The Impossible Tahoe Turn and Burn, Day 3
The Impossible
Tahoe Turn & Burn is an 8 part series,
so be sure to start with Day 1
Our day began early again, with a sunrise at what seemed like 5AM but still, who knows.
One of the challenges of shooting on the road is all the gear that it requires. On-the-road must-haves include: a guitar, a cooler full of Texas beers, camping gear, various tools and kits, costumes and whatnot. Keeping them close at all times requires a lot of effort. Worth it to get what I get while also keeping what I have, wherever I go.
First stop was intended to be a breakfast of Value Slams at the casino Denny's, which we were guaranteed vouchers for from the front desk upon request, in the morning. On our way back in from the truck an older man offered us what seemed to be Denny's vouchers which we already had coming, but upon closer inspection we realized that they were in fact two more drink vouchers, which we graciously accepting. Pre-Value Slam Breakfast Morningritas sounded like the best way to start our day, but we opted for food first then drinks to go… at 7AM? Who knows?
First stop of the morning, the Ward Charcoal Ovens, which were something to see but even more interesting to learn about; another feat of humankind hellbent on over consuming natural resources. Unique structures, nonetheless, and still standing today, some 150+ years later, tarnished in my mind by the fact that they were only in use for a couple years before the bottom dropped out of the mining industry, their main customer.
We stopped at the EZ Mart with little or no regard to the near future, much less the distant and beyond, a price we definitely paid that day. From there we lead out in some direction, stopping only once more for some specific provisions:
1 bucket
50' of rope
2 cups of ramen noodles
(chicken and chili lime, because there is nothing like surf & turf in the backcountry).
This seemingly unrelated list of items was for our next stop a few hours and more forestry service roads later.
For what seemed like both a long drive and one that would be over too soon, we enjoyed sweeping vistas across the long valleys that separated the snow dusted mountain ranges that surrounded us, and around the many bends of the most well-maintained dirt road I may have ever seen. Truth be told, if I could do one thing for the rest of my life it would be to endlessly drive around roads like these, and the ones in the Big Bend that I so often do, and any others like it anywhere.
And then out of almost nowhere on the horizon, appeared a dome. The road, as we could see, led directly to it though it was still a few miles out. When we arrived at the base, I pulled opened a barb wire roll in the fence for the truck to fit through so we could drive to the top. As we crested the dome we were looking up at nothing but blue sky and some wisps of clouds.
Then STOP.
Right in front of the truck was Diana's Punchbowl, a 50' hole in the middle of the dome, home to a very hot spring that we'd use to make ramen.
It was as bad or good as any cheap ramen ever, but you have to know it was something special.
Some miles past our rest stop at the Punchbowl, we stopped once again at Spencer Hot Springs, an unbelievable location where we met Rick. With a quick convo and mini foto shoot and we were rolling again, finally into Kingston, NV, our destination the Lucky Spur Saloon. But first we scoped property for sale, the local air strip and things around town. The Lucky Spur Saloon is for sale, if you are in the market.
We met a few locals, shot the shit, avoided the prods of political discussions with grace and charm, and had a good time sipping on Reposado Tequila and drinking Icky IPA from Great Basin Brewing (Check out their Insta right here).
There is no lodging to speak of around here, some in the peak season, but December isn't it. We came equipped for cold weather camping and this was the night we'd break it all out. All of it. We said our goodbyes at the bar, to people who probably thought we wouldn't make it out alive, and went on our way up the dirt road into the mountains.
Camp was two miles up and it was dark and lonesome but not as cold as we had expected. Yet. Turns out it was, we were just warm from the truck and a little booze. We set up tents and then it got colder. My 20° sleeping bag is getting a terrible review and I'm not even done with it on this trip yet. I dumped my card in the dark of night, bundled up, got as comfy as I was gonna get, and then just as soon as I decided to relax and drift off to sleep, I had to pee one more time - the curse of drinking beers while tent camping.
I undid the whole process, took a leak, came back in and did it all again and finally got the rest I so very much needed.
