Saline Valley Hot Springs Thanksgiving 2012

Our Little Truck

This year I outfitted our little truck, El Burro or Burrito, with some helper springs. Since I tend to load the living daylight out of our Mazda Pickup, and have gotten flats the last couple of years, I figured it was time. The helper springs fixed the sagging rear problem, and the tire upgrade made for a flat free journey. I made some modifications to the inside of the pickup so that Zelda and Ellis were facing each other and had a little more room. This last adjustment also gave us more room in the front. We also borrowed my mother’s Cabela’s Tent this year (thanks mom)… which was awesome. With two wee ones, it was so nice having extra room in the tent.

Leaving the House

As usual the days leading up to our departure were filled to the brim, and preparations and shopping took twice as long as we thought (we really knew it would take forever). We usually have high aspirations of getting out of the house at the crack of dawn, but usually don’t really hit the road until about 12 noon or later. With two small kiddos, this year was no exception. I have an unfortunate gift of being able to predict actual departure and arrival times, and we left within 20 minutes of that time. Our trip out to Saline Valley is not just about getting to the destination. The journey is also part of the adventure.

Oakland to Bishop

Once we finally had all of our gear, and clothes, and food, and kids, and selves packed into the pickup, we set out on our journey. The first day took us to Bishop, where we spent the night at a friend’s house, and had a great breakfast the next morning at our new favorite stop, the Great Basin Bakery. Besides for breakfast and car snacks, we also added generously to our already generous cookie stash. From Bishop we drove the last long bit into the desert.

Friends and Family Join Us

Our friends Alex and Genessa came out a day or two after us, followed shortly there after by wedding clients turned friends, Carli and Mark, and their son Thad. We had a great crew this year. My sister and her pooch also shared camp with us. The weather was beautiful and the water was warm. We ate, drank, laughed, hiked, soaked, ate, ate some more, and hung out in the desert for 10 or so days. Good times!

This year’s image collection is a little sparse and kid focussed. Having a 2 year old and a 6 month old will do that. Anyway, here some pics. Enjoy!