Columnist Barb Henderson: Even in the heat outdoors can be enjoyed in Nevada

Barb Henderson

Friday, June 20, 2003 | 10:34 a.m.

Barb Henderson is an outdoors enthusiast, freelance writer and producer/host of outdoors radio television programming. Her column appears Friday in the Sun.

We live in a world full of communication devices -- phones, computers, faxes and beepers. Advance technology that allows us an opportunity for keeping in touch faster and more conveniently, a means of keeping connected in a world where the sounds of heavy traffic and city life fill out our day.

Meanwhile, in the not-so-far distance, natural sounds continue to connect us to the outdoors.

Sounds from the waters along the shoreline at the lake, leaves rustling from a swaying tree up in a cooler mountainous setting and a variety of unique communication being made by our wildlife.

The hot summer heat with sizzling temperatures rising off the desert floor will keep most folks indoors, a time of year when we find ourselves filling out our days living the busy city life. Daily routines that include a cool journey from an air-conditioned office to an air-conditioned vehicle to our air-conditioned home.

During the summer months in Southern Nevada, the weather is often too unbearable for enjoying most outdoor recreational activities.

For the most part, folks will find summer an excellent time for staying indoors to read books, watch television or for making future plans for an outdoors expedition when the weather is more suitable and they're able to appreciate the great outdoors of Southern Nevada, plans for a marvelous outdoor get-a-way from the everyday hustle and bustle.

Remembering, almost in any direction from the Las Vegas valley you'll find that solitude and serenity can be sought for those who take the time to search it out. Explore the variety of destinations where you can seek that gentle silence that brings the out-of-doors alive where the magnificent natural beauty which carries a melody of whispering peaceful moments.

Moments that bring us all just a little closer with nature.

Enjoy the outdoors during the fall when the colors of yellow, red and orange dot the hillsides with a magnificent glow, or during the winter when the silence of fresh fallen snow creates a winter wonderland on the mountain, or take time to appreciate the spring when blooming cacti and wildflowers brilliantly orchestrate an elaborate melody of color within an arid, harsh environment.

Yep, there's no doubt, it is hot in Southern Nevada during the summer months. However, the remarkable and beautiful sounds of the natural world continue with or without our presence.

Speaking of our unforgiving summer climate, take a moment and be thankful to all those hard-working sportsmen and sportswomen who volunteer their time, energy and money throughout the year, working on constructing and/or maintaining water developments that provide water for our wildlife.

For more information, contact Nevada Division of Wildlife at 486-5127 or click onto the Internet at www.ndow.org.