Donner Pass in May

Six weeks ago we stopped on Donner Pass.  It was a Sunday afternoon.  Snow covered the ground.  Parent types sitting in the parked cars watched as children rode sleds down the snow covered rock by the building and landed on the cleared sidewalk.  Tourists wandered about with cameras.  A lady held a straining Labrador on a leash, preventing it from joining the children at play.  The poor dog was wearing socks on his paws, held in place by rubber bands.  Ah, lady, just let your dog be a dog as God intended!  He can't lick those socks dry, and will be wholly uncomfortable from here on out!

Unfortunately The Passenger has no photos of that day.

But today, after hours of driving through the mountains and into the afternoon sun, the Trucker guided his green Kenworth into the Donner rest area.  The children are gone, as is the snow on the rocks.  The thermometer reads 47 degrees at 7:30pm Pacific Time.  The pond is thawed, though snow still rims the edges.  Snow is also on the mountain peaks, and in little heaps around the building. 

A corner of the building where

sun doesn't shine.

The children had a perfect slide between these rocks to the 

sidewalk in their little toboggans.

Indoors, there is heat, which is lovely when it happens in a rest area.  For those in need, they also have one of these relics, with instructions for use below.

Out on the sidewalk, plaques  to educate on the area's history.

We stood by the pond and watched an osprey soar above the trees, then suddenly bank and drop feet first into the water.  The dive came up empty; not deterred, he soared to a tree top, fluffed his feathers to shake off the water, and fixed a piercing stare on the water's surface.  Supper's got to be in there, he will nab it eventually.

He is up at the very tip of the tree,

blending in quite nicely.  How can he see
into the water from up there??

Here he is, a shot borrowed

from Wikipedia.

11pm EST, and the sun has dropped behind the mountains.  The rest area is quiet but for the low rumble of refrigeration units on the  truck trailers.  The day is done.