California Trailby Deon Reynolds
The California Trail Back Country Byway begins just two miles south of Jackpot, Nevada. This was the second day of a two-week camping trip. The weather was quite nice, puffy clouds, loads of sunshine, and a perfect temperature. We were just a few miles into the byway. Seeing the road before me, I was taken by the contrast between the fluffy clouds in the sky, and the harshness of the sagebrush on the land. I liked the way the winding road disappears before you, leaving you to think, "Where does it go?" Giving you more of a feeling instead of a place.After driving 15 or so more miles along the byway, which traces the route of the historic pioneer trail, the weather began getting darker. We stopped to find camp. It started to rain. It rained all night. The next day we woke to find the road impassable. The slipperiest ribbon of slime made the road. This is why we bring extra everything when we head out into the Great Basin backcountry. We sat for two days waiting for the road to dry out. We were quite comfortable and content to just sit in one spot camped. We had plenty of food, wine, and books. On the second day the sun came out, and soon the road was hard enough to drive on again.
I shoot these black and white panoramas with a disposable Kodak panorama camera. The first thing I do is tear off the cardboard cover, pry open the camera, and pull out the color print film. Using a fine file I distort the frame inside. Then I load it with Tri-X black and white film. Some of my disposables have had over a hundred rolls of film through them.
Click here to hear a Nevada Public Radio story
on the California Trail.Click here to learn more about Deon's book of photography, Nevada, with essays by Jon Christensen.