More Nevada

So, we spent 7 nights in the Sparks Marina RV resort.  Nice place with a pool, laundry, full hookups, 20, 30 and 50 amp at all spots.  The spaces are nice and easy to get in and out of, they are wide and angled well.  The picnic table has a solid metal spot on it for you to set your tabletop grill unit and is set on a nice fake grass lawn.  This makes for a nice clean, low maintenance seating area.  We decided we didn’t like our sling chairs so we headed over to Scheels sporting goods and bought a couple of zero g chairs.  I love Scheels, it is like Cabelas, Bass Pro Shops and a carnival all in one.  Yes, they have a Ferris wheel inside as well as great hunting, fishing and sporting goods areas.  It is a two story playground for adults.

We played some poker at both the Grand Sierra Resort and the Peppermill.  We like the floor people at the GSR and the vibe of the game feels good sometimes but unfortunately they usually only spread one table of 1-2 no limit.  They also put out hotdogs with fixings for the players.  I did win the morning tournament there on Sunday.  I pissed off one of the local curmudgeons by refusing to chop the pot with him….Scenario:  It’s down to four players, they pay 3 places and I have more chips than all the other players combined.  Curmudgeon is in fourth place with less than one big blind left.  he wants to chop the prize money 4 ways…this means that each of us would get about 300 bucks.  First place money is about 600 bucks, third place is 360 bucks and he is one hand away from being gone.  Why on earth would I agree to give him 300 bucks out of the prize pool when he has no chance of winning any of the prize at all?  I refuse to chop with him and he loses the rest of his chips to me on the next hand.  He pushes away from the table and the nicest thing he calls me is a prick.  We continue to play 3 handed and a couple hands later agree to pay third place out and chop the remainder between the other two of us who had the most chips and declare me the winner since I have more chips.  Curmudgeon is watching from the window in the card room and he gets very mad and steams out of the casino.  I did watch my back for the rest of the day just in case.  Everyone else in the room agrees that my decision was correct (even though I need no validation).  Interestingly enough the third place player told her husband that we chopped the pot and he was trying to figure out why she didn’t get more money and was getting mad about it until she finally told him that she was third and we didn’t chop the money equally with her as she was the short stacked player.

We really like the poker room at the Peppermill.  You can get soup here that is put out for the players.  They also have the most comfortable waiting area with leather couches and chairs and plenty of gaming related reading available.  They always spread plenty of games, both limit and no limit and often have an Omaha eight or better Hi-lo game.

Monday was a chill out day as we waited for RP’s dad to show up.  He (Geezer or G) and his girl friend (GeezerGal or GG) had ridden into town on Sunday on their bikes to spend a couple days hanging out.  We went lot trolling at the RV lots in  town and had lunch at the Squeeze Inn which is a really good choice for breakfast/lunch in the area.  This restaurant has been featured on the Food Channel and has a well deserved reputation for good food.  Went to dinner at our favorite AYCE (all you can eat) Sushi house, Hiroba and met with an old friend and his new girlfriend.  We caught up on our lives and then headed back to Piper.  Dropped off Geezer and Geezergal at their hotel then off to home.  Tuesday we got out and went to the Animal Ark of Reno.  They have a twitter account of @animalark_reno.  This is a rescue and rehab center for wild animals.  They wind up keeping some animals due to not being able to release them back to the wild and some of their exotics are from other rescue agencies in other countries.  They also wind up keeping some crittters due to Nevada law on returning them to the wild.  They also have a raptor license so there are some birds of prey on site.  This facility is completely off the grid…they produce all their own power through wind and solar.  This runs all of their electric needs and water is from a well on site.  They are located up Red Rock Canyon and are fairly remote on a dirt washboard road to the site for a couple miles off Red Rock.

You pay your admission fee at the front and then walk tour through the enclosures and displays.  This is hilly terrain and can be daunting to someone with disabilities.  Luckily, they also rent golf carts for a nominal fee.  The tour through is quite informative and they have some great critters.  Cougar, Canadian Lynx, Black Bear, Cheetah, Jaguar, Wolves, Dessert Tortoise.

black bear

fluffy song dog

Dessert Tortoise

Canadian Lynx

cheetah Brothers

Jaguar

lounging Jag

These animals are very interesting and the tales told about them and how they got to be in Reno, Nevada make for some informative reading.  You can adopt an animal or become a donor of the Ark if you would like by going to their website or visiting in person.  If you are in The Reno area this is definitely an attraction that deserves a visit.  The entry fee is minimal and the drive is fairly scenic.  It also is a great drive to see the back side of the Reno Air Race course (see my last post).

We said goodbye to the animals and headed back into town.  Out to dinner at Geezers favorite Italian Restaurant in Reno, La Strada.  Had a great dinner and with wine and dessert and then headed back home.   We got up Wednesday and had breakfast with G and GG and then sent them on their way headed back to home for them.  We spent one more day playing poker (no, we didn’t win enough to retire) and we went downtown in Reno to get a feel for the first day of Street Vibrations.  This is an annual event in Reno that is similar to the other motorcycle events around the country.  The local town closes off the main part of town and sets up street vendors for the duration and motorcycles are king for the week.  There is much noise and all sorts of costumes and get ups.  There are real bikers here as well as a number of gangs and outlaws.  Reno has banned the wearing of colors during this celebration due to past violence.  I see a number of signs of real OMG activity amongst some of the people I see on the street and a lot of the typical white collar guys who like to pretend for the weekend.  There are the typical idiots who think that the laws have been suspended for them because they are not in California for the weekend.  We watched a “gang” come roaring out into traffic and cut off cars, swerving all over the road like novice riders.  They had just left the restricted parking lot of the exclusive timeshare in town.  We both laughed through town, following them.

crazy bitch apparel. no, really!

On Thursday we headed out to California, next stop a small casino with RV parking for an overnight outside Lakeport.  Up early on Friday and off to the Redwoods.  We’ll be spending three nights there and then off to home because we have to go back to work to pay for our fun

Get out there and have some fun and see the country folks.

See ya out there,

BFD