Not So "Labor" Intensive Weekend

Todd and I wanted to get away on Labor Day.

We didn't want to spend lots of money,

so we decided to visit Empire Mine and Donner Lake.

I've lived in the general area practically all my life,

and I have never been to either one.

So we headed out Sunday morning in the Jeep.

It was a beautiful day and I really enjoyed the

wind in my hair and sun on my face!

It took less than an hour to get to our destination.

The mine itself was interesting,

but I thought I would be able to go into the mine shaft.

There were lots of building to tour with tons of

antique tools and artifacts,

but the actual mine was closed off.

Apparently it's filled with water up to where the

natural water table would be,

making it impossible to tour.

The mine did have a small section open

that you can explore.

If you can believe it,

this is where the men sat, it's called a "man skip",

and it delivered 18 men at a time 

into the mine at a rate of 600 ft per minute.

No thanks,

I'll pass!

After we toured the mine part of the park,

we decided to take a look at the 

clubhouse, "cottage" and gardens.,

all of which belonged to the General Manager of the mine.

The clubhouse was impressive,

especially when you consider how long ago it was built.

But the cottage and gardens/grounds took the cake!

Keeping in mind that the structure was built in 1897,

the house had electricity and many other amenities.

Everything was beautiful and perfectly manicured.

There were fountains,

and a reflecting pool.

All the water, I believe, is recirculated.

When were pumps invented?

After we had finished our tour,

we decided to head over to Donner Lake.

I've driven past the lake, but never happened to stop and check it out.

It's pretty, but man was it busy.

Of course, it was Labor Day Weekend,

so that was to be expected.

We drove around the lake and ended up in Truckee.

There was a furniture store that was calling our name,

so we stopped in and took a look.

Finally, when we were exhausted,

we stopped at our favorite pizza place

and got some nourishment.

On the way back home we happened to see

some mountain climbers on the rocks. 

Do you see 'em?

No?

How about now?

It was pretty awesome seeing all the 

people who are adrenaline junkies 

climbing all over the rocks.

When we arrived home it was around 7 PM

and I was looking mighty wind blown...

7+ hours in a Jeep will do that to ya!

I had such a great time with Todd.

It's so much fun visiting places with him.

We really need to make it a priority to go 

someplace local that we've never been 

at least once a month!

So did you do anything fun on Labor Day?