July-August, 2024
Today let me show you a bit of the town of Conconully (CONC-uh-NULLY), and then let’s go for a drive up along the reservoir/lake that’s above the town, where the water level in that reservoir is higher than the town, and all that water is held back by an earth dam. Let’s go!
Photo above … main street. Yep, that’s it … main street. Notice the very nice, large ATV on the right. They were everywhere in this town.
Photo below … I don’t remember what the black building is on the right … but those new buildings on the left are a brand new fire department and medical center and city admin offices.
Below … probably THE most popular evening hang-out spot in town … the Sit ‘n Bull. Every evening that I was here, the parking lot at this establishment was chock full of 4×4 off-road all-terrain-vehicles … many with no license plates. Vroom, vroom!
The building in the photo below is the Community Center and Library. I liked these paintings that showed local things … building/construction, wildlife, fruit orchards, and livestock.
The photo below is on the opposite side of the community center. I really liked this bike rack and the method used to hold it in place. That fellow has LONG legs. Pretty clever, eh? 🙂
Photo below … I’m standing on a corner of main street … looking at the town east of main street. It’s a small town! Notice the ATV in the road.
Below … the Conconully post office and small library, and coffee spot. I think it was open three days a week.
The Conconully Museum was closed indefinitely. Even the sign on the door looked old!
The device/hopper below was in front of the museum. There was no sign. Maybe it was used during the gold mining operations here?
There were lots of small homes here, and there were some very nice larger homes here too. Notice the two ATV’s at the right side of the photo above. LOTS of them in this town.
So that’s a glimpse of the town of Conconully.
One of the streets in town leads right up to (and then past) the earth dam that holds back the water in the reservoir above town. In the photo below, you can see how miniscule the full-sized barns/buildings look next to that earth dam.
The underground gate that lets water flow from this reservoir, then through a small stream, and then down into the reservoir below the town… that gate is at the FAR end of this earth dam in the photo above. You can see the gate at the very left end of the earth dam in the photo below.
There was a nicely-maintained gravel road along the reservoir/lake. The photo below shows a look back at the top of the earth dam … it’s just that small tan line at the end of the reservoir/lake.
It’s such a pretty lake!
With very nice, comfortable permanent homes and many vacation homes, and docks out on the water in front of most of those homes, for all sorts of boating recreation and fishing, this would be an attractive place to call “home”. Although winters here are ice cold!! But, summers … ah, heaven!
It was early afternoon. I noticed the slope of the hill and the trees on the southwest side of the reservoir, the side of the reservoir obviously with no road along it. The shadows were so perfect. Another 20 minutes, and that hill would have been in full shade.
The housing area ended, but on I went, further up the road.
Eventually, I found this sign, below. Campgrounds! I looked them up online later back in my trailer … all were rather rough, no electricity, no services, no reservations, but all were in truly stunningly beautiful wild mountain country. Many were next to a lake, mostly fishing folk went there. And you pretty much just drove in and parked “somewhere” … many of them didn’t even have specific campsites designated … you just parked off to the side of a gravel road.
Did you notice the “Chainsaw” sign? No Chainsaw use after 1pm. I was told that rule is in place so that, if you start a brush fire or forest fire from the gasoline in your chainsaw, then there’s time to call for firefighters to drive in or FLY in and put out your fire.
I kept on driving up the road. Forest fire damage was obvious here. And yet, still, it was gorgeous country.
Eventually, as the road got smaller, and rougher, and when I could find a spot to do so, I turned the big white truck around and headed back to Conconully and to my campsite. What a beautiful day.
Besides the ATVs that the adults drove in this town, there were LOTS of bicycles ridden by the kids all around town. Did you have a bike as a kid? I did, and I loved my bike. 🙂
Beautiful lake. Small town! I’m used to small towns, but this one is really small and remote especially in winter. Great to visit tho.
Wow, you sure are finding some out-of-the-way campgrounds in Washington, but it’s gorgeous! You are an adventurer that’s for sure. 🙂 Great photos. Oh, and, yes both hubby and I had bikes as kids and loved them, we both grew up in small towns (not as small as Conconully) but small, and we could ride our bikes anywhere any time without fear. That was so wonderful.
The photos are wonderful! You’re blog is all about the people in the town, how they live. I would NOT!!! want to live below that earth dam! Where I grew up, the boys all had bikes, but the girls rarely did, how dumb is that?
Gorgeous country around Conconully, fabulous. Washington is full of gorgeous country, we never knew that. I was raised in the SW of the USA mostly where there were gravel roads so we kids didn’t have bikes, but we sure walked and ran everywhere! and swam and played games. Every morning I stayed at home and helped my mom with house stuff, and then after lunch, my sister and I were free to go! As long as we were home by dinner time. 🙂 Life was so carefree.
Oh my word, that photo of the side hill above the lake with the trees and the shadows is spectacular! I’m not sure the State of Nevada has a HILL that tall. What a photo. Fascinating info about a really small spot in Washington. Thank you for the work of sharing this.
Marvelous. What fun.