Nevada Off Road - June 2011

Last week I had the opportunity to go on an off-roading trip to Nevada. It was kind of a continuation of the previous weekend’s trip to Barney Riley Hot Springs and many of the same folks were there.

My friend Alvaro and I drove up from Sacramento on the Wednesday. We picked up the three frenchmen (Guillame, Jean-Phillipe and Thierry) in Minden (their borrowed truck had broken down the previous day) and we took them over to meet up with the rest of the group in the middle of Nevada (just north of Tonopah in Belmont).

The drive through Nevada is always interesting. From Minden we headed over to Hawthorne and then down Highway 95 to Tonopah. The town of Hawthorne itself is surrounded by obscure military bases (what are they storing in those hundreds of buildings) and there is evidence of those military connections everywhere. On the north side of town is the attractive and colorful array of bombs lined up alongside the road. To the south, the road is divided into sections dedicated to the wars that the US has been involved in – all the way from the First World War, to World War II, Korea, Vietnam, the Gulf War and now “The Global War on Terror” – it’s nice to keep these things current and they have plenty of miles of road left for future conflicts. Near Mina there is the Boat converted into a restaurant, and Lobster Crossing where someone started a lobster farm, then there is the garishly pink and exceedingly sleazy roadside brothel in the middle of nowhere. There is not a lot out in that part of the world but where there is something then it is usually pretty interesting.

Outside the town of Hawthorne, Nevada

A late dinner at the Burger King in Tonopah (it was Jean-Philippe’s first American hamburger – not the best of starts for him), and we headed north to the campsite in Belmont where we me up with the remainder of the group.

The next morning we set off south east from Belmont – I think we went along the Salisbury Wash but I am not sure. Then a bit of backtracking and we headed north into the Toiyabe National Forest. I can’t quite be sure of the route but all I know is that we were in some beautiful country. All day we came across charcoal kilns. These were apparently quite a common feature of the mining landscape. Wherever there were trees near a mining area, they would build kilns to produce charcoal that was then shipped to the mines to be used in the smelting of the ore. In their semi-ruined state, these are now quite beautiful additions to the landscape.

Charcoal Kilns

We explored the old mining town of Tybo where there was quite a lot of old mining equipment and decaying buildings. It is always interesting to look at this stuff and imagine how on earth they got it to such a remote place in the first place. This is not light or compact equipment and the locations are quite remote.

Mine shaft and headgear Tybo

That evening we found a beautiful campsite by a stream and we were treated to many delicacies from pate de foie, fine cheeses, smoked salmon, top shelf Margaritas from Dan and Venezuelan Empanadas prepared by Alvaro. However, one of the finest things that evening was the unlimited supply of hot water heated by Tom’s Land Cruiser, that provided us with showers to wash off the dust of the day.

Late Spring Flowers

The next day was more wonderful scenery, wide open spaces, overgrown trails, the volcanic craters of Armchair and Lunar Crater, and of course the usual charcoal kilns. We camped that night near the White Pine Mountains not too far from Hamilton. Another evening of very fine food – home-made sausages, crab cakes, lamb chops, and peach cobbler – if only I ate so well back home.

On Saturday we did a little more exploring around the White Pine Mountains and the town of Hamilton, then we headed out to Highway 50 and civilization. It was mid-afternoon when we reached Eureka on Highway 50 so we decided to keep going and get home to Sacramento that night. An early evening stop at Cabelas in Reno to show the French guys what an extravagance of outdoor gear it is and then it was over the hill to Sacramento and home.

The entire group in Middleton

Here is a link to some more photos of the trip.