Mountain Monday: Mountain Towns

A little high country air does nothing but good

By Meggan Wenbourne

As we pulled into the sleepy one stop light town a little after sunset, it was as if time literally slowed to a stop. There was no one on the roads even though it was only a little after eight o’clock on a Friday night. The familiar sights and smells of this little Gold Rush town are enough to make anyone swoon, if only for the weekend.

There’s something about returning to a familiar place after a long time away that calms the mind and relaxes the body. If you’re fortunate enough to call one of these small beautiful towns your hometown, you should consider yourself lucky, for not many people can make that claim.

This weekend found us up and away from the coastline, heading for the higher country near Ebbetts Pass at the top of Highway 4. Looking for relief from the smoky air, we found solitude at Lake Alpine and the surrounding reservoirs. Fresh, clear water, the promise of ice cold beer and endless amounts of stars in the sky made for a perfect mountain getaway.

Think about the last time you were out of cell phone reception. How amazing was it? I’m looking forward to more mountain days like this where we are out of range of all others. Here’s to taking it back to simpler times.

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Meggan Wenbourne is an avid climber, mountain biker and backpacker who works and plays in Santa Cruz, CA. She spends her time traveling to the mountains as often as possible to get lost in the pine trees and explore the granite rock of the Sierra Nevada range and has recently developed an obsession with the desert and its red rocks. When not away on an adventure, she can be found eating burritos and training at Pacific Edge Climbing Gym, riding amazing trails in the Santa Cruz Mountains or nestled away in her cozy tiny house with cookies and adventure reading.