Circuitous
/sərˈkyo͞oədəs/
adjective
(of a route or journey) longer than the most direct way.
“the canal followed a circuitous route”
That definitely describes the route by which I got to Silver Lake for a sunset on December 15.
Seeing the weather forecast calling for rain and gloom for the next week or more, I figured I’d better take a stab at a sunset shot while there was still a chance. I initially opted to go to Lake Almanor in Plumas County, but when I came down Johnson Grade toward the lake, I could see that the nice high clouds I saw before I left the house had given way to lower, thick gray clouds—not conducive to a great sunset, at least not in the area around the Route 32 causeway.
Looking to the north, I thought the sky looked promising. A quick glance at the time said I had just over an hour until sunset at that point, so I decided to see if I could make it to Silver Lake, just across the line in Lassen County, in time. A subsequent glance at Google Maps said 41 miles and 1 hour and 6 minutes on the most paved route, but where’s the fun in that?!?!? I decided to take the route that goes by the Caribou Wilderness, a mix of “pothole,” “paved” single-lane road and dirt washboard, and hoped I didn’t rattle my teeth too badly as I put the pedal to the metal across the countryside.
(Side note: I’m very glad this spot was saved from the brutal #dixiefire, even if much of the nearby countryside was not so fortunate.)
Well, before I bloviate too long, I’ll just say I got to Silver Lake about five minutes before some color happened in the sky, which lasted MAYBE five minutes total before the thick gray stuff rolled in there too.
Here’s the first of two images I was able to get in the scant few minutes that there was actually color in the sky. I thought the fallen tree made nice foreground interest:
A few minutes later I got this one. Sometimes less is more and I think the simplistic symmetry makes this my favorite of the two:
As I post this at 8AM on 12/17, it definitely appears I made the right call to get out there the other night. It’s gray, windy, and gloomy and we’ve gotten half inch of rain since midnight according to my gauge (although I’m ok with some much needed precipitation.