"Home in the Great Basin" Top 5 Page for this destination Nevada by DSwede

Nevada Travel Guide: 12,048 reviews and 20,608 photos

Nevada is a huge, desolate, beautiful region. There are deserts, high snow capped mountains, wild animals from bears to cougars to the infamous rattlesnake. If you are lucky, you will even spot the state's official animal, the Desert Bighorn Sheep.

NV is 7th largest state measuring 286,350 sq km, with a population of 2.1M. The vast majority of which live in the greater Las Vegas area. For those Australians reading this, that means it is slightly larger than Victoria. For Europeans, that means that it is about 7x larger than Switzerland or 80% the size of Germany. For others, it is just a hair larger than New Zealand.

The silver, logging and mining industries have created some thriving areas, as well as some remote ghost towns. The Pony Express as well as many stagecoach routes passed through the remote expanses.

In my opinion, there are few places that are as varied as Nevada. (for more pictures, feel free to visit my USA Gallery. If you enjoy the pictures, please leave a comment.)

Lake Tahoe (Incline Village)

Nevada was once the bottom of ancient Lake Lahontan. This lake was a huge sea that covered all the lands from the Sierras on the west to the Rockies on the east.

There are a few things that still remind us of the ancient lake in the days of the Ice Age. Icthyosaurus State Park (~23 miles east of Gabbs, NV) is reported to have the largest collection of aquatic fossils in the world.

The great sinks of the Salt Flats, Pyramid Lake, and the Carson sink show where the water that falls in the Great Basin will never reach the oceans.

There are countless Indian areas and parks. The Valley of Fire and Mojave are littered with connections to the prehistoric.

Then there is Area 51 and HW375 which skips from the prehistoric to the futuristic. Alien cafes, hotels and testimonials are abundant in the south!

Cathedral Gorge and the canyon lands seem to go on forever. Then there is the Grand Canyon, which does go on for ever.

There are countless hunting ranges too, like the Ruby Mountains for elk and deer. There are countless 4x4 excursions to be had too.

US-50 is often sited as being the "Loneliest Road in America". But in reality, US-6 is the real "Loneliest Road", crossing Nevada's expanse from Montgomery Pass CA to Baker and Great Basin National Park at the Utah line. In those 297 miles of open spaces there are only three towns of more than 100 people, Baker, Tonopah and Ely. Most days you'll have the road to yourself.

Frozen viaducts (Verdi NV)

In the vastness that is Nevada, there is a little of everything:
The wonderfully beautiful area of Lake Tahoe.
The mini-Vegas of Reno.
The capital seat of Carson City.
The silver mining boom town of Virginia City.
Living ghost towns like Austin.
Real ghost towns like Aurora (outside of Hawthorne).
Little forgotten towns like Verdi.
The home of Top Gun, Fallon.

Check out my travelogue for some photos of the real rural Nevada, which for those of you who don't know is not the Strip in Las Vegas...
Or for those more interested in off road stuff, check out my 4x4 in NV travelogue.

Unfortunately I do not have many pictures of my visits to the eastern side of the state, but hope to add to my collection soon.

Pros and Cons

Pros:A nature lover's dream, every type of terrain exists in easy reach.
Cons:Long desolate roads can be lonely and require precautions.
In a nutshell:With so much diversification, a week minimum is required in each corner.

Intro Updated Apr 20, 2011
Add to Trip Planner (?)
Report Abuse

Reviews (6)

Wildlife abounds Favorites (2)

I know this photo is not the best quality, but it just goes to show you that Nevada might be desolate, but it is full of... more travel advice

Ichthyosaurus Park and a Ghost Town Things to Do (2)

They first appeared in the Trassic seas 250 million years ago. Ichthyosaurus were called fish lizards because they had... more travel advice

The Shoe Tree - Toss your shoes in a... Off The Beaten Path (1)

UPDATE: Some vandals cut this tree down (Dec 2010)! ~~~~~~~~~ People have been throwing their shoes and boots in a... more travel advice

Careful of the Open Ranges Warnings Or Dangers (1)

If you drive through the rural and more scenic areas of Nevada, you will definitely see signs saying "OPEN RANGE". Some... more travel advice

Travelogues (2)

1 - 2 of 2

Comments (12)

RickinDutch Mar 30, 2012 at 11:37 AM Report Abuse

I wondered why Betsey wouldn't give milk for a week. It was you!
dabidc Mar 8, 2011 at 1:12 PM Report Abuse

Closest we came to the wild country was highway 80, the lonely road as well as the concrete surface got to my wife, we returned some other way. Appreciate ther great info from the intrepid explorer in person Best wishes for your present travels.
KimberlyAnn Jul 10, 2008 at 8:16 AM Report Abuse

Icthyosaurus Park and the Ghost Town of Berllin really sound like something I would enjoy. Nice page.
SteveOSF Oct 8, 2007 at 12:22 PM Report Abuse

Nice overview of Nevada!
Minashka Jul 31, 2007 at 11:34 PM Report Abuse

Well hi there! Long time, no hear ;-) Glad you dropped by again! Will be even happier if you visit one day. I am sure you'll have many stories to tell :) I liked Nevada but learned a lot more from your page! Thanks
SLLiew May 11, 2007 at 7:10 AM Report Abuse

Hope you have fully recovered :) Used to drive to Nevada from SF whenever bored. Once we were chased away from sensitive site. Fond memories of dusty road to Berlin and leftover marine monster (icthyosarus whatever) on a hill top. SL
johngayton Apr 28, 2007 at 6:22 PM Report Abuse

Hi there Dave, good to hear that you're mobile again. Where are you off to next? Half-planning another US visit early next year, catch you for a beer somewhere? :)
RaeganB Mar 12, 2007 at 5:08 PM Report Abuse

Beautiful pics D. Bet you there's a geocache in there somewhere..:)
KiKitC Mar 8, 2007 at 10:24 AM Report Abuse

Driving across country in 3 days, I missed such beautiful sites! Hopefully, we can trailer RedRover out there and you and you can give us a guided tour of "No where"
TheTravelSlut Mar 6, 2007 at 6:17 AM Report Abuse

Awesome, simply awesome. 20+ years there and these photos and words bring back all the fun times and memories in the "boonies" of rural Nevada. Thank you & great job Dave! Ann