You never know ... Monday, 11/21/22

 

... what you're going to see when you're Out and About.  That's a given.  Today seemed like a good day for us to go a-walkin'.  Where we live, we're lucky to have lots o' choices, as in, forest or lakeside or next to a river or canal.  Or, heck, even through the neighborhood.  We remembered the Independence Trail down near the South Yuba River, but couldn't recall when we'd last been on it.  It's fairly level until trail's end, when it's down-down-down 200' to the river at Hoyt's Crossing (and then it's back up!).  Tis a lovely and quiet setting to spend an afternoon.  Jimmy and I are used to being lone hikers these days, but we encountered several people on today's hike.

Independence Trail is on the north-facing side of the Yuba River.  Mostly shady and cool.  You see the other side of the river is in full sun.  Bet it's a lot warmer over there.  The river doesn't look like much, above, but we could hear it rushing far below us; otherwise, all was silent.

Prerequisite photo of Jimmy holding UP this giant boulder -- with only one arm!!  Oh gosh, Jimmy, don't let it fall.

This time of year the tree color is outstanding, mostly from Big Leaf Maple (Oregon Maple) trees' deep yellow leaves (above and below).  The leaves are roughly the size of a sheet of letter paper.

The first of many "low bridges" we had to duck under.  Well, I'm so short these days that I don't have to duck, but I usually do anyway, just in case!  Don't lose your head!  Haha, short people like me have an advantage this way. Time to get out the buzz saw.

It seems as though the Bear Yuba Land Trust people have fallen behind in trail repair, but, in their defense, hundreds and hundreds of trees came down all over the county during last Christmas' snowmageddon. We saw a number of downed/broken trees along the trail.  This wooden walkway doesn't look good,

 

It was refreshing to see this little stream still pouring from its rock cave.

Walking the ditch.

Here's a tidbit:  Independence Trail was the first identified wheelchair accessible wilderness trail in the country (the first mile only). The trail utilizes the old Excelsior Ditch, built around 1859 to carry water for hydraulic mining. After two miles it ends at an unmarked, deeply rutted road, and this year that dirt road was so bad we chose not to use it.  A nearby single track path also leads 200' down to the river, and we gave it a try.  Going down:  Not strenuous and scary.  Returning up:  Strenuous and not scary.  While the Independence Trail is easy, short trails to the river are rated moderate to difficult. They're all seriously steep.

 

A few steps more to the river.  We merely had to hop over a boatload of mossy boulders to get there.  Still and all, it was beautiful here.

Really beautiful.  To us, anyway.

Hey, Nickie, is the water cold?

YOU BETCHA!

Like I said, you never know what you'll see.  Above, at top, some gray-haired old fart is burning his buns in the sun!  Laying on granite can't be comfortable!  (go ahead, enlarge the picture, you know you want to)  In the bottom photo, the fella in his shorts was making enchanting music on that long instrument, like a flute.

Meanwhile, across the river in the shade, I'm dressed in long pants, a sweat shirt, a down vest and a jacket.  And my hands were cold.  Go figure.

In fact, on our side of the river, we came across these ice crystals!

We didn't tarry too long before returning to the trail and heading back.

Watch your step.  Time to get after the repairs.

Isn't this fabulous?

As we made our way to the car, it was my turn to make sure the boulder didn't drop.  I did my best.

Another plus on this trail, for me at least, is the abundance of ferns.  Shady and cool and damp in some sections, ferns thrive.  I saw maybe five different varieties.  Love the green!

Entire walls of ferns.  Zowee!

Jimmy picked the above photo.  I liked the one below.  So, why not?  Both pics are boardwalks toward the end of the trail (near the car).  In total we put in five-and-a-half miles, quite a nice number, plus some vital aerobics slogging up the hill.

Summing up:  A very nice day.

Great trail.

100% Nostalgia, Friday, 11/11/22

 

Oooooh, a while back, when I first saw the blurb (Facebook or the Nevada Co Union newspaper) for scenic flights in a vintage Douglas C-47 plane over western Nevada County on Friday or Saturday, I thought it would make a terrific birthday present for Jimmy.  His birthday is on the 14th.  The plane was built and commenced flying in 1944, the same year Jimmy was born.  An omen, obviously!  I checked Accuweather to see if Friday or Saturday would be the better day, and no rain was predicted for Friday.  Plus, the 11th is Veterans Day and Jimmy is a veteran.  Win-win-win.  I bought the ticket.

I asked about the name.  She was built in Oklahoma City and delivered to the Army Air Corps in 1944, but too late for the D-Day invasion.  After the war she participated in the Berlin airlift before being transferred to the Belgian air force, and from there she went to Israel and who knows where all else.  This plane has been around, literally and figuratively!  Then, in 2007, Glen Thomson purchased the C-47 and donated it to the Gooney Bird Group, an organization associated with the Estrella Warbird Museum in Paso Robles.  So, the name pays dual homage: to Betsy, Glen Thomson's wife, and to the C-47's role in dropping supplies to troops.  

The sky was partly sunny, but it was pretty danged chilly, maybe 52°.  I was cold standing on the tarmac.  Last time I stood here was in the dead of summer and it so hot you could've cooked pasta on the tarmac.  Jimmy's ready.

What a cool name for a seasoned gal.

More nostalgia -- when he enlisted in the Air Force out of high school in 1963, the first plane he ever flew in was a C-47 like this one ... and it took him to boot camp at Lackland AFB in Texas.  Above, he's describing how it was back then.

Before the 1:30pm flight, we were free to look inside the plane, all of it, including the cockpit, above.  Such a tiny space for two human beings to work.  A sign just out of camera range, read: "do not touch."  (don't mess with those controls!)

The safety briefing.

Off they go, into the "wild blue yonder!"

The route they'll take.

They'll fly right over our house!

Definitely not fancy!

Strapped in, sir, and set to go.

And when the "seat belt sign" turned off (a bell rang instead), the 21 people aboard unstrapped and wandered from window to window, everyone excited a) to be flying in this plane and b) thrilled to be flying over their county!  Unlike commercial planes, these passengers could visit the cockpit while in the air.

The pilot!

Jimmy took pics with his phone (like everyone else).

Good job, Jimmy.

Looks like an interchange over I-80, probably near Colfax, CA.

Ahhh, mountain snow!

New Bullards Bar Reservoir on the North Yuba River in northeastern Yuba County, showing the water level WAY DOWN.  Hopefully we'll get plenty of rain and snow this winter to refill it.  Jimmy and I hiked a trail around here once.

The dam, at left, with tethered boats, mostly houseboats, behind it.

We've driven across the dam.

The brownish color on this pic is a burn scar.

While Jimmy was gamboling through the air (45 minutes), I remained on the ground, chatting with others and trying to stay warm, but while we were waiting for their descent, everyone was still agog about the plane and the flight.  Hey, here they come!

Mission accomplished!  Jimmy said it was the "best birthday present" ever.  (insert smiley face).  Good, happy birthday, my dearest!  The ticket wasn't cheap, but the proceeds provide aviation scholarships for local youth through the Golden Empire Flying Ass'n and aircraft preservation through Gooney Bird Group.  And, anyway, you're worth it, Jimmy.

Alrighty then -- we do have some fun!

Let's go home now and get warm.

And then, boom! Tues, 11/8/22

 

The past couple of weeks, we've watched the deciduous trees don their autumn jackets, with all manner of reds, oranges and yellows.  A brilliant palette, really.  Shining throughout the county.  Last Thursday a crazy thing occurred:  We awoke to an inch of snow on the ground!  Like a switch had been thrown -- okay, y'all, it's time for winter!  But, believe it or not, that cold snow (didn't last) seemed to intensify the tree color.  Here are just a few shots for you:

In downtown Nevada City, by the freeway,

this giant beauty caught everyone's attention.

We loved seeing these along the Wolf Creek trail last weekend.

Above and below.

Finally, on Sunday we were warned of an unusually cold winter storm on the horizon, poised to hit the county on Monday/Tuesday.  We moved tender plants into the garage, removed the deck furniture pads, trimmed back foliage and otherwise made our yard ready.  The yard may have been ready, but we weren't -- it was too early for a winter storm!

On Monday afternoon, we drove Smartie to the top of our driveway in case the weather people weren't kidding.  That way we could get out at 6:45 Tuesday morning and go to our volunteer jobs stocking shelves at Interfaith Food Ministry.  So far, so good.  Alas, t'was not to be, because snow was beginning to fall as we were leaving and when we saw the big white flakes falling at IFM (several hundred feet lower in elevation), we knew we had to return home while we could.  Which we did, with Smartie doing the occasional dance on the slippery road.

We parked Smartie roadside again, and Jimmy got out our trusty shovel to make a path from the house to the car.  Why bother, right?  It was still snowing, after all!  Hi, Jimmy!

Rather than canceling our Hand and Foot card game this afternoon, our friend Mary came to pick us up in her all-wheel-drive Subaru; otherwise, we would've had to stay home.  (thanks, Mary!)  Game over, her Subaru did a good job delivering us safely to our driveway.  The snowplow had an impressive snow berm started.

I took the pic above and the one below after we got home.  We were stunned to see over a half foot of snow smothering our yard and all the plants and trees.

Because the trees still have their leaves, the heavy wet snow weighed the branches down.  Really down.  I've never seen the Dogwood drooped on the deck like this.  Worried that the branches would break, I tried to dig them out and knock off the snow, but I didn't accomplish much in the dark.

Neither of us wanted to crawl out of that warm bed Wednesday morning!  These sights greeted us:  Treetops encased in icy snow, their trunks a perfect arc.

Any plant with leaves still attached ended up buried.

This forsythia, no exception.

Under the weight of the snow, a tall skinny cherry tree (non-bearing) bent, bent, bent its 25-30 foot frame to the ground, leaning on or into a dogwood outside our dining room window.  The red x, bottom right, shows the top of the tree buried in the snow.  The red x, top left, is part of its trunk.  The tree's base is way to the left, out of the photo.  Not sure how this is going to pan out.  I didn't see a break, so perhaps it'll straighten itself out.  Or it may have to go.  (the pink thing in the middle is a bird house not an x)

The rain gauge.  Good luck measuring.

Wednesday morning's pic.  Shows 7 1/2 inches.

Too much.

Kwan Yin's wearing a white crinoline petticoat today.

Looks mighty attractive.

Trees have come down in the county, cutting power to over 4,000 residents.  It is much too cold to be without power.  Thank goodness we weren't one of those unlucky folks.  Our high temp today was 37°.  Tomorrow is supposed to warm up to 50, which will melt some of this, we hope.  Real pretty gently falling from a gray sky, but let's get back to autumn, okay?