The Great Reno Balloon Race 2006

For the past 25 years Reno has hosted The Great Reno Balloon Race. From what I can tell, there isn't a lot of racing going on as hot air balloons aren't exceptionally speedy (or mobile for that matter). The event is more like a festival atmosphere and was much cooler then I expected. Visitors can literally walk onto the field and even help out as racers set up and lift off in their massive balloons. We rousted Zoe out of bed at 4:30am for the dawn patrol and when the sun started peeping over the mountains I took the following picts.



Note to readers, this is a pretty cool event to come out for a weekend and check out! Mid-September in Reno means high 70F temperatures and clear skys...





Here is a kid who is excited to be awake at 5:30am on a weekend

Zoe mimics the giant smiley face on the top of a yellow balloon

6:30am and everyone's getting ready to lift off

Here you can see how a hot air balloon gets its name

Ting and Zoe enjoy the liftoff

Balloons Balloons everywhere in the sky

My necks not getting tired watching this spectacle!

A giant "Jesus" balloon floats towards the heavens (actually this balloon was a little creepy)

Ting and Zoe get ready for their own balloon ride courtesy of ReMax! Zoe can barely peek over the gondola

Zoe and Ting fly away! 

What I did on my summer vacation

With summer starting to wind down Ting, Zoe and I decided to spend a week exploring Northern California. The goal was to head three hours north of Reno up to Lassen Volcanic National Park. From there we would cut across the lower end of Mt. Shasta through Redding and the Trinity Alps range to the California coast. We would emerge at Arcata, CA and work our way into the Redwood National Park. From there it was down HWY 101 and HWY 1 to Fort Bragg and into Sonoma wine country.



Since Ting's sister Dee is moving to China shortly she flew out to join us on our adventures.





Lassen Volcano in the background. Still lots of snow around 10,000 feet. We even saw some fresh tracks from backcountry skiers taking on the August snow.

Lassen has plenty of geothermal activity considering most of the park is on a fault line where the Sierra Nevada mountains to the south collid with the Cascade mountains to the north.

Even at 7500 foot there is snow! Zoe, Ting, and Dee hiking across the snowpack to a geothermal area known as "Bumpus Hell". A challenging hike of 3.2 miles for a four year old!  



Bumpus Hell is the largest geothermal area in the park. Here you can see steaming pools of groundwater seeping up through the mountain.

Where the hot, steaming water hits clay soil mudpots are formed.

From Lassen we drove to the Northern California coast to Redwoods State Park. The campground at Del Norte State Park was filled with Redwood stumps from logging that occurred in the early 1900's. They make a surreal playground for kids.

Zoe working her way up a 20 foot diameter stump from a 500+ year old Redwood that was cut down close to 100 years ago. Note how dark these pictures are. This area is close to the ocean and has a rainforest feel to it.

Here's another view. I've climbed up a Redwood stump and put my foot in the picture for perspective. Dee is on the ground getting ready to take a picture looking up!

Deep in the Jedediah Smith Redwood Grove.

Dee and Zoe hiding behind some monster ferns. Kind of like Jurassic Park!

Aunt Dee and Zoe on a Redwood root that arched across the trail.

Up the coast towards the Oregon border is the town of Crescent City, CA. Their functional lighthouse is on a small island and can only be visited at low tide.

Zoe enjoyed peeking into the rocky tide pools. Here is a colorful starfish she found.

Here is the Crescent City Battery Point Lighthouse at low tide. Note the driftwood that has collected on the rocks over the years.

On the way back to Reno we looped through Sonoma County and hit 3-4 wineries. Here is a final picture of Aunt Dee and Zoe outside the Belvedere Winery's gardens. 

Summertime Fun 2006!

The last two weekends Ting, Zoe, and I have been trying to get out a little more. Over the 4th of July holiday we met up with Yee, Kirk, and Baby Calvin in Big Bear, California to hang out for the weekend.

Big Bear is Southern California's answer to Lake Tahoe. The pictures below are from a trip out onto the lake in a rental pontoon boat.



Captain Steve at the helm of a very slow pontoon boat

Yee, Calvin, and Zoe hang on for dear life

Southern California "cabins" that line the shores of Big Bear Lake


This past weekend we met up with our friend Kurt Kuznicki of the Sierra Club for an overnight in the Black Rock Desert. The outing had secured access to Fly Geyser a geothermal feature on private land north of playa area. Picts below tell the tale.



Sunset over the Granite Range west of the Black Rock Playa

Now add one goofy kid who got to stay up late

Sunrise looking east over the Black Rock Playa towards the Jackson Range and King Lear Peak

Approach to the Fly Geyser North of the Playa

A close up on Fly Geyser. Note the colors from the minerals and algae

Fly Hot Springs (clothing optional on this Sierra Club outing) 

Zoe's 4th Birthday

So Zoe had quite the birthday weekend starting Friday night with her birthday party and Saturday with a trip to see the Reno River Festival. I'll let the pictures tell the story from here.




Zoe pumped up for a birthday party!

Kids line up for a race around the back yard

Zoe samples a little birthday cake

Corinne and Dad help Zoe with the presents while Levi looks on

Hmmm.... What can it be?

A happy birthday girl with Mom and Dad

The day after the party Zoe cheers on the kayakers at the Reno River Festival

The snowmelt river water is a little chilly

But someone doesn't seem to mind. Little feet in the river mud 

Zoe goes skiing

Ting and Zoe hit the slopes at Northstar for a lesson recently. Here are a few picts:








Zoe's first gondola ride









Fresh powder brings a smile







Private lessons for Zoe







Look Ma, no poles!