If you love the great outdoors and all the critters in it, you'll appreciate what some Reno folks are doing with their yards. Imagine a paradise in your backyard, like the one we found at Dr. Cathy Cantrell's home. It’s almost been her life’s mission to have the best pond in Reno. She tells me, "That's what the people tell me who come back here year after year."

There's a truism among Reno's pond people. The first pond is always too small. It was in Dr. Cantrell’s case: “And so then you get bigger. It is enjoyable but it is a lot of work." Today, Paul Hollis of Rail City Garden Center calls Cathy the big fish in the small…you know. "It’s just beautiful. When we get back to nature, we get back to something near water. So if you can put that in your backyard, or front yard, it’s a wonderful thing."

Here's what the good doctor has: two ponds, many metal sculptures, lily pads, boulders drilled down to chairs, 53 Koi fish, dozens of frogs and visiting ducks. She says the ducks “mate for life, so the same couple comes back year after year." The Koi fish “are beautiful. Everybody who comes loves to feed them." Hollis says “The reason to use Koi is so you can see them. They do live in shallow water, and they're just beautiful."

There’s also so much more you can do. Imagine growing vegetables in one. Some pond people use it theirs as an aquaponic garden, which means no need to water, weed, or fertilize when plants are floating…plus they devour the algae.

The latest fad in town is integrating things like model trains. There’s one at Arrowcreek that has over 3,000 feet of track running through 5 bridges, 10 tunnels, lakes and waterfalls. Hollis says it has "three or four tracks. He can run three or four different trains at a time. It’s a complete little scaled-down model of something you'd see going over Donner Pass."

It's all part of a growing trend in town. He says, "Now people are putting in water features. Maybe not as extensive as this pond, but even fountains, small bubblers. Running water is so tranquil."

If you'd like to see the area's top ponds, you can enjoy the Pond & Garden Railroad Tour to benefit the ALS Association on Saturday, June 16th and Sunday the 17th, where you can see 25 of the most impressive backyard ponds and garden railroads in town.

We have a link to check it out below:  

http://www.waterandrails.org/