Cowboy Country

The beautiful Jarbidge Wilderness Area and the surrounding forests, north of Elko, are excellent regions to sightsee by horse. Wildhorse and Southfork Reservoirs are known for their good fishing, as are the wetlands of the Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge. The Ruby Mountains, where visitors can try their hand at the sport of heli-skiing, also make an excellent hiking ground. The Western Folklife Center in Elko, known for the Cowboy Poetry Gathering, is dedicated to the preservation of Western ranch culture. Elko’s historic Commercial Casino (dating from 1869) has reopened after a fire caused its 10-month closure. The casino now includes 72 new machines and 49 new games and various new entertainment areas.

Some 32km (20 miles) along Highway 227 (a National Scenic Byway) are the Ruby Mountains, and Lamoille Canyon. On the edge of the Bonneville Salt Flats at the Utah-Nevada border is the resort of Wendover, and up near the Nevada-Idaho border is Jackpot. Winnemucca, once a stop on the emigrant trail, now entertains visitors in true cowboy tradition. In Elko, the Northeastern Nevada Museum is well worth a visit, featuring exhibits on mining, ranching, railroads, natural history and Native Americans. In Lovelock, the Pershing County Marzen House Museum has displays of mining equipment, home fixtures, Native American artifacts and a Lovelock Cave exhibition. The Great Cowboy Cookout in Wendover offers a horse-drawn wagon ride and a cowboy-style cookout.

Special events

The following is a selection of special events occurring in Nevada’s Cowboy Country in 2005:
Jan 22-29 Cowboy Poetry Gathering, Elko. Mar 11-13 Shooting the West XVII (photography conference), Winnemucca. May 27-29 Run-A-Mucca Motorcycle Rally, Winnemucca. Jun 7-9 Silver State Stampede Rodeo, Elko. Jul 2-3 National Basque Festival (includes dancing, parades, wood chopping and games), Elko. Jul 29-31 50s Fever and Good Times Street Drags, Winnemucca. Aug 27-Sep 5 Elko County Fair and Livestock Show, Elko. Sep 2-4 Tri-County Fair and Stampede, Winnemucca. Dec 31 Countdown in downtown, Elko.

Travel
Elko’s airport is the J C Harris Field. Scheduled air services are provided by Delta Connection-Sky West; chartered services by El Aero Services. Amtrak trains stop at Elko on route from Chicago to Emeryville in California (see Travel - International section). All major transport facilities are available, including Greyhound bus connections and car hire.

Climate
Temperatures reach a summer high of 94°F (35°C) in Lovelock, while winter temperatures can drop below 10°F (-12°C) in Elko and Wells.

Pony Express Territory

Scattered along US Highway 50 are the ruins of old Pony Express Stations, as well as the mining towns of Austin and Eureka. The road also passes through the town of Fallon and the lush Lahontan Valley - the site of the first reclamation project in the USA. The Forty-Mile Desert has been transformed into productive ranchlands. Also on US Highway 50 is the old mining town of Austin, founded by a former Pony Express rider. Eureka was a boomtown of the 1870s lead and silver mining period, and is well preserved to this day.

Across nine mountain ranges lies Ely, gateway to one of the country’s least-crowded National Parks, Great Basin National Park. Attractions here include the spectacular rock formations of the Lehman Caves; the East Ely Railroad Depot Museum, where visitors can learn of the mining and transport heritage of the region; the Eureka Sentinel Museum, located in the home of the town’s longest-running newspaper, with displays of the lead and silver mining era; Grimes Point Archaeological Site, with a trail through boulders covered with petroglyphs; and the Hidden Cave, an ancient storage site for local Native Americans, located near Fallon.

Special events

The following is a selection of special events occurring in Nevada’s Pony Express Territory in 2005:
May 12-15 Nevada Open Road Challenge (car rally and show), Ely. May 13-15 Spring Wings Festival, Fallon. Jul 4-9 Silver State International Rodeo, Fallon. Jul 15-17 Nevada Indian Days All-Indian Rodeo and Pow Wow (includes rodeo, parade, pow-wow, Native American hand games, arts and crafts), Fallon. Aug Eureka County Fair; White Pine County Fair, Ely; White Pine County Horse Races, Ely; Nevada Motorcross Championships, Fallon. Sep 2-5 Heart of Gold Cantaloupe Festival, Fallon. Sep 24-25 Fallon Senior Pro Rodeo. Oct 6-8 Harvest Days and Nevada State Picnic, Fallon. Oct 6-9 Eighth Annual Stockhorse Spectacular, Fallon. Oct 8 Fourth Annual Mayor’s Cup Golf Tournament, Fallon. Oct WNCC Collegiate Rodeo, Fallon; Sixth Annual Reining Futurities, Fallon. Dec 2 Christmas Tree Lighting, Fallon. Dec 3 Hometown Christmas (craft and food vendors), Fallon. Dec 31 New Year’s Eve Fireworks, Fallon.

Travel
The regional airport is Yelland Field Airport in Ely, which has good connections to destinations throughout the USA.

Climate
The summer weather is hot, reaching temperatures of 92°F (33ºC) in Fallon. In winter, temperatures drop below 20°F (-7ºC).

Reno Tahoe Territory
The steep eastern slopes of the Sierra Nevada rise up to contain Lake Tahoe. Carson City is only 14.4km (9 miles) away, but is nearly 500m (1500ft) below. The lake not only hangs over the State capital, but also the towns of Minden and Gardnerville, which are almost directly below it. Reno-Tahoe Territory is geographically compact and Carson City, Reno and Sparks all make good bases from which to explore. The area is one of the fastest-growing communities in the West and more then US$1 billion will be channelled into Reno and Sparks. South Lake Tahoe will receive US$250 million for redevelopment and improvement of its downtown.

Travel
Lake Tahoe International Airport (TVL) (website: www.laketahoeairport.com) is located in the Sierra Nevada mountains at Lake Taho. Greyhound buses stop at Carson City, with one service to Los Angeles and a second to Reno. K-T Services operate scheduled bus services, while Frontier Tours operates chartered services. Car hire is widely available.

Climate
Temperatures range from a high of 89°F (32°C) in the summer months to 30°F (-1°C) and below in the winter.

Reno
Reno was founded at Lake’s Crossing, where Myron Lake’s bridge crossed the Truckee River. A new whitewater park on the river is a popular attraction with kayakers and thrill seekers; the park also includes an amphitheater, picnic facilities and river access for boaters. Many gambling casinos are to be found downtown on Virginia Street including Harrah’s, Nevada Club, the Eldorado, the Golden Phoenix, Circus Circus, Silver Legacy, Fitzgerald’s and the Sands Regency.

A River Walk follows the river east past the Hilton and through Sparks, and westwards past an amphitheater. The Sierra Nevada Museum of Art is located in two sites: the E L Weigand Museum, with a variety of traveling exhibitions and shows by local artists; and the neo-Georgian Hawkins House, which exhibits 19th- and 20th-century US art. The Stremmel Gallery is a thriving showcase for leading artists, as is the University of Nevada Reno campus. The Nevada Historical Society Museum is excellent for those wishing to learn about Nevada’s history. There is also a museum at the Fleischmann Planetarium, which features star shows and SkyDome films. The National Automobile Museum has exhibitions of classic cars throughout the year.

Special events

The following is a selection of special events occurring in Reno in 2005:
Jan 17 Martin Luther King Celebration, Reno/Sparks. Apr 21-23 Reno International Jazz Festival. May 7-8 Cinco de Mayo Celebrations, Reno. Jun 16-25 27th Annual Reno Rodeo (world-class athletes compete in the ‘Wildest Rodeo in the West’). Jul 1-31 Arttown 2005 (arts festival), Reno. Jul 15-17 Big Easy (Cajun festival), Sparks. Jul 30-Aug 7 Hot August Nights (a celebration of the USA’s love affair with cars and rock ‘n’ roll), Reno.

Aug 4-11 33rd Annual Concours d’Elegance and Wooden Boat Week, Reno. Aug 17-21 Reno-Tahoe Open PGA Championship (golf tournament), Montreux Golf Country Club. Aug 24-28 Nevada State Fair, Reno. Sep 9-11 The Great Reno Balloon Races; 46th Annual Virginia City Camel Races. Sep 15-18 National Championship Air Races, Reno/ Stead Airport. Sep 24-25 Genoa Candy Dance. Oct 8-9 Great Italian Festival, Reno. Nov-Dec Festival of the Trees and Lights, Reno. Dec 3 Sparks Hometowne Christmas.

Carson City and Surroundings

The town of Genoa began as a log cabin trading post and was Nevada’s first white settlement: today, it is a village and a State park. The once-wealthy Comstock mining district comprising Dayton, Silver City, Gold Hill and Virginia City was founded by prospectors from California. The period of the Civil War dominates Carson City, the State capital; the silver-domed 1894 Capitol Building, the State library, the Nevada State Museum (all close to each other) and the Nevada State Railroad Museum are well worth a visit. Lake Tahoe is a top-class skiing resort with a vibrant nightlife, and is home to the Shakespeare at Sand Harbor Festival, which takes place in the summer. The spectacular scenery can be seen from the lake’s excursion boats. Another lake, noted for excellent fishing, is the Pyramid Lake north of Reno, part of the Paiute Native American Reservation.

Special events

The following is a selection of special events occurring in Carson City and surrounds in 2005:
Jan 15 Winter, Wine and All That Jazz, Carson City. Mar 12 12th Annual Cowboy Jubilee and Poetry, Carson City. May 5-8 Spring Fun Fair, Carson City. May 15 10th Annual Multi-Cultural Festival, Carson City. Jun 10-12 Carson City Rendezvous. Jun 24-26 Run What Cha Brung, (rock and roll weekend, with cars and entertainment), Carson City. Jul 1-4 Fourth of July Cavalcade of Spectaculars, Carson City. Jul 29-31 Silver Dollar Car Classic, Carson City. Sep 18 St Theresa’s Basque Festival, Carson City. Oct 1 Oktoberfest, Carson City. Oct 27-30 Nevada Day Celebration (including Nevada Day Parade), Carson City. Dec 1 Silver and Snowflake Festival of Lights, Carson City. Dec 11 Victorian Home Christmas Tour (selected homes decorated and open for viewing), Carson City; Holiday Treat Concert, Carson City.

Pioneer Territory

To the north of Pioneer Territory, mountain ranges and long narrow valleys rise high above the timberline of Pinon pines. Further south, however, the land descends into the Mojave Desert, with its distinctive Joshua trees and creosote.
The Toiyabe Range in the Basin and Range Country provides spectacular mountain scenery (over 3000m/ 10,000ft). Walker Lake, the remains of an ancient inland sea, is now a popular resort for boating and fishing, and nearby Hawthorne makes a good base for exploring this region.

Beatty is the gateway to the famous Death Valley National Park, where visitors will witness unique geological features in the extremes of the desert. Scotty’s Castle is a popular, if slightly odd, century-old desert guest ranch. Amongst Nevada’s own parks in Pioneer Territory is the Berlin-Icthyosaur State Park, home to the well-preserved and greatly detailed ghost town of Berlin. The Cathedral Gorge State Park, towards the east, is worth visiting to see the spectacular spires and grottoes carved into the clay by natural erosion.

The mining town of Goldfield was founded in 1902, and contains the beautiful Goldfield Hotel and the Esmeralda County Courthouse, as well as the old mining district. The Lyon County Museum in Yerington has displays of a kitchen, sheriff’s office, barbershop, mining artifacts, schoolhouse, blacksmith shop and a 100-year-old general store. The Belmont Courthouse State Historic Site is located in the ghost town of Belmont, and was the county seat of Nye until 1905. Visitors to the Pahrump Valley Winery in Pahrump can look forward to free tours, tasting and Saturday evening concerts, as well as a gourmet restaurant. In Hawthorne, the Mineral County Historical Museum houses animal, bird and fossil exhibitions, mining and fire-fighting equipment, buggies and a 1907 drugstore display.

Special events

The following is a selection of special events occurring in Nevada’s Pioneer Territory in 2005:
Apr Annual Arts and Loon Festival (celebrates the return of the loons each year and includes guided boat tours), Lake Walker, Hawthorne. May Spring Mother’s Day Madness (women’s team roping), Yerington. Jun Spring Fling Car Show, Yerington; Portuguese Celebration (dance parade and ‘Sopa’), Yerington. Aug Spirit of Wovoka Days Pow Wow, Yerington. Aug 19-22 Lyon County Fair and Rodeo, Yerington. Sep Sundae in the Park (arts and crafts festival), Yerington. Dec County Christmas, Yerington.

Las Vegas Territory

Las Vegas is becoming an increasingly elaborate holiday destination. Each new hotel-casino tries to outdo the last for sheer spectacle. Laughlin, on the Colorado River, has become the second most popular holiday destination in Nevada, owing largely to the reasonably priced accommodation and restaurants, and the fact that it has unusually sunny summers and mild winters considering its location. A US$100 million development on the Laughlin Bay Marina opened in 2005 and is the hub of entertainment in the Laughlin area; a plan to add housing to the area is currently underway. Mesquite and Primm, on the Nevada border with Utah and California respectively, are also becoming popular new resort towns.

Climate

The average temperature is 66°F (19°C ) and the average yearly rainfall is 10.7cm (4.2 inches). There are 212 clear days annually, 82 partly cloudy days and 71 cloudy days.

Las Vegas

Las Vegas is Spanish for ‘The Meadows’. ‘Vegas’, as seen today, began after World War II when the idea of large hotels along the brand new Strip was developed. Tourism and gaming are the two major employers. Manufacturing, the Nellis Air Force Base and other government agencies, warehousing and trucking are secondary industries. The city proper is an 135,618 sq km (84,272 sq mile) enclave surrounded by Clark County. The Las Vegas Strip is best seen at dusk when it is lit up in neon lights. Children will enjoy Wet ‘n’ Wild, a water park on the Strip, and the Lied Discovery Children’s Museum. Fremont Street Experience is a pedestrian mall dominated by gaming with a spectacular light show every night. For something different, the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Natural History houses exhibitions of the archaeology and natural history of the Mojave Desert, whilst the Old Las Vegas Mormon Fort Historic Park is the site of the first settlement of Las Vegas, and the Nevada State Museum and Historical Society explains southern Nevada’s history.
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