| "If your dog is fat," the old saying goes, | | | | souvenirs from its glaciated past. Many of |
| "you aren't getting enough exercise." But | | | | these boulders were used by Washo Indians to |
| walking the dog need not be just about a | | | | grind food - look for smoothed depressions in |
| little exercise. Here are 10 cool things you | | | | the granite rocks as an indication it may |
| can see around Reno, Nevada while you hike | | | | have been a grinding boulder. One good place |
| with your dog.COLORFUL FISH. | | | | to see these stones, and learn their story, |
| | | | is at the Lam Watah Washo Heritage Site. |
| Walking the dog down the Stream Profile | | | | Pyramid Lake was named for a |
| Chamber Trail at Taylor Creek Visitors Center | | | | triangular-shaped |
| leads to a cut-away view of the creek and its | | | | |
| underwater denizens. In fall, spawning | | | | rock that can be seen from trails along its |
| Kokanee salmon, tinted a brilliant red, swim | | | | southern shore. And canine hikers on Peavine |
| past the trail. Another place to view | | | | Mountain can visit the boulders that |
| colorful fish up close is on the Truckee | | | | University of Nevada student arranged into a |
| River Bike Path in Tahoe City. Peer into the | | | | symbolic "N" in 1913 and they continue to |
| water off the side of Fanny Bridge and look | | | | maintain annually.MAGNIFICENT ESTATES. |
| at rainbow trout in the headwaters of the | | | | |
| Truckee.FAMOUS ROADS. | | | | Your dog can walk up close and marvel at |
| | | | three estates at the Tallac Historic Site - |
| In the mid-1800s the Reno area was merely a | | | | the Pope Estate, the Heller Estate and the |
| stopover on the way to somewhere else. Many | | | | Baldwin Estate. Wooded footpaths connect the |
| roads were used by wagon trains, the Pony | | | | mansion sites. You can see, but not visit |
| Express and others to reach California | | | | with your dog, Vikingsholm in Lake Tahoe at |
| including Hawley's Grade, the detour through | | | | Eagle Falls and Bower's Mansion at Davis |
| Dog Valley and mountain passes such as Roller | | | | Creek State Park.OLD FORT RUINS. |
| Pass, Donner Pass and Carson Pass. Today, | | | | |
| many of these historic routes are public | | | | Fort Churchill State Park contains the ruins |
| trails hosting canine hikers. Keep an eye out | | | | of the 1861 frontier fort built to secure |
| for faint rust marks on rocks that are | | | | overland migration routes. Fort Churchill |
| souvenirs of the wagon wheels of the western | | | | lasted only a decade and has been in a state |
| migration.GEOLOGY. | | | | of arrested decay ever since. The remains of |
| | | | the adobe buildings can be seen from trails |
| The geologic origins of the region reveal | | | | in the state park.TV AND MOVIE LOCATIONS. |
| themselves in many spots along local trails. | | | | |
| At Cascade Creek Falls ridges on both sides | | | | Your dog can walk in the footsteps of famous |
| of Cascade Lake are visible where rock debris | | | | Hollywood actors at sites in the Reno/Lake |
| has been pushed by retreating glaciers. This | | | | Tahoe region used to film television shows |
| depression, like other similar pits scraped | | | | and movies. The Lower Prey Meadows on Tahoe's |
| from the rock, filled with snow melt and | | | | eastern shore was a prime location for |
| rainwater to form Tahoe area | | | | establishing shots of the great NBC western, |
| lakes.GRAVESTONES. | | | | "Bonanza." Hoss, Little Joe, Adam and Ben |
| | | | Cartwright could often be seen riding through |
| Cemeteries are good destinations for an | | | | this lush meadow in the shadow of towering |
| off-beat canine hike. In Virginia City, the | | | | mountains. Any canine hike to Dayton State |
| nation's largest federally maintained | | | | Park will bring you in the vicinity of |
| historic district, are separate cemeteries | | | | filming locations for The Misfits, Clark |
| reminiscent of the boomtown's rigidly | | | | Gable and Marilyn Monroe's last |
| structured society. Wander among the | | | | movie.WATERFALLS. |
| headstones that are markers from a time when | | | | |
| Virginia City was Nevada's biggest | | | | The Reno/Lake Tahoe region is certainly not |
| town.HISTORIC BUILDINGS. | | | | lacking in picturesque waterfalls you can |
| | | | visit with your dog. Some, like Heath Falls, |
| Area parks are home to some of Reno/Lake | | | | ask for considerable trail time but others |
| Tahoe's most historic buildings. Relocated to | | | | like Cascade Creek Falls and Eagle Falls, the |
| Bartley Ranch is the one-room Huffaker School | | | | only waterfall emptying directly into Lake |
| that predates even Reno itself. In Idlewild | | | | Tahoe, can be enjoyed with very little |
| Park stands the California Building, built in | | | | purchase.I am the author of over 20 books, |
| 1927 and now the home of the Reno Art Center. | | | | including 8 on hiking with your dog, |
| From that same era, near the Loch Levens Lake | | | | including the widely praised The Canine |
| trailhead, is the Rainbow Lodge, constructed | | | | Hiker's Bible. As publisher of Cruden Bay |
| from hand-hewn logs. Even older, dating back | | | | Books, we produce the innovative A Bark In |
| a century, are rustic farm buildings seen | | | | The Park series of canine hiking books found |
| from the trails of Wilson Commons | | | | at During the warm months I lead canine |
| Park.INTERESTING BOULDERS. | | | | hikes as tour leader for tours, leading packs |
| | | | of dogs and humans on day and overnight |
| The Reno/Lake Tahoe region is rife with | | | | trips. |