The wind was pushing so hard against our car at Schurz, Nevada that my first grader was unable to open the car door. I helped, and wished I hadn't, as the wind caught the opening door with startling power, slamming it wide open so hard that I found it impossible to reach over and close it again from inside the car. Getting out, I staggered against the wind, deciding the family would just move on toward Las Vegas and Hoover Dam, where I hoped conditions would be more pleasant. But on Hwy 95 headed south at the edge of Schurz, the State Troopers were turning back all "high profile" vehicles due to 60 mph crosswinds up ahead at Walker Lake.... Luckily we weren't high profile enough, so an hour later, from the shelter of a vehicle trembling with the blows of the wind, here is my image of Walker Lake. You can see that dangerous wind, beating the surface of Walker Lake into whitecaps, and bursting upon the northern shores of the lake, blasting the earth there into rising clouds of dust. It's terrifyingly easy to see why this section of Nevada is nearly devoid of human habitation. Just to the north of this Pleistocene glacial relic lake lies the Walker River Indian Reservation. The mountain range visible is the remote Gillis Range, and closely abutting the SW corner of the lake is 11245 foot high Mt. Grant.
Two days later, dressed in shorts
and t-shirts, we joined the mobs at Hoover Dam, celebrating January
1st. amongst palm trees, untroubled by any breath of wind breaking
the fine desert warmth. 
(Winter 2002
2003)
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