From Elko, NV we had a leisurely drive to Reno where we stayed at the Peppermill Resort and Casino. Casinos have a lot of overweight, unhealthy looking people as their clientele. Lots of "wife-beater" tees in the casino's coffee shop even though it is probably one of the best hotels in Reno with nice rooms and a very good pool.
Twiggy had family business in Reno so I took the kids and went up to see my Uncle Dave and Aunt Judy at their place near Truckee at Tahoe-Donner. After our visit, the kids and I continued our journey and we drove around Lake Tahoe, down to Carson City where we satisfied our craving for In-and-Out Burgers.
In-And-Out has locations only in California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Texas. They are somewhat of a cult institution with a short published menu and a long non-published menu that you can order. But don't worry, unlike New York, if you make a mistake, you won't be bullied and chastised for being uninitiated -- e.g. the Soup Man of Seinfeld fame or the gyro/falafel cart on 86th and Third.
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| Hot Creek Fish Hatchery |
We then continued down to Bishop, CA a small town of 3900 people located in the high desert on the eastern side of the Sierras to see my brother and his family.
The next day the kids and I picked up some sandwiches and ventured up to the Hot Creek trout hatchery near Mammoth where we eyed the fishes and had lunch.
After lunch, we traveled back down the hill to Bishop and went to one of my favorite places to go when it is above 100 degrees -- Keough's Hot Springs. Keough's is an interesting place to cool down. It is a large free flowing pool that is fed by both geothermal hot water and cool water so anyone can find a spot in the pool where the temperature suits them. Although the facilities are slightly run down, they are clean and the pool is very sanitary and without chlorine.
The following day the kids and I and Uncle Jeff took a trip up to June Lake where our intent was to swim on the beach there and let the kids go fishing for trout. The swimming was excellent and the water clear and not too cold. However, the lightning-induced fires west of the area sent smoke across the Sierras and into the Mammoth and Bishop areas. Sitting on the beach at June Lake made my eyes water and sting. It was very much like being directly downwind from a campfire. The skies weren't deep blue like they usually are -- they were white and hazy. Between the stinging eyes and the increasing winds, we decided to bag the fishing.
Twiggy met us that night in Bishop and we left the next day for LA. We only had one night in LA before our morning flight to Hawaii. Twiggy used to live in Manhattan Beach, a trendy beach community about 10 miles south of Venice and Santa Monica and just north of Hermosa and Redondo Beach. There is a thriving downtown area with an abundance of casual and high end restaurants, nail salons, coffee shops, surf shops, etc . We met one of our dear friends, Emily Beason, for dinner in downtown there at a gourmet pizza restaurant. You would be hard pressed to find a pepperoni pizza on their menu, but instead pizza with fresh corn, arugula, goat cheese, and other fresh ingredients. Even the vanilla brownie sundae we ordered for dessert was organic. If only we could find similar restaurants in Rye that offer fresh, healthy food for a minimal price.
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| Campbell and Grant on Manhattan Beach, CA |
The next morning the kids spent a few hours walking on the beach where there was a national lifeguard tournament ongoing with teams from as far away as Hawaii and the Hamptons.
We then went to the airport and onto the second third of our adventure -- Hawaii.
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