Outfitter hosts Basque celebration

Little Antelope Pack Station, a wilderness guide and outfitter located in Coleville, Calif., is hosting the Basque High Country Heritage Celebration June 7 and 8.

Antelope owner Joe Cereghino has organized the weekend of culture, history and adventure. The event will include two guided hikes, lectures by Joxe Mallea-Olaetxe, Basque cultural expert, and traditional Basque menus designed with JB Lekumberry from the JT Basque Bar & Dining Room in Gardnerville.

Mallea-Olaetxe wrote "Speaking through the Aspens: Basque Tree Carvings in California and Nevada," about Basque sheepherder tree carvings, or arborglyphs, found throughout the Sierra Nevada in aspen groves high in the mountains.

The program will begin with lunch at noon on Saturday, followed by a guided hike and lecture from Mallea-Olaetxe. Saturday evening will conclude with Basque food and a campfire gathering. Attendees are invited to camp out in the meadow at the Pack Station, located in the mountains above Coleville on the edge of the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness.

Sunday will include breakfast and a guided hike to a Hari Mutil, or traditional stone marker, built and used by shepherds to mark the trails. The hike is moderate, but guests can explore the Eastern Sierra on their own the rest of the afternoon.

Little Antelope Pack Station offers day rides, pack trips and dunnage services into the Carson-Iceberg Wilderness throughout the summer and fall, offering hiking, fishing, hunting, backpacking and horseback riding.

Event tickets can be reserved by calling Cereghino at (775) 315-6222 or purchased at the J.T. Basque Bar & Dining Room, 1426 Highway 395. Tickets are $75 per person for adults. One child under 12 per adult is free of charge.