Outdoors with Don Q: Ask for snow, wish for snow and pray for snow

No matter how you do it, either by asking, wishing or praying, we need snow. Lots of snow. Feet of deep snow this winter. Elaine and I took a ride last Sunday to take some photos in Alpine County, and we also took our fishing equipment if we decided to fish somewhere.

We were undecided as to where to fish, but thought that we would check out some of the waters along State Route 88 and at other spots. As it turned out, we did not fish and for a darn good reason.

Drought:
The streams, creeks, ponds, reservoirs and lakes in our general area have been decimated by the prolonged drought. In many cases, they are just a shadow of what they used to be.
For example, when we drove across the U.S. 395 bridge in Carson Valley, we looked down at the Main Carson River and it had shrunk down to where you can step across it. It was pitiful and the Main Carson is the result of the East and West Branches coming together. Not much water there on Sunday!
And the drought has all the earmarks of continuing to get worse and worse.

Snow:
There is nothing in sight in the long range forecast for any significant precipitation.
We desperately need a huge, prolonged winter with lots of snow, lots of snow, lots of deep snow.

How deep?
Well, speaking only for myself, we live on the older West Side of Carson City, and I would dearly love to see our neighbor's four-foot-high, wooden fence disappear once again under a field of white. Many years ago, that is exactly what happened in one snowstorm.
Also, many years ago, my son Jim and I snowshoed into the Quilici Cabin (elevation 6,000'), near Davis Lake in Plumas County, where we measured and shoveled 42 inches of snow off the cabin's deck. The following week we returned to shovel another 42 inches off the deck.
That's a total of seven feet of snow!

Catching fish:
Getting back to our plans to possibly fish on Sunday, if anyone tells you that they have been catching fish, I have a hunch that they probably fall into one of the three following categories:
1. They are telling you a great big white lie. Possible!
Yes, Virginia, fishermen really do exaggerate and/or lie. Heck, I have!
2. They have been fishing at either Lake Tahoe or Pyramid Lake. Possible!
Of those two lakes, Pyramid has been sensational this year, especially if you have been in a boat trolling along the east shoreline, where they have been catching Lahontan Cutthroat Trout up to 20 pounds!
3. They were waiting for the planter truck to dump fish in what is left of the East or West Carson River in Alpine County, so they could fish in a pool where the fish were trapped and then brag about their success. Sad but true!

Other fishermen:
We did not fish (we were too busy taking photos), but we did see some fishermen at both the East and West Carson Rivers and at Caples Lake.
In talking to a fisherman at Caples, he told us he had fished all day and for all of his efforts, had caught only one fish and it was a dink. We watched two spincasters at Caples make cast after cast after cast which resulted in lots of exercise but no follows and no fish.

Here are some memories of the day:
01. It was a beautiful day (warm, sunny, no clouds and a slight breeze) for sightseeing, taking photos and just goofing off.
02. Most of the Quakies have lost their leaves but surprisingly there are still a few that have their colorful leaves.
03. Hope Valley was a large flat area of dry grass where normally you would see snowmobiles racing all over the snow.
04. We took photos of the East Carson River, the West Carson River, Red Lake, Caples Lake, Red Creek and Markleeville Creek with all of them showing low water levels due to the ongoing drought.
05. There was a lot of weekend automobile traffic, everywhere we went, with many other people also out enjoying the good weather.
06. There were lots of motorcycles, especially in Markleeville.
07. There were many bicycle riders on Foothill Road near Genoa.

Finally,
It was a fun day to be in the Great Outdoors and even though we didn't fish, we probably caught as many fish as most of the fishermen we saw.

Bet Your Favorite Pigeon
Bet your favorite pigeon that he can't tell you about the Caples Lake Resort boat launch facility.
If he grins and says, "It is closed due to low water levels," he could have also been there this last weekend.

— Don Quilici is the Outdoor editor for Carson Now. Don's wife, Elaine, is the Outdoor photographer. They can be reached at donquilici@hotmail.com.