I love traveling our beautiful country. Kathleen and I flew to Reno, Nevada, last Wednesday to attend our daughter’s wedding. The trip was just an overnighter and we flew back home on Thursday.
I really used to love flying. Now, airport security, though totally necessary, is a big pain in my tail section, and planes usually are so jammed they make me claustrophobic. Fortunately, our flight home wasn’t all that crowded.
The part of our trip I most enjoyed was sitting by the airplane window on the way home. The vista of this incredible country spread out 30,000 feet below me kept me mesmerized for the entire hour-and-a-half flight. The thing that struck me most forcefully was how many lakes I saw - some still frozen or partially frozen. There were so many I just sat back in my seat a couple of times and said in wonder to Kathleen, “You know how many lakes are down there?” She just smiled at my child-like wonder and went back to solving her crossword puzzle.
This past weekend I have been poring over my Rand McNally Road Atlas trying to determine the flight path of the airplane I was in so I could put names to some of the lakes I saw. With the aid of the Atlas, and internet site flights.expedia.com I think I can give you a pretty accurate list of lakes I saw.
Right out of Reno (flying northwesterly toward Seattle) I saw the Lemon Valley and Silver Lakes. Further north was Honey Lake -a pretty good size lake and it was encompassed by the Honey Lake Wildlife area. Then I saw Lake Leavitt. Round Valley Reservoir was near Susanville, California then came Horse Lake, then a huge lake named Eagle Lake. A medium-sized lake and a couple of smaller lakes I couldn’t find names for were in the same general vicinity as Horse Lake.
Next came a good-sized lake called Moon Lake, then the West Valley Reservoir. Delta Lake was off to the west. Eventually, we flew over Little Juniper, Payne and Dunnhauser Reservoirs. Those were all in the farming area around Williams, California. McArthur, Bornister and Dorns Reservoirs were located sort of between Williams and Alturas. Then I saw Mud Lake, Wood Flat, Halls Meadows and Davis Creek Orchard Reservoirs.
At Klamath Falls, Oregon, I saw Goose Lake, a huge wildlife refuge, which often times is literally teeming with ducks and geese and all kinds of waterfowl.
Next came Junipers Reservoir, Cotton wood Meadow Lake, another big, big lake named Summer Lake, and the Little Rest and Dutchy Lakes and Ana Reservoir. When we came to Thom Lake and Bottomless Lake I think we were in Oregon. I know we were in Oregon when I saw Lake Billy Chinook and Lake Simtustus near Dalles, and Pelton Regulatory Reservoir. North of there and in the Mount Hood area I saw Wahtum and Ottertail Lakes and Green Point Upper and Lower Reservoirs.
Once we crossed the Columbia River and into Washington state I saw another Goose Lake (smaller), and Placid Lake and in rapid succession, Bertha May, Grande and Alder Lakes, La Grande Reservoir, Lake Whitman, Benbow , Kapowsin, Bonney and Tapps Lakes, North Lake, Geneva and Fenwick lakes, and finally, Angle Lake , which was just before we landed.
My eyes were so tired from straining to spot lakes I almost asked Kathleen to drive home. Sadly, I couldn’t help wondering how many of the lakes I had seen were badly polluted -probably too many. I’d say three bags of Sam’s poop on lake pollution, but dog doo-doo is a big pollutant too. Anyway, I had a great trip. Hope you get to enjoy one soon.
P.S. Sam was really glad to have me home. Yay!
No comments:
Post a Comment