Echo Canyon - Camping with a Dog and A Dutch Oven - Part Three

Campsite View Echo Canyon, Nevada

Echo Canyon sneaks up on you in the lovely Spring Valley Recreation Area. Unless you know exactly where it is, you might drive right by the tiny sign that says Echo and not even give it a second glance. 

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While the camping is excellent and the views fabulous, the lake is better for bird watching not fishing at this late in the season. I enjoyed a weekend here on my fourth trip in as many weeks camping out in areas around Southern Nevada.

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The Echo Canyon Campground is under 200 miles from the city of Las Vegas along the North 93 highway on the 322. It is on the Scenic Route Tours of Nevada and it does not disappoint. The scenery is amazing in this area sandwiched between the desert floor and mountain terrain. Scenes of cattle and horses grazing along the roadside in pastures and alfalfa fields intermix with the beautiful hills, trees, brush and flowers.

Echo Canyon Landscapes

The stark hills offer polka dot markings along the surface with small trees and shrubs. All along the trails and roads are beautiful yellow-gold flowers and touches of deep red on occasion. The rock formations change up every twenty miles or so and there are marshes in sections and farmlands in others. It is really a dreamy kind of adventure. It is a photographer's paradise.

There were thick, puffy clouds over the tiny reservoir of Echo Canyon the day I pulled into the campground. The scene was surreal, like something out of a movie or a dream. I said to my friend that this must be what heaven was like. Perfect views. Just beautiful. They made your heart ache to see such loveliness. I did not want to come home, but duty calls. I had to be to work at six Sunday evening. These small excursions have been a peaceful time out to an otherwise hectic schedule.

Hills, fields, with cattle grazing,  and flowery brush around Pioche, Nevada

The odd shaped rocks and hills made for a dazzling day of sightseeing. My friend Sharon led me to the campground then showed me a back road that wound through a tiny community of pastures and hilly areas. The view was breathtaking in every corner and turn.

These jagged rock formations add to the already stunning landscape
in the Eagle Valley / Echo Canyon area

There were horses and old cottages, fields, and light forests. The area is also alive with deer and other hunting game. We saw quail and rabbits, and even a doe grazing along the roadway.

Mule deer doe grazing along roadside 

Recovery of Mind, Body, and Spirit

How often do we add a great time out to our lives? Stress from constant activity can wear on the body, spirit, and the mind. By allowing a day or so of rest and relaxation, the body allows itself to settle and heal, the spirit is refreshed, the mind calms, the blood pressure and body aches diminish.

Camping can be a little bit of work in the beginning, but the results are worth the efforts. If planned correctly, the expense is minimal. The campground is generally under $20 a night and the basic costs are food and fuel for traveling. Once the fishing license and gear are purchased, the yearly cost is small compared to a four star vacation destination with airfare and hotel accommodations. A great dinner at a fancy restaurant can cost as much as a camping trip in one sitting! Create your own gourmet meal outdoors over an open fire.

Taking a couple of days to relax in an area like this refreshes my senses. The scenery is amazing at every turn and vista. The fresh air revitalizes a weary mind and heart and aligns my spirit with more important things like just enjoying life. Traveling has never been on my schedule unless it was for work, but visiting this area changed all of that. I intend to move here eventually, when my life turns to retirement age. Life in a bustling city has me craving a simpler lifestyle, one I can indulge in here in a valley of this nature. It is important to me that I unplug from modern culture and technology at times to realign my true priorities. 

Rustic building - Pioche, Echo Canyon, Nevada

Basic camping necessities: Water, charcoal grill,
Dutch Oven, Water spigot, and a tent

The Campsite Set Up

The basic set up in each camp includes a water spigot, a fire ring, a covered table area, and a fire pit ring with a grill. Cooking over an open fire helps keep outdoor skills sharp. One must know how to prepare meals on other sources and the firepit and charcoal grill offer a splendid opportunity to create a nice menu.

I caught no fish when I want to the side of the water area, but no worries, I did bring enough food for a week as I usually do when leaving home. I do not like to be without on any outing. It is for the purpose of cooking in the wild that I pack my ice chest. I am creating a Dutch Oven Cookbook that I will release, eventually. Should the occasion arise where I had caught fish, I had packed an onion, garlic, a lemon, and a few herbs in my cooler for use in the outdoor kitchen set up.

The fire pit ring is not shown here, but there is a grill at each site and a water pump connected to a well. A dutch oven serves many purposes in over the fire cooking and can be used as a skillet, a small oven to bake in, and a stew pot if necessary. The coffee pot I use for hot water only and it is set on the corner of my firepit grill so I may have water ready for washing or an occasional cup of tea or hot cocoa.

Be aware that there are no showers here at the campsite. There are bathrooms only, so you will have to bathe in warm water and a washcloth. One may travel to the Horsethief Gulch Campground to shower if necessary.

Look for the recipe page to be added soon! 

Take Time Out

If you do not live in the Nevada area, I challenge you to explore the areas within 200 miles of your home. Seek the solace of the wilderness if only for a weekend or a single evening. Explore the world around you. Test out your camping equipment. Learn how to cook using several different heat sources. The time you spend enjoying the fresh air and scenery will be triple the cost of a therapist, I guarantee it.

There is so much hustle and bustle going on in our modern world that we often forget to look at the skies, breathe, and thank the universe we are alive. Survival Recovery is based on the concept that you can get through disasters with your spirit and mind in tact IF you take the time to heal, recover, and rebuild your life a bit at a time after a crisis by adding certain healthy activities to your lifestyle before disaster.

www.survival-recovery.com

Recommended products

Road Atlas

Dutch Oven

Coleman 5 person Tent

Camping with a Dog and a Dutch Oven - part two

Spring Valley National Park is a little over three hours north of Las Vegas. It contains the Eagle Valley Reservoir which is stocked with three varieties of trout. 

Campsite View of the Eagle Valley Reservoir

This is a new destination for my camping itinerary and I was not disappointed with my find. My dog and I had a wonderful time in the wild here. I'd like to thank my long-time, dear friend for the suggestion.

I am experiencing the call of the wild, but I must be crazy. I wait until the very end weeks of summer and early fall to start this adventuring thing. I guess it was time. It is better than baking in the summer heat, I guess. Something got under my skin this month about getting out of town and camping seemed to be the most economical trip I could plan and afford. The largest expense I had was fuel. It took a little over a tank and a quarter to round trip this excursion. 

Horsethief Gulch  the campground, at
Eagle Valley Reservoir

Horsethief Gulch Campground

The campsite at the Eagle Valley Reservoir is Horsethief Gulch Campground. The fees are only $17 for the night. It  covers parking, park entry, and the camping site itself. Check the entrance postings at the park for specific fees.

The firewood was donation only, so I generously gave when I took a small pile of the cut timber for my campfire. I had enough to last me the two nights I would stay. Other campsites I have visited charge $5 to $7 dollars for firewood. Let this be a guide for donations. These funds help support our nature preserves and parks,

The camp site has a shade cover over its picnic table, a fire ring for campfire, and is conveniently located near a bank of bathrooms complete with shower rooms. Unlike Mt. Charleston, the showers are free and are operating at this time. Bring shower shoes. Those tile floors are frigid!

Cedar Ridge Granite Falls
4-Person Tent

Plan for a cool night's stay. The temperatures can dip quickly after sundown. Check the weather forecast ahead of time and pack accordingly. A tarp folded in quarters and set under the tent where I planned my sleeping area helped insulate me from the cold ground. I did have a foam pad and several blankets in addition to my sleeping bag.

Directions To Horsethief Gulch Campground

Tips on Staying Warm Overnight 
 Double up on socks and wear a set of thermal underwear when the evening temperatures are going to dip below 60 degrees. Toss a few blankets on top of your sleeping bag and try to stay covered. It is a good idea to keep a warm coat or sweater close by in case the frigid night air seeps through the bed coverings.

My family camped out one year and overnight we decided to try heated rocks to keep us warm. We dropped several in the firepit and then wrapped them in towels. What happened next could have resulted in disaster. The rocks were so hot they melted and burned the material the towels were made of. Do not do this. Also, do not use propane or gas heated space heaters in a tent. The noxious fumes are deadly and the heat source is an extremely risky fire hazard. My best advice for staying warm is to bundle up and stay cuddled under the covers.

A Note About Air Mattresses
I, personally, do not care for air mattresses. They tend to cool down over the evening hours and create more havoc than comfort. As the air cools down, they contract, leaving the sleepers to have to wake and refill or repair a flattening mattress. Save yourself the expense, trouble, and energy. Foam insulates comfortably and retains body heat where an air mattress dissipates it and leaves you cold.

Dutch Oven Cooking

The minute I get to camp I set up my fire and proceed to heat the dutch oven up for some bacon and breakfast items. I arrived shortly after noon and was a bit hungry. Thankfully, the coal starter makes the process of getting coals up to heat easy and quick. About 20 minutes after lighting the coals I was ready to cook my meal. 

For this breakfast meal, I started with bacon to grease the pan, I removed most of this while allowing several slices to brown. The others will be reserved for later cooking. I then added ham slices. When the ham was almost ready and slightly brown on both sides I added eggs to the bacon grease in the bottom of the dutch oven. The pan was set on a grate that was sloped so the grease gathered at the side nicely for cooking the eggs. 

The only thing I was missing for this excellent breakfast was orange juice, grits, and toast!

Wildlife In The Park

Dockside view of the Eagle Valley Reservoir

The first wildlife I saw were a trio of Mule Deer on the road into the park and a curious wasp. The deer were grazing on grasses outside a fenced area near the road. That was a really neat site. I love spotting animals on my travels. They tend to leave a good memory.

The wasp was interested in my dinner, a piece of chicken I had tenderly prepared in the dutch oven. As I was sitting down to eat, it flew in, hovered, then flew away once again. When said wasp returned, the insect landed on my dinner item and proceeded to cut a wasp sized piece out of the meat. I did not disturb the creature as I thought it might get aggressive and the last thing I want to deal with is is an insect bite of that caliber. I cut several very tiny pieces of chicken and set them aside on the table for the critter's return. It did come back and I was able to finish my meal undisturbed.

Rumor has it that there are skunks in the area as well as rattle snakes. I neither smelled, nor sighted either animal. Thankfully, the only really wild thing I had encountered happened to be a feral, domestic cat that crept in in the middle of the night to ransack my garbage bag. I was not careful disposing of my trash so the refuse was fair game. The next night, I had prepared and set aside a small piece of butter to lather up my sweet potato baking in the fire pit. I turned my back for a few minutes and it had disappeared. When I turned around, there was a small black spector near the front of my campsite. Growling and menacing cat noises mixed with the cricket and frog croaking during the night. They spooked my poor dog enough he did not want to sleep without me in the tent.

My second day brought a surprising set of visitors over the lake. I spotted a couple of eagles swooping and grazing the air stream over the canyon. It was breathtaking to watch their flight.

Fishing the Shore and Boating Dock
Fishing from the dock seemed to be the easiest way to pass the day after camp was set up. Why refuse an invitation from that beautiful water!? Drag up a camp chair and get cozy or wander the shore line and drop in a hook. There were many families in the camp area and the echoes of their catch and lost fish repeated around the small valley. It was refreshing to sit and cast a line and drink in the scenery. Kids, adults, and dogs alike splashed through the water, although it is not a great swimming area. Just so you are aware of State Park regulations, dogs are required to be on a 6 foot leash.

Supervise youngsters closely while around the dock area. A young man about seven years old proceeded to drop not one, but two fishing rods over the side of the railing, lost forever in the algae green waters. In the following hour, he personally stepped off the dock area and drenched himself and his mother in the water as she reached in to pull him back out. Children are not required to be leashed.

The boating dock at the Eagle Valley Reservoir facing the campground. Boat rentals are available just a few miles from the campground, however, there  is ample room on the dock facing the lake to fish.

The supplies that are needed are a few fishing basics. A light tackle pole, a few hooks, a pair of needle nose pliers, weights, bobbers, and a stringer line will get a fishing enthusiast through the afternoon. The fish are small and require very little than a hook removal and water storage. Of course, there is the cost of a Nevada fishing license if you plan on fishing here. This may be purchased ahead of time at any sporting goods store counter. Be sure to add a trout stamp as that is most likely the fish on the hook. There are several types of trout in the water - Rainbow, Brown, and Tiger are among the water residents here.

The predominant bait used here is Power Bait. I used bright green, but the popular flavor is yellow or tan. I did see folks using worms and lures, as well. One woman came up next to me with a long leader, bobber, and a fly like lure and on her first cast caught a decent sized rainbow trout. Take the time to let the bait drop and remember where the bites are. Cast back into that area and you may be successful.

After a few fish are caught, take advantage of the cleaning station available near the dock area. It boasts a nice, deep double sink area with running water and a garbage disposal for fish heads and guts. This makes for easy clean up of that catch of the day. The fish are quickly cleaned and prepped for cooking.

I understand that there are crawfish in the water here as well. It would have been fun to rig a line with a chicken bone and reel a few in for supper, but I did not have a pot big enough to boil them in. I only brought my dutch oven for cooking. 

Camping is an Emergency Drill

Be sure to take the time to plan for emergency drills. One's like this camping trip do not have to come with gloomy descriptions and elements of disaster. Camping is what happens when the power and lights go out and off and the family has to break out the tent and rough it for a few days or weeks after a catastrophe. Make it a family outing ahead of time so that an emergency does not have to be a crisis, too. You and your family will quickly adapt and face your situation in a more comfortable manner. Readiness pays in calm dividends. Camping and emergency supplies 

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Images on this site are property of M Burgess unless otherwise indicated. Please do not copy. Copyright 2015