My husband and I often hike near Pyramid Lake; every time we go it still takes our breath away. Pyramid Lake is about 35 miles north of Reno and, unlike the more-celebrated Lake Tahoe, is a salty desert lake. Surrounded by far more rock formations than trees, Pyramid Lake is a vast, wide-open body of cool blue water.

One brief afternoon hike we planned was really only meant to be one to hold us over until we had the chance to travel farther out of town. 

To my surprise, the hike through the desert landscape turned out to be one of my favorite hikes of the year. As we drove along the road to our desired starting point, we came across quail, rabbits and sprinting lizards. The quail, especially, were wonderful to watch; they all seemed to be in love, parading in pairs and discretely popping their heads up from behind the Sagebrush.

We had been to Pyramid Lake many times before (shoot, I grew up waterskiing on it) but on this outing we were amazed by the spectrum of color that filled the mountainside. I could not believe that there were so many flowers still in bloom that late in the season.

New colors were all around us to enchant our eyes. Because of the rich, vibrant landscape, we decided to make a list of all the flowers we saw that day, starting with Lupine, a very common flower for our area. Another common flower is the Indian Paint Brush, which for some reason had sported a variety of unconventional florescent colors, ranging from pink to bright orange. We also saw Wild Rose, Irises and truckloads of Mules Ear.

The higher we climbed, the more we found. Tucked into the off shoots of canyons were springs and Aspen Groves, Black Willows and Junipers. The combination of wild plant life was invigorating. The desert background made their colors pop and dance. Usually the lake steals the show, but this day it had plenty of eye-candy competition. The setting was familiar to us, but on this hike it seemed was wildly different.

After this trip to Pyramid, I knew I had fallen back in love with the area. There is so much to be found in this world, and the simple beauties of the desert are highly underestimated.

We often underestimate ourselves but there is so much beauty in each of us, that if we are just able to break away from whatever is holding us back, we can discover a whole new world.

Those are the moments that keep me alive and in love—in love with all this world has to offer. Those moments keep me exploring the hidden places I least expect have anything to offer.

Is there a hidden place you have been to recently that has a lot to offer? Or surprisingly more than you thought? Please share in the comments below.