I spent most of the week in Northern Nevada near Summit Lake collecting topographic data to refine one of my hydraulic models for my client. Our definition of the small channel was lacking and we had unused budget, so I lobbied for collection of more detailed channel geometry.

And so that is what I did. I had a new helper and she is excellent. She has no surveying experience, but learned to follow my direction rapidly and has a better attitude about field work than most of the technical people I have worked with. She is definitely a keeper!

I left the site later I needed to and hit traffic just west from Lovelock. A semi-truck van caught fire and was burned out on the shoulder of I-80. The trucker had separated the tractor from the van, so there was no apparent damage to the rig. But the van looked a total loss.

Traffic was backed up a mile or so. It was moving, but slowly. This cost me maybe 20 minutes.

The sun was falling behind the mountains and I was very tired after a week of exercise. Also, I had caught enough insects on the windshield that the light was causing difficulty seeing.

I was getting desperate when I hit the Toulon exit. But I seemed to remember a place to dry camp not far north from the Interstate. Driving up Wild Ass Road (yes, that is the name) I leaned out my window to improve my vision. I found a pull-out and then realized I had been there before. My friends sometimes camp there.

I turned the rig to face downhill, parked, and got The Girl out for a respite. She immediately eliminated, which was a good thing (for her).

It took a little longer than usual to deploy my camper. I guess I was pretty tired.

But, with the house setup, I opened a beer and a bag of chips for a snack. I also discovered that the refrigerator had reset itself sometime during the day and everything was warm. So, I did not trust most of my food. It was no matter, I was not particularly hungry. I simply wanted to settle down, decompress a bit, and go to sleep.

I fed The Girl and she hopped up on the bed and settled right down. I finished my beer and had another while sending text messages to friend and family.

I stepped outside to empty my bladder and noticed the sky. Unsure whether or not my iPhone might capture the scene of the trucks passing below us on I-80 and the evening stars, I made the capture anyway.

I was fairly astounded at the result, above. The Orion Constellation is clearly visible. I will take it.

I slept hard last night and rose when the eastern sky brightened. After a coffee and a short constitutional with The Girl, I recovered the camper and we headed home.

I stopped briefly in Fernley and had breakfast at the Denny’s inside Terrible’s Travel Center. I took The Girl most of my bacon.

We drove out the remaining hour and arrived home late morning. I think we were both glad to be home.

After unloading my few things and getting rid of the trash from the trip. I took her up near Spooner Summit and we had a good hike together.

The remainder of the day was spent recovering. We napped and snuggled. It is good to be home.

I am grateful, very grateful. Life is good.