SOUTHWESTERN USA
RS ROAD TRIP
RS ROAD TRIP
August 11, 2017 (Day 4)
Fallon, NV to Ely, NV
Miles Today: 276 / Total Trip Miles to Date: 1,038
(Click on map to enlarge)
U.S. Highway 50 Through Nevada
“The Loneliest Road in America"
U.S. Highway 50 stretches 3,000 miles from Ocean City, Maryland, to Sacramento, California. The Nevada portion of this route captures the feeling of loneliness—miles and miles of little more than mountains, sand, and blue sky. Highway 50 through Nevada is known as “The Loneliest Road in America"—a designation made by Life magazine in 1986. Traveling through mostly uninhabited terrain, Highway 50 isn’t bumper-to-bumper with tourists or commercial vehicles.
Through Nevada, Route 50 follows roughly the path of the Pony Express riders. These brave young men carried mail between St. Joseph, Missouri, and Sacramento, California. Pony Express riders were required to be skinny, not over eighteen years old, an expert rider and willing to risk death daily. It took 10 days for a letter to travel the entire 1,800 miles of the Pony Express route.
Through Nevada US 50 follows the historic Lincoln Highway. The Lincoln Highway was one of the earliest transcontinental highways. Conceived in 1912 by Indiana entrepreneur Carl Fisher, and formally dedicated in 1913, the Lincoln Highway ran coast-to-coast from Times Square in New York City west to Lincoln Park in San Francisco. The first officially recorded length of the entire Lincoln Highway in 1913 was 3,389 miles. Carl Fisher was a principal of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and an early developer of Miami Beach. The Lincoln Highway was gradually replaced with numbered designations after the establishment of the U.S. Numbered Highway System in 1926. When the Interstate Highway System was formed in the 1950s, the former alignments of the Lincoln Highway were largely superseded by Interstate 80 as the primary coast-to-coast route from New York City to San Francisco.
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| “The Loneliest Road in America" (Photo from June 2011 road trip) {Photo on flickr} |
Through Nevada, Route 50 follows roughly the path of the Pony Express riders. These brave young men carried mail between St. Joseph, Missouri, and Sacramento, California. Pony Express riders were required to be skinny, not over eighteen years old, an expert rider and willing to risk death daily. It took 10 days for a letter to travel the entire 1,800 miles of the Pony Express route.
Through Nevada US 50 follows the historic Lincoln Highway. The Lincoln Highway was one of the earliest transcontinental highways. Conceived in 1912 by Indiana entrepreneur Carl Fisher, and formally dedicated in 1913, the Lincoln Highway ran coast-to-coast from Times Square in New York City west to Lincoln Park in San Francisco. The first officially recorded length of the entire Lincoln Highway in 1913 was 3,389 miles. Carl Fisher was a principal of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and an early developer of Miami Beach. The Lincoln Highway was gradually replaced with numbered designations after the establishment of the U.S. Numbered Highway System in 1926. When the Interstate Highway System was formed in the 1950s, the former alignments of the Lincoln Highway were largely superseded by Interstate 80 as the primary coast-to-coast route from New York City to San Francisco.
PHOTOS
(Click on a photo for a larger image)
This old neon sign tower is located in the back parking lot of Stockman's Casino in Fallon, Nevada. The neon lights are not working, but at least the sign has been saved.
Petroglyphs are images and designs made by engraving, carving or scratching away the dark layer of rock varnish on a rock's surface to reveal the lighter rock underneath. Grimes Point contains over 150 basalt boulders bearing petroglyphs, some of which are at least 8,000 years old. During the Pleistocene Epoch, this area and most of northwestern Nevada, was covered by ancient Lake Lahontan. Over the last 10,000 years, the level of ancient Lake Lahontan fluctuated widely, at times drying up completely. When above water, the Grimes Point area was marshland with a wide variety of wetland plants and animals available for use by prehistoric populations. Grimes Point was first visited by Native Americans perhaps 8,000 years ago or more.
If petroglyphs are not your thing, Grimes Point is an excellent location to watch air activity from nearby Naval Air Station (NAS) Fallon. NAS Fallon is the United States Navy's premier air-to-air and air-to-ground training facility. It is home to the Naval Fighter Weapons School (TOPGUN), and the surrounding area contains 240,000 acres of bombing and electronic warfare ranges. Some of the aircraft that can be seen flying in this area are F/A-18 Hornets, Super Hornets, E2 Hawkeyes, E/A-18 Growlers, MH-60 Seahawks, F-5 Tigers, F-16 Fighting Falcons, C-40 Clippers, P-8 Poseidons, F21 Kfirs and P-3 Orions.
{Photo on flickr}
Sand Mountain
Sand Mountain (elevation 4,600 feet) is approximately 3.5 miles long, 1 mile wide and 600 feet high, making it the largest single sand dune in the Great Basin.
The sand originates from the ancient Lake Lahontan, that dried up 9,000 years ago. The dune has been created by windblown sand that is stopped by the Stillwater Mountains bordering to the north, east and west. The Sand Mountain Recreation Area also includes the Sand Springs Pony Express Station historical site (1860).
{Photo on flickr}
Middlegate Station
Dating back to 1857, Middlegate Station (elevation 4,699 feet) was a stagecoach stop on the Pony Express route through the Nevada desert. This roadhouse settlement has a restaurant, bar, "motel" and fuel station. Stephen King was inspired by and lived in Middlegate for six months while writing the novel Desperation. Desperation features police officer Collie Entragian, chief law enforcement for the small mining town of Desperation, Nevada, who appears to be completely insane. Entragian stops vehicles along the desolate Highway 50 and abducts unwary travelers with various unusual ploys. Shortly after our visit here, a storm hit Middlegate Station (9/5/17) doing much damage including taking the roof off the motel. Locals described it as a “tornado”, but the National Weather Service meteorologists said it is impossible to confirm a tornado and described the damage as resulting from “thunderstorm outflow wind”.
RoadHouse & Fuel Stop - Middlegate Station
{Photo on flickr}
Rustic Motel - Middlegate Station
{Photo on flickr}
Abandoned Car-Middlegate Station
{Photo on flickr}
Austin
Austin (elevation 6,605 feet) is a "living ghost town", a well-preserved example of an early Nevada mining town. Current population is around 200. The town was discovered in 1862 when a horse kicked up a piece of quartz containing gold and silver. The horse’s owner sent the piece of quartz to Virginia City, Nevada for assay, and staked out a claim. When word got out, others followed, and a silver rush was on. By the summer of 1863, Austin and the surrounding area had a population of more than 10,000. Gold and silver mining has continued in the area sporadically at low levels of production. High quality turquoise is still mined locally in small quantities. This active turquoise mining, together with several shops that manufacture jewelry from local turquoise have made Austin a sort of Nevada turquoise mecca. Austin has eleven historic sites and buildings listed on the National Registry. The 1971 film Vanishing Point includes a police chase through Austin. Part of Stephen King's horror novel Desperation is set in Austin.
Vintage Saloon
The sign on the door of this vintage saloon in Austin reads: “Bikes, Babes, Beer”. Ironically, the public library is next door, in the same building as this bar.
{Photo on flickr}
Prospector Wall Mural
Mural on the exterior of Austin's The Pub Saloon.
{Photo on flickr}
Out-of-business Garage
Peeking through window into the office of the out-of-business Austin Garage located on Highway 50 in downtown Austin.
{Photo on flickr}
Frontier Church
This Episcopal church is considered to be one of the prettiest frontier churches still standing. Built in 1878, the church is still in regular use.
{Photo on flickr}
The Loneliest Road in America
Location - a few miles east of Austin.
{Photo on flickr}
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Tomorrow:
Drive to Richfield, Utah.
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If petroglyphs are not your thing, Grimes Point is an excellent location to watch air activity from nearby Naval Air Station (NAS) Fallon. NAS Fallon is the United States Navy's premier air-to-air and air-to-ground training facility. It is home to the Naval Fighter Weapons School (TOPGUN), and the surrounding area contains 240,000 acres of bombing and electronic warfare ranges. Some of the aircraft that can be seen flying in this area are F/A-18 Hornets, Super Hornets, E2 Hawkeyes, E/A-18 Growlers, MH-60 Seahawks, F-5 Tigers, F-16 Fighting Falcons, C-40 Clippers, P-8 Poseidons, F21 Kfirs and P-3 Orions.
{Photo on flickr}
Sand Mountain (elevation 4,600 feet) is approximately 3.5 miles long, 1 mile wide and 600 feet high, making it the largest single sand dune in the Great Basin.
Note: The Great Basin is the largest area of contiguous endorheic watersheds in North America. It spans sections of Wyoming, Idaho, Utah, Nevada, Oregon, California and the Mexican state of Baja California. It is noted for both its arid climate and the basin and range topography that varies from the North American low point at Badwater Basin in Death Valley to the highest point of the contiguous United States, less than 100 miles away at the summit of Mount Whitney. An endorheic basin is a closed drainage basin that normally retains water and allows no outflow to other external bodies of water, such as rivers or oceans, but converges instead into lakes or swamps, permanent or seasonal, that equilibrate through evaporation. Source: Wikipedia.
The sand originates from the ancient Lake Lahontan, that dried up 9,000 years ago. The dune has been created by windblown sand that is stopped by the Stillwater Mountains bordering to the north, east and west. The Sand Mountain Recreation Area also includes the Sand Springs Pony Express Station historical site (1860).
{Photo on flickr}
Middlegate Station
Dating back to 1857, Middlegate Station (elevation 4,699 feet) was a stagecoach stop on the Pony Express route through the Nevada desert. This roadhouse settlement has a restaurant, bar, "motel" and fuel station. Stephen King was inspired by and lived in Middlegate for six months while writing the novel Desperation. Desperation features police officer Collie Entragian, chief law enforcement for the small mining town of Desperation, Nevada, who appears to be completely insane. Entragian stops vehicles along the desolate Highway 50 and abducts unwary travelers with various unusual ploys. Shortly after our visit here, a storm hit Middlegate Station (9/5/17) doing much damage including taking the roof off the motel. Locals described it as a “tornado”, but the National Weather Service meteorologists said it is impossible to confirm a tornado and described the damage as resulting from “thunderstorm outflow wind”.
{Photo on flickr}
{Photo on flickr}
{Photo on flickr}
Austin
Austin (elevation 6,605 feet) is a "living ghost town", a well-preserved example of an early Nevada mining town. Current population is around 200. The town was discovered in 1862 when a horse kicked up a piece of quartz containing gold and silver. The horse’s owner sent the piece of quartz to Virginia City, Nevada for assay, and staked out a claim. When word got out, others followed, and a silver rush was on. By the summer of 1863, Austin and the surrounding area had a population of more than 10,000. Gold and silver mining has continued in the area sporadically at low levels of production. High quality turquoise is still mined locally in small quantities. This active turquoise mining, together with several shops that manufacture jewelry from local turquoise have made Austin a sort of Nevada turquoise mecca. Austin has eleven historic sites and buildings listed on the National Registry. The 1971 film Vanishing Point includes a police chase through Austin. Part of Stephen King's horror novel Desperation is set in Austin.
Vintage Saloon
The sign on the door of this vintage saloon in Austin reads: “Bikes, Babes, Beer”. Ironically, the public library is next door, in the same building as this bar.
{Photo on flickr}
Mural on the exterior of Austin's The Pub Saloon.
{Photo on flickr}
Peeking through window into the office of the out-of-business Austin Garage located on Highway 50 in downtown Austin.
{Photo on flickr}
This Episcopal church is considered to be one of the prettiest frontier churches still standing. Built in 1878, the church is still in regular use.
{Photo on flickr}
Location - a few miles east of Austin.
{Photo on flickr}
______________________________________________________
Tomorrow:
Drive to Richfield, Utah.
______________________________________________________
Copyright
These photographs are the property of Leon Jackson, and are protected by copyright laws. Photographs may not to be downloaded or reproduced in any way without the written permission of Leon Jackson. © 2011 & 2017 Leon Jackson. All Rights Reserved.
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2 comments:
Nice set of photos. I have never been to this area. Can you hike up the dunes?
Dunes are very accessible for hiking. ATVs are allowed on the mountain. Not sure if the ATV area is limited. Usually a lot of RVs and ATVs is area .. so need to get away from them. I have never spent much time here … always say to myself: “Next time stay another night in Fallon and explore Sand Mtn”.
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