The wildflowers are now blooming along the Winnemucca Lake Trail near Kit Carson Pass. If you have never been there, those flowers can be reached by driving south from Carson City for about 40 miles ...

Broadly, the best time to drive the trail is summer to mid-fall ... A reprieve from the mundanity comes in the form of Winnemucca, an overlooked Nevada city with tasty Basque cuisine.

If your travel plans have you zipping along I-80 across northern Nevada this winter ... Your stopover in Winnemucca should best begin at the visitor's center in the convention center at 50 ...