We head for Cedarville one morning from our camp in the Warner Mountains. It’s time to buy a few groceries and do the laundry. The gravel road carries us over a gentle summit, and we catch a glimpse of a spectacular view through a stand of lodgepole pine and juniper. My artistic soul is on high alert, and I’m itching for another look. We pull over and park. The children pile out the rear door of the camper and dash across the road towards an enormous boulder lying amidst the sagebrush. They have spotted a batch of leftover snow in the shade, and soon snowballs are flying in the late June sunshine.
Don grabs his camera and heads the other direction to find the best viewpoint. With art pack and folding stool in hand I thread my way around grass clumps and sagebrush to get closer to the actual rim. There the ground falls away towards the east, gradually at first, but soon drops precipitously to the desert floor over a mile below. This is Surprise Valley, a stunning demarcation between the Great Basin and the Modoc Plateau. The panorama expands across the valley and into space, mind-stretching, heart filling space; it makes me grateful to be alive. From this viewpoint Lower Alkali Lake stretches across the basin to the desert mountain range on the far side. Beyond is the Black Rock Desert of Nevada, a lonely, rough country, not advised for novices. A serious obstacle to early pioneer wagon trains on the California Trail, that wilderness holds little water, and even today it’s a long way to go for help in any emergency.
Since the beginning of our camping days, we have always followed the Boy Scout motto of “Be Prepared.” We drive a reliable vehicle, carry maps, water, extra gasoline, emergency food, tools, and supplies. High risk adventures or survival games have never been our goal. We are out here to experience the lay of the land, learn its language, name the plants and animals that live in a given eco-community, and record observations by sketching and photographing. We want to feel at home outdoors, but it’s a basic truth that at times nature can be unforgiving. It’s best to be prepared…