Outstanding fun right outside our door!

Today Daisy and I walked right out the front door, turned left on 9th, then right on Elm, then left up Placer to the dead end at the top of the hill. I carried my cross country skiis with me. I hooked into my bindings and away we went! I noticed how much faster my skiis are than my snow shoes. Just last week Sandor and I trudged up this ridge very slowly in our snowshoes, of course it was only a few hours after we skate skiied from Tahoe City to Northstar in the Tahoe Rim Tour ski race, and not to mention the fresh powder that had dropped all night.... But anyways, back to the point of this posting. There is some fun to be had right here in our neighborhood, no driving required! The same trails behind our neighborhood that we ride on all summer are excellent for skiing too! Especially since they have done so much brush cutting and tree thinning for the fire dangers. The snow is just perfect up there!

Lot's of wild things to track up there

Last week we got a ride up here

Rubicon Peak in the background and Dasiy brought her friends Pia and Lucy another time.

We skiied up the ridge to a perfect untracked bowl (ok, not super steep, but challenging on the x-country planks) and swooped down into Sugar Pine Point Park where they occasionally groom the trails. Did you know that the cross country skiing portion of the 1960 Winter Olympics were held right here? How cool is that?

See! It's groomed!

And it's not bad looking out here either!

Paige Meadows Geocaching-Ski

Today we went geocaching via skiis up in Paige Meadows. If you have never checked out Paige Meadows, I would highly recommend putting it on your TO DO list, any time of the year - it is A-W-E-S-O-M-E!
If you have no idea what geocaching is, get yourself a GPS or use your i-phone and download the Geocaching app and check out http://www.geocaching.com/

Paige Meadows is great for cross country skiing, snowshoeing, snowhiking, and hiking and biking in the non-snowy months. I put some directions on how to find it below. The Tahoe Rim Trail also passes through the meadows.

Daisy loves a day out in the snow.

Directions to Paige Meadows, which is south of Tahoe City, by the way:

Headed North on Hwy 89 approximately 1/4 mile past the Fire Sign Cafe and sunnyside market

Turn left at Pine Ave    -    0.2 mi

Slight right at Tahoe Park Heights Dr  -  0.7 mi

Tahoe Park Heights Dr turns slightly right and becomes Big Pine Dr -  0.3 mi

Turn left at Silver Tip Dr

Park at the very end of Silver Tip Drive. There are signs for ski parking, and there is a large county maintenance building at the end of Silvertip.

Fall in Tahoe - a little late :)

OK, I know I am wayyyyyy behind schedule - but I found these pics on my computer and they are super worthy of posting. Fall in Tahoe is soooooo outstanding! The colors, the quiet, the weather, it is all the best. You'll see what I mean when you check out the pictures.

We went for a beautiful Fall ride on the South Shore. I'll post directions in the spring.

Daisy blends in with the Fall leaves on the river.

Sandor on the Rim Trail

Time to put on more clothes - it gets crisp now when you gain elevation

YOW!

Daisy at the site of the Pony Express Station

Fall leaves are fun to fly through...

Then we went to the Truckee side for a little different terrain at Stampede Reservoir. You should really check this area  out if you haven't ever seen it. There is road riding, mountain biking, motorcycling, swimming, boating, fishing, you name it!

Daisy checks out the view

Lots of good spots to pose!

Mid-December Snow!

I was fortunate to make a quick trip up in mid-December right during a storm (thank you Subaru - you were awesome on Donner Summit in the snow!). The snow was outstanding for the time of year, cold, light, and fast for skating at Tahoe XC. Daisy was super excited to nbe back in the snow. The windows are holding our heat in well! We plan on fixing our doors this summer, then we will be so much warmer!

Sorry for the delay in posting my update...I'll try to be better at posting!

Daisy in front of the snow covered driveway, not a bad amount for mid December!

I skated up to the Fiberboard Freeway. The snow was perfect!

Daisy was happy to make tracks in the XC tracks also!

We will be up for New Years, stay tuned for more updates and pray for snow!

New paint and trim!

New trim and paint at the cabin. The new paint really brightens things up a bit. Here I am in the former dark hallway nailing in the new cedar trim. The hallway and the bedroom got a matching coat of paint, "celery".

First Snow!

I came up to Tahoe for a whirlwind trip of painting, trimwork, and yard work (of course interdispersed with some running and biking) before winter sets in and the first snow falls. Well, Daisy and I got a little surprise - it snowed! It changes my outdoor plans a bit...I don't like to ride with frozen toes and fingers. Daisy will like that, as now a run through the snow is in order. Snow the first few days of October - hopefully that means a snowy winter. We need it!
Pray for snow!

Daisy couldn't wait to go out in the morning

It started snowing after 10pm

Bears all over the place!

We have so many bears around the yard we don't know what to do with them. Nooooo, they aren't real cute fuzzy bears, they are carved out of wood. Yes, Sandor has a new hobby - chainsaw carving. If you get a chance to drive by either of our houses you'll be able to catch a glance at some of our new family members.

How bears get made.

Bears going for a ride in the truck.

A bear and an eagle (not done) by the shed, and Pia, not a bear, a border-jack.

What happens when the neighbors don't properly secure their bear box, done by a real bear, witnessed by Kristin after midnight last June.

New on the outside!

Ok, here are the pics that we have all been waiting for. Now that you have seen the old cabin in my earlier post, it is time to check out the new look. We have completed the new windows and the exterior trim along with a new coat of "Red Pines" paint.

Here is Sandor holding the last nail for the last piece of exterior trim. We used rough sawn cedar STK and used a SuperDeck Natural stain. It looks nice with the Red Pines paint.  We tried to stay rustic.
Note the 'cranberry' colored fiberglass frames of the Milgard windows blend right in.

DONE!