outdoor

On May 9 through May 12, six of us were on a fun-filled, four-day, outdoor adventure way over in Eastern Nevada. The six were: Bob “Slick” and Lynda McCulloch and Elaine and I, all of Carson City, plus Sal and Catali Quilici of Dayton.
We went to the Ely area to fish some of the waters in that part of Nevada because five of us (Sal, Catali, Slick, Elaine and I) are entered in the Ormsby Sportsmen’s Association (OSA) annual fishing contest, and we were hoping to catch any of the following fish:
Rainbow trout or brown trout at Illipah Reservoir,
Rainbow trout or brown trout at Cave Lake,

Celebrating National Train Day, the Nevada State Railroad Museum’s historic 1910 McKeen motor car will ride the rails from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, May 12 in Carson City.

Now a stellar attraction for rail enthusiasts and family fun, the McKeen Motor car operated from 1910 to 1945 racking up more than a half-million miles between Reno and Minden. The prestigious car became a diner and an office but was rescued by the museum when it was donated by the Bernhard family of Carson City in 1995.

It’s that time of the year to pick up your copy of a widely-distributed and widely-read annual publication known as “Fishing The California Alps.”
That outdoor newspaper is your personal guide to the fishing, camping, sightseeing and vacationing world in our general area and it has many, many pages of in-depth information provided by lots of experts in their specific areas of knowledge and experience.
Be sure to use this 2012 edition as your handy and ready-to-use guide on what, when, where and how to enjoy the Great Outdoors.

For a limited time, VIP Season Passes are available for the inaugural Lake Tahoe SummerFest, (www.tahoesummerfest.org) a series of classical music concerts. This transferable VIP Season Pass includes exclusive seating to all nine performances over the first three weekends of August; after-concert receptions with Artistic Director and Principal Conductor, Joel Revzen, and the orchestra; and preferred parking.

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California and the Sierra. This report is for the week of May 2-9.

Three of us (Don Hettrick, Bob “Slick” McCulloch and I) are back, safe and sound in Carson City after being contestants in the 16th annual Topaz Lake invitational fishing derby, which is sponsored by John Riordan.
That derby was held on Sunday-Monday-Tuesday, April 22-23-24, and it attracted some 70 fishermen from Nevada and California.
This year for the first time in history, the derby had a brand new fish category (bass) in addition to the regular trout category.
When the smoke and dust cleared after three days of fishing by all of the contestants, these were the 2012 winners:

Here is this week's fishing report and a reminder that Saturday, April 28 is the Opening Day of California lake, river and stream fishing. This report covers water ways throughout Northern California, the Sierra, Nevada and Southern Oregon. To learn more about opening day or to get a California fishing license, go here.

With Saturday's opening day of fishing on California waters, you'll need to possess the proper 2012 license to be legal. You can purchase the license and any applicable stamp(s) at a number of local outlets or on the Internet. If you need to buy them, here is some info:

Annual Licenses:
The 2012 non-resident annual fishing license is $120.14, and it is good through December 31, 2012.
Yipes! $120.14 for a California Non-Resident annual fishing license!

Daily Licenses:
A one-day resident or non-resident license is $14.30.

Here is the fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California, Lake Tahoe and the Sierra. This report is for the week of April 18-25, 2012. The opening day for all California fishing is on April 28.

It’s almost time to have fun in the High Sierras once again.
On Saturday, April 28 the 2012 fishing season will open for all applicable lakes, reservoirs, streams, creeks and rivers in California. The season will then remain open until Thursday, Nov. 15.
If you’re new to the Carson City area, here’s some information that can be useful if you would like to fish on that Opening Day or the entire Opening Weekend:


Some of the nearby streams, creeks and rivers that will open:

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California, Lake Tahoe, the Sierra and Southern Oregon. This report is for the week of April 11-17, 2012.

Sunday through Tuesday, April 22-24, are the 2012 dates for the highly-popular John Riordan Invitational Fishing Derby. John is the Assistant General Manager for the Carson Station Hotel and Casino in Carson City, and this will be the 15th version of his annual, fun-filled, fishing event at Topaz Lake.
His derby is traditionally co-headquartered at the Topaz Lake Marina and the Topaz Lake Lodge at Topaz Lake, which lies along the Nevada-California state line about 40 miles south of Carson City.
Here is some information about that derby:

Derby Rules:

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California, the Sierra and Southern Oregon. This report is for the week of April 4.

This is a first reminder that if you're one of many tens of thousands of big game hunters interested in drawing a 2012 hunting tag for Pronghorn Antelope, Mule Deer, California Bighorn Sheep, Desert (Nelson) Bighorn Sheep, Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep, Rocky Mountain Elk and Rocky Mountain Goat in the State of Nevada, be advised that the final deadline for RECEIVING your application(s) is 5 p.m. on Monday, April 16.

The drawing results will be made available to the public by June 11. If you want to apply, you can do so by one of two different methods: 


Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California, the Sierra and Southern Oregon. This report is for the week of March 28 through April 3.

There is a special place in this part of the Far West where there is a little bit of everything for everyone, every day of the year. Are you interested?
Well, if you are, be sure to plan to stop at Wiggins’ Trading Post located in Chilcoot, Calif. You won’t regret stopping.
Wiggins’ Trading Post is located on California S.R. 70, about seven miles west of Hallelujah Junction on U.S. 395, and it is the gateway to Frenchman Reservoir (about eight miles north).
That unique store is owned by Richard (Dick) and Shirley Wiggins, and they have been there since way back in 1968.

If you are a trout fisherman and are new to our area, you may not be aware that some of our best Lahontan Cutthroat Trout fishing is at Pyramid Lake in the month of March.
Pyramid Lake (which is roughly the same surface size as Lake Tahoe) is about 30 miles north of Reno-Sparks, and it contains Lahontan Cutthroat Trout that run into “Double Digits” in weight.
The lake is the terminus of the Truckee River which begins at Lake Tahoe.
Pyramid Lake is approximately 15 miles long, 11 miles wide and measures about 350 feet deep at its deepest point.

Here is this week's fishing report covering rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California, the Sierra and Southern Oregon. This report is for the week of March 21-27.

Mother Nature and the lucky Leprechaun found powder at the end of the rainbow with a late season storm that dropped 5-9 feet of new snow at Tahoe South resorts this past weekend, which will provide great spring skiing conditions through Easter and beyond. Forecasts predict sunny skies throughout the week.

If you're one of many thousands of big game hunters interested in drawing a 2012 hunting tag for Pronghorn Antelope, Mule Deer, California Bighorn Sheep, Desert (Nelson) Bighorn Sheep, Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep, Rocky Mountain Elk and Rocky Mountain Goat in the State of Nevada, be advised that it is almost time to begin to submit your application(s) to hunt one or more of the big game species listed above.
The 2012 application period begins Monday, March 19 at 8 a.m.

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams for Nevada, Northern California, the Sierra and portions of Southern Oregon. This report is for March 7-14.

If you’re a fisherman or fisherwoman, it’s that time of the year to remind you to purchase your new Nevada 2012-2013 fishing license.
That new fishing license year began on March 01 and it will run through the last day in February, 2013.
As a special tip you would be well advised to purchase that new license ASAP, because if you forget, go fishing and get checked by “The Friendly Old Game Warden,” he isn’t going to be very happy nor will you.

Last Friday, Elaine and I, together with my cousin Lorraine and her husband Bob Scholes of Dayton, Nevada, took a memorable ride on the “Tram,” high in the mountains above Palm Springs, Calif.
Earlier, Elaine and I had convoyed with Sal and Catali Quilici of Dayton to visit Don and Norma Reasons at one of their friends’ home, located across from the ninth green at the PGA West – Stadium Golf Course in La Quinta.

Recognized for stewardship and care taken in the building and construction of developments around Lake Tahoe, the 22nd annual Best in the Basin awards were announced Tuesday by the Tahoe Regional Planning Agency.
The TRPA, which sets policy for development around Lake Tahoe, will recognize the winners, listed below, during the 2011 Best in the Basin awards presentation during the meeting of its Governing Board on Wednesday, Feb. 22 in Stateline. Go here for the agenda.

Here is this week's fishing report for rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California, the Sierra and Southern Oregon. This report is through Feb. 21.

Saturday evening, March 3, will be the date of my all-time favorite fundraiser: The highly-popular and fun-filled, Carson Valley Chukar Club fund raiser, which will be held as usual at the Douglas County Fairgrounds.
This year’s version will be its 26th fundraiser.

The downtown Carson City ice skating rink will close for the season on Sunday, Feb. 12 at 7 p.m.

According to Carson City Parks and Recreation, the rink has hosted 9,469 skaters this season, an increase of 16.4 percent over this time last year.

The department said they rescheduled the closing date because of a decline in participation.

"With our region's unseasonably warm weather we are finding families enjoying other outdoor recreational activities," read a statement sent out by the department.

February 09, marks a special day in the life of yours truly.

It is my one-year anniversary writing about the Great Outdoors at Internet website Carson Now.

Time certainly flies when you are having fun, and it has been both a totally enjoyable and a totally memorable year of writing about all kinds of activities in the Great Outdoors, both near and far away.

February 11 is the opening day of the 2012 fishing seasons for the following waters in Lyon County:
01. The Fort Churchill Cooling Ponds, near Wabuska.
02. Applicable open waters (Bass Pond, Beaver Slough, Crappie Pond, Hinkson Slough, North Pond and the Walker River), all on the Mason Valley Wildlife Management Area (MVWMA), near Yerington.
All of the waters listed above will close on Sept. 30.
If you are interested in fishing at any of those waters on Opening Day, here is some miscellaneous information:

Fort Churchill Cooling Ponds:

Here is the fishing report through Jan. 31. The report covers rivers, lakes and streams in Nevada, Northern California, the Sierra and Southern Oregon.