Home again and finally recovered. Back to work, back to a clean house, back to the bay area after five days away. I will try to sum up our experiences.
Went up to Donner Lake to see the Brixie's in nature. The trip was put together by Peter, and he rented a cabin on the shore. They didn't allow dogs and we prefer the camping, so he reserved a site at Donner Memorial State Park.
There was a total of three campsites involved. One for the first night, one for the next four nights, and another one for the final weekend. The last one was to another campground up the road. This picture was taken down the road from where we stayed by my nephew Michael. It captures the flavor of the reunion. Note the boat and the car. Everybody came together and played on the water while staying overnight at a house or in a tent. During the day, Buffy and Shasta hung out on the back deck, in view of the lake and the beautiful pier.
Some nights we made dinner, as the cabin had a grill and full kitchen. Other nights we went into Truckee or ate a local spot, Martha's Kitchen which allowed dogs on the patio. We also ate at Zano's, where they had Chicago style pizza and were able to seat our party of 12 without too long of a wait. Unfortunately there was no room on the patio, so Wayne took Buffy back to town to the Burger Me joint where he got great service, and Buffy sat proudly outside waiting for him while he ordered. (We had eaten lunch there, so she was familiar with the protocol.)
We visited the local farmers market and bought some corn, veggies, artisan olive oil, great garlic and some Indian craft items. (Gourds with seeds and drawing on them, and a cool Oaxacan animals for our collection.) I was admiring a beautiful hand beeded bag/necklace with an intricate pattern worked into it. I wanted to buy it, but knowing it wasn't really practical, hesitated at spending $50. Wayne had said I could get it, but I thought it was too extravagant. Later, after my mom pooped out and was resting on a bench while I was finishing shopping, my dad gave me the money and told me to go buy it.
Later I went on a short nature hike with Buffy, my dog, and took pix of each different wildflower that I spotted along the trail. Wayne and my dad took off and explored the community on the south side of the lake in the car.
We rented paddle boards for my niece and nephew to try out. Mackenzie gave me a ride on hers. We had a blast. So we went back the next day for more. Since the mosquito's were very bad at dusk and even bothered us at night, and the campground scene was not the best, so we decided to head home Friday night instead of Saturday.
Our last night was Friday, we planned a BBQ to celebrate the arrival of John and Rose. They had to work and could not get off the full week. We watched their kids for them from Wednesday through Friday, so they could enjoy some camping as well.
I made a salad from scratch and bought a bunch of salads, and customized them. We had fresh salmon, all types of sausages and rolls, olives, homemade pickles and brownies or pie for desert. It was getting later and later, and my brother John still hadn't arrived, so we sadly decided to leave without seeing him and Rose. Next time! They live in Stockton, so it isn't too far. Maybe I'll get invited to the twins birthday...
We made it home with no traffic until 37 at the Infineon racetrack. An event had just finished, so it took a bit longer than normal for the last 15 miles. When we got home, Buffy got the biggest smile on her face when we put her crate into our bedroom. I took a shower and crawled into my bed, still itching. Wayne had a drink and looked over the accumulated newspapers. No mail, so luckily our neighbors must have put it aside. All my plants looked pretty much alive.
I posted my pix to facebook already, now I just have to write my thank you to my parents, for paying for most everything on the trip and to my brother Peter for organizing it.
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