thegreatoutdoors

blossoms, berries, and greens such as dandelion and nettle. But even winter o ers provisions like tree bark, r needles and seeds of tall plants.

More than 50 edible plants (clovers, plantains, wild onions and sagebrush, to name a few) get descriptions and photos. Andler takes her cra a step further by suggesting 44 related recipes. Who can say no to cattail power cookies, camp re blackberry pie, a cleansing cleaver smoothie or crab apple mu ns?

Andler stresses both ethics and caution. She encourages readers to harvest only lightly from plants growing abundantly, and strongly urges them to avoid eating any plant without complete certainty of its safety. Her book includes a list, descriptions and photos of common poisonous plants and identi es poisonous lookalikes of the edibles she suggests. is beautiful book will ll stomachs as it educates and broaden the horizons of even those who consider themselves experienced Sierra Nevada adventurers.

“I am deeply grateful to the plants that feed and teach me each day I walk on this earth. I feel that they guide me in this process, and I hope I have done them justice and shared what they wished for me to share,” wrote Andler, a Lake Tahoe resident who previously authored “ e Bay Area Forager.”

“SHE RIDES” by Alenka Vrecek

If a 200-mile wilderness trek or a search for edible plants sound overly ambitious for your taste, then try a vicarious bicycling odyssey. In “She Rides: Chasing Dreams Across California and Mexico,” cyclist Alenka Vrecek takes readers on her journey of discovery to the southern tip of Baja California.

For years, Vrecek dreamed of connecting her family homes in Lake Tahoe and the Mexican village of La Ventana under her own power. is desire grew stronger as she lived through tough times: an unpleasant divorce, a knee injury that ended her ski coaching career, breast cancer and her second husband’s diagnosis with Parkinson’s disease. e clock was ticking on her dream.

“I started asking myself if I was only a person who dreams and talks about doing something or if I was a person who has the guts to follow her dreams,” she wrote.

Vrecek, at 54, climbed on “ e Beast,” a mountain bike laden heavy with camping gear, and rode south along and over the Sierra Nevada. en she crossed the Mojave Desert and climbed over the San Gabriel, San Bernardino, San Jacinto, Cuyamaca and Laguna mountains, all before crossing the Mexican border.

“On a bike, one is always moving forward. Only by doing that did I think I would be able to feel alive again. I only needed to prove myself to myself, and in the process of riding my bike, I was hoping to heal my ravaged body and my wounded soul,” she shared.

John and Monica Chapman pioneered a new 200-mile High Sierra hiking route.

Over 57 days, she biked 2,524 miles and climbed 48,000 feet. Along the way, she faced rough roads, bad drivers, exhaustion, loneliness, anxiety, rattlesnakes, hunger, thirst and frightening strangers. But she also found joy, ful llment, unexpected kindness and new friends.

“I crossed the deserts while the Mexican sun sucked the last ounce of uids from my prune-like body, until faith was restored again by gulping down sweet water handed to me by a stranger,” she revealed. “People I met along the way who had the least gave me the most.”

Vrecek’s inspiring pilgrimage will motivate those who may have deferred their own dreams. “She Rides” powerfully expresses both the hardships and rewards of pushing limits and facing challenges.

Any or all of these three good reads will help pass the time until the sun opens the mountains for summer outings, and inspire readers to get outside once it does. ●

There’s just something special about summertime.

While triple digit temps are not exactly this girl’s favorite, with the help of swimming pools, air conditioning and ice cold beverages it’s easily made tolerable.

Summertime memories are some of my all-time favorites, even as an adult. This year I’ve taken the time to make some plans beyond the usual. A getaway with my daughter, Vegas trip with some girlfriends and a road trip with another ride or die gal pal.

That special gal pal, Charlotte (known to most as Michelle or “Merky”) and I always have a good time, but when we seem to have the most fun is when we encounter strangers. Both outgoing and perhaps a bit chatty, neither of us shies away from engaging with others when out and about. A true frick and frack (aka opposites), we love turning strangers into friends.

Earlier this spring, she took a test run road trip with me as I needed to make a trip to the City for a doctor’s appointment, followed by an overnight stay on the coast.

Excited to share a new favorite place to grab a bite, a beverage and an amazing view of the ocean with my travel companion, we quickly settled into a booth and picked some treats from the menu.

In came our new gal pals Alison, Yvonne, Liz and Nani, later known as the New Yorkers and the Scot. As the four women settled in to the booth next to us, Charlotte quickly jumped to their aid in snapping a group photo and of course sharing unsolicited information about us two gals.

Learning I was a writer, Nani inquired if I’d write about them, which made me chuckle in the moment yet by evening’s end became a commitment.

These four ladies were a hoot and a holler. Alison, the Scot now living on the coast, had spent her morning just as we had, at USCF with her husband who was also battling cancer. The Staten

Island ladies (aka New Yorkers) Nani, Liz and Yvonne were doing the California vacation thing and visiting with Alison during their travels.

In truth our overall time together amounted to moments, yet the connection, joy and fun was infectious.

The fun time foursome was bowing out before Charlotte and myself, but stopped at the booth for one final chat. As they did we learned that three of the four of them had also been touched by cancer in some way. Yet here they were, giving us a pep talk, sharing their belief in my future as well as my strength. All while leaving with a friend who was hopeful her husband would be home in time for his birthday (and he was).

But here’s the real takeaway and what I love about meeting “strangers.” By the following morning, long before finishing my first cup of coffee, the six of us had found one another on social media and reconnected with fondness and admiration for our encounter.

Oh sure, I hear you in the back, social media has its ups and downs, yet for this story there’s only ups.

That day our paths crossed, had been long and tough on Charlotte and I. The booth we settled into offered a bit of reprieve and yes happiness and then entered the foursome. Three connected cousins, four irreplaceable friends, one memorable night.

What a treat those ladies were. What a blessing happy ladies can be to one another. Even amidst a storm, girlfriends – the good ones – always manage to help us find the sunshine and celebrate the good stuff. Here’s to rainbows, butterflies and ladies who live on laughter. And maybe a few sunsets, cold beverages and long open roads. ●