Went to Ruby Valley. Yet another Shangri-La moment among many I encountered on this journey to nowhere. Sartre said Hell is other people, I think he was right. I guess it also could be said that paradise is a deficiency of people. I suspected there was a place like this in Nevada; a natural oasis of forests, ponds, flowers and the like. I was hoping to make my way to Jarbidge, Nevada expecting that to be the promise land, and maybe it is but I didn’t get to see it on this trip. Anyone who's found themselves in Ruby Valley would likely agree it's as close to paradise as you could find in a wasteland.
I tried going south through Jiggs before hitting Ruby Valley thinking I could enter the valley from the South. I found out later I was mistaken, but who can resist visiting a town called Jiggs? I breezed through a construction area headed down but soon realized I was short on gas and had to double back. As luck would have it on my way back to Lamoille I got caught behind a pilot car detour which took up a good amount of time. Back at Lamoille I gassed up and changed my mind, fuck Jiggs, I’d just go into Ruby Valley proper and hopefully camp.
The place is gorgeous so campsites were filled even at this early hour. I drove to where the road ended in Ruby Valley and made for a brisk hike. Every part of this place is easy on the eyes. It was here I came to realize the extent to which my body was out of shape from sitting on a motorcycle for days on end and lounging in my parents house watching hockey. I trudged uphill huffing and puffing which forced me to stop every 10 minutes to catch my breath. Fortunately this proved to be an excellent way of taking in my surroundings. It afforded me ample opportunity to ponder the beauty several times over until I finally reached the first few lakes one would encounter up near the top. I wish I could have continued on as the trail went on for another four or five miles but my physique just couldn’t make it happen on this day. I made my way down to the bike, thankful to have seen such an exquisite view of nature.
It can’t be overstated what a special place Ruby Valley is. I am forever thankful I had my camera with me to capture these images.
I went back to Elko and got a room. I was surprised how quickly the day had passed. Worth every second.
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