Reno | Page 7

part of nature's loveliness. Here
one may watch lonely colonists and native maidens dive and play in the
water whilst listening to their laughter. An early morning dip in the
pool and a swift canter back to town will start your blood tingling; clear
the city-cramped lungs and fill them with Nevada's fresh invigorating
air. It will make one feel like a two year old and add ten years to one's
life.....
Ricks, the famous road house, and training quarters of Jack Johnson,
the black champion prize fighter, is within walking distance of Reno.
Its chicken dinners have helped to make the place famous. There are
private rooms for those who seek seclusion, a splendid dance floor, and

I am told that here the mechanical pianos grind out waltzes, one steps
and fox trots, whilst glasses clink far into the night and parties of
colonists make merry.
Farther on is Laughton Hot Springs, another popular bathing resort.
This place is mostly patronized by motorists and equestrians and is
more fortunate than the others in its location. The little rustic hotel is
built in the cosiest nook, just at the bend of the river; the fine old trees
bend their graceful branches over the rushing waters in which the
majestic mountains reflect their wondrous beauty. Here one may obtain
private dressing rooms and bathing pools, or a party of two or more
may have a number of dressings rooms opening onto the same pool.
The water in the pools changes every fifteen minutes. I am told there is
a continuous inflow and overflow, which empties out into the river.
What a wonderful spot to build a modern structure with beautiful steam
rooms, modern dressing rooms and marble bathing pools, in place of
the crude board sheds which rather spoil the natural beauty of this place
of many charms, where one may bathe in the hot springs pool, fish in
the river, wine, dine and dance! What more could the soul in exile wish
for?
If you wish for seclusion, seek a tranquil spot on the banks of the river;
dream to your heart's content, watch the silvery moonbeams play
among the branches and sparkle on the river, and listen to the sighing
of the summer wind. I know of no place near New York endowed with
so many of nature's charms.
Fishing in the river is good, but fishing in the mountain brooks and
streams is much better, and one can take a pack-horse, ride up over the
mountains and discover places which look as though they dropped right
out of a picture book.
Rubicon Springs is such a place; a quaint old hunting and fishing camp,
where a few nature lovers hide away from; the world every summer
and really "rough it." I caught there some of the finest mountain trout I
have even seen; I also saw a party of men bring in a very fine deer one
afternoon, a feat which caused quite a little excitement among the

guests.
This isolated spot cannot be reached by automobile, it being about
fifteen miles from the main road over a rugged mountain trail.
There is certainly everything to be wished for in the way of out-of-
door amusements in and near Reno. There besides motoring, riding,
fishing, hunting, swimming and dancing are the tennis courts and the
golf links. The Golf Club gives many interesting tournaments and is
one of the social centers in summer for the elite, as is the race track
where one may meet the world and its wife. The track is good and the
horses as fine as one can see anywhere, all of which helps to render this
sport most fascinating.
[Illustration: LOVER'S LEAP BLUE CANYON]
Talking of horses reminds me of one of my never-to-be-forgotten rides
to Laughton Springs. Those who have never seen a Nevada sunset,
while riding over the Sierras at the close of day, can have no
conception of its wondrous beauty. I will try to tell you about it.
We started one evening at a brisk canter over the swelling foot hills
along the Truckee River, whence we could see Mt. Rose lift its stately
head, clothed in royal robes of crimson and purple which half revealed
and half concealed its snow-capped peaks and pine-clad grandeur.
As we rode over the mountains which tower above the rivers and the
greenest valleys, a storm came up; storm clouds dark and threatening,
the most imposing I have ever seen. In a short while the storm passed
over and the last rays of the setting sun shone on three mountain peaks
across the river and valley. It is impossible to imagine a more exquisite
display of colors. I think it must have been like the light that shines on
a happy mother's face when she