horses

The trip is hot and dry. A layer of several feet of dust lined the route, flying around as the wheels of the wagons and hooves of the horses pass over. The road is steep and over granite along the 130 miles from the Carson Valley to Placerville. When not the middle of summer, the road is muddy or buried by snow. A horse could cover the terrain in 24-hours.

The road is Johnson's Cut-off and the year is 1852. It was built by John Calhoun "Cock-eye" Johnson as a way to cut off 50 miles and 2,000 feet in elevation from the common route people took over Donner Summit as they emigrated West.

As I sat on the lawn in front of the historical Dangberg Ranch on Sunday, I smiled and imagined that South Lake Tahoe could have such a place.

The house that stands at the Dangberg Ranch, which is adjacent to the Park Ranch on Hwy 89 just north of Mottsville Lane, was home to a family that played an important role in the growth and shaping of the Carson Valley. They founded Minden, NV and established many businesses in the areas of banking, farming and a hotel. Dangberg Home Ranch Historic Park preserves this essential chapter in Nevada’s history.

A glimpse of times gone by will be moving along roads Sunday morning as the 66th Annual Wagon Train ride begins their week long trek from Zephyr Cove, NV to Placerville, CA.

In the early 1850's, pioneers crossed the Sierra Nevada into California, traversing what we now know as Echo Summit and the Highway 50 corridor. This route became known as the "Roaring Road" where travel was so heavy, oftentimes wagon trains were forced to wait for days to have their turn on the road.

El Dorado County Animal Services is pleased to announce it has completed the adoption process for all of the horses that came from the former Grace Foundation facility in El Dorado Hills. "We want to thank everyone in the community and all the volunteers who either adopted a horse or provided support to our agency through this process," said Don Ashton, Director of the El Dorado County Health and Human Services Agency, which includes Animal Services.

Just as they did in 1860, the Pony Express riders will carry the U.S. Mail during their annual re-ride that comes through South Lake Tahoe this summer.

Mail will be carried by horseback by over 700 riders from St. Joseph, Missouri, through Kansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, Nevada and California between June 15 and June 25, 2015. The annual re-ride of the famous Pony Express takes the same number of days as it did 155 years ago: 10 days.

Horses in the middle of a years-long battle between banks, attorneys, an animal rescue center and others are now available for adoption. Their saga began at a ranch in Susanville, CA where 90 horses were found near death. The horses where brought to an El Dorado Hills group, Grace Foundation, after officials from Wells Fargo and Bank of America found them starving and uncared for on the property they where they held the note.

For the past year, Terri Arnold of South Lake Tahoe has been creating promotional videos for the Carson Valley Story Teller series. Each of the nine completed videos (three are still in post production), show Arnold as she shows viewers all they can do in the area. She doesn't show you in the normal way either, everything is done while on a horse named Meha. They can all be seen on the Carson Valley Visitor Authority's You Tube page.

As part of their mission to give back to the community and protect the environment, Vail Resorts gave away 49 grants to Lake Tahoe area groups during a ceremony on Tuesday at Heavenly Valley.

The last SWEET SIPPIN' SUNDAY for the season is right around the corner. The leaves are turning and the weather is supposed to be beautiful, so be sure to mark your calendar now for this Sunday, 10/5, 1-4pm.

Location

The Camp Richardson Corral operates under a U.S. Forest Service Special Use Permit that is up for renewal. As part of the process, the USFS has opened a month long period for comments from the public.

They are asking for input on a proposal to reissue the corral a 20 year special use permit for the operation and maintenance of the corral and outfitting and guiding services.

During fire season, the air we breathe can become impacted by wildfire smoke. Fine particles in smoke can cause health problems, especially for children, older people and those with respiratory conditions.

Residents who see or smell smoke should consider taking these precautionary measures:

1. Healthy people should delay strenuous exercise.
2. Children and elderly people should consider avoiding outdoor activities, particularly prolonged outdoor exertion.
3. People with health-related illnesses, particularly respiratory problems, should remain indoors.

The Bureau of Land Management has finished trapping 11 wild horses near Carson City it deemed a public-safety threat. They were taken to the Northern Nevada Correctional Center, where they will be ...

Fromarc Insurance Agency has been family owned and operated since 1985, when Tita Anderson started the company as an agent/broker. Since then, the team has grown to include her husband Bob, their daughter Justine, Ann Zion, and Brady Ward. On September 27, forty friends, family, and clients joined them for a Business After Hours and Chamber Ribbon Cutting, and enjoyed stories about their years of success and community service.

Cyclists from across the county will mount their carbon horses this Sunday for the 10th annual Tour de Tahoe, a 72-mile supported bike ride around the lake that will raise money for the Juvenile...

Warm weather and cool fishing is expected this week along the many lakes, rivers and streams in Nevada, Northern California and the Sierra. Here is this week's fishing report for the week of July 25. As always, pack plenty of sunscreen, abide all regulations and have your fishing license with you.

All he can see through a narrow slit in his thick metal helmet is his opponent on the other side of the jousting field. It gets hot underneath holding a heavy lance upward. The horse starts to g...

Wow, all this talk about how Republicans block everything for political reasons. Really?It's about time you holier-than-thou Democrats got off your high horses. Both parties are at fault and hypocr...

Questions continue regarding a U.S. Forest Service plan to make trail and other improvements in the Fallen Leaf Lake area. With a comment deadline now past, the project entails improvements to 12,960 acres and includes nearly 42 miles of existing trail from Pope to Baldwin beaches on the north end to the south and west ends of Fallen Leaf Lake.

The Re-Ride of the Pony Express Trail from St. Joseph, Missouri, to Sacramento, California, will pass through Stateline and South Lake Tahoe in front of Harrah’s at Friday’s Station to exchange the Mochila on Friday, August 26th at 11:30am. The annual re-ride is a 10-day, 24-hour a day, non-stop event by over 500 riders and horses.