and rainy almost all day.  A great day to go to Redding, we thought, since it was too cold to sit outside.  We didn’t get too far until the rain turned to slush and then to real snow, but it didn’t seem to be sticking to the road.  Then we saw the flashing lights!  All of a sudden there were a couple of inches of slushy snow on the road and the lights were a coming from a police car that had stopped to help a motorist who had slid off the road.  Okay, I don’t want an In ‘N’ Out burger that bad!  As soon as I found a place, I turned around and we headed back to the barn.  Spent the rest of the day just listening to the rain and taking short walks during breaks in the storm.

Today the sun is out and it is beautiful.  Russ got up early and cleaned out the fire pit and before I knew it, he had a fire going.  There is something about the smell and crackle of a camp fire that brings back all the good memories from my childhood. 

I call this photo “The Old Man and His Dog.”  OOOOPS! That’s MY dog!  HIS dog wants to stay inside all the time!


So I fixed breakfast and Russ and Rusty had some bonding time around the campfire.

We were going to try Redding again today but why waste a perfectly gorgeous day going to the city?  There are paths to explore, creeks to wade in (for the dogs anyway), campgrounds to scope out and pictures to take.  Which would you rather have…the elusive In ‘N’ Out burger, or all this beauty?

We chose to take a drive of only about 10 miles, but in that ten miles we stopped at two campgrounds and two picnic areas.  There were a couple more campgrounds, but they were not yet open.  No description is necessary for the following photos.  All these were taken at various places along Hat Creek.  The water is simply amazing, clear and burbling and loaded with fish.  We saw several spots where I am sure there were big fat rainbows just waiting for the worm.  Too bad we decided this year to give up the fishing poles.  But we still remember and every once in a while, the urge to toss a line in the water is almost unbearable.

Come with me now and walk along the banks of the wild and wonderful Hat Creek.  If you listen carefully, you may hear the water as it rushes over the rocks, the chirrup of the scampering ground squirrel, or the raucous call of the crows.























 




 



And just for fun, a photo Russ took of three green pocupines sitting on a log with a swamp alligator in the back ground getting ready to pounce.

And as shadows lengthen and the day begins its slow journey into night, we find ourselves back at the camp site, listening to the bubbling of the creek and enjoying the warmth of the waning sun.  You could almost imagine that it is 200 years ago and you are alone, camped along the stream, enjoying the beauty of nature…until you realize I am writing this on a computer, Russ is reading his Nook, and just a few feet away are all the comforts of modern life wrapped in thirty feet of wood and metal!  Oh well, it was a nice image while it lasted.  Hope you enjoyed visiting Hat Creek and I hope you can find your way here someday to visit in person.

Yeah, he cheats a bit with the logs but we have some "real" wood too!!