We departed Ely Journey KOA and had to head to Loves
to get some gas. This camper departed the campground a head of us. He also
checked in before us a few days ago. We saw it in the park and were trying to
figure out what came first … finally decided it was a travel trailer with a
truck camper and a back porch! We also met him at Loves, he was getting gas at
the pump next to us. They said they have been on the road in their trailer
since June and his wife mentioned that they were upgrading soon ….
On US 50, there is a small section of the Ely
Shoshone Indian Reservation. The Ely Shoshone Indian Reservation has a
membership of about 500 people with nearly half of these living on reservation
lands. The reservation is made up of three separate land areas. About 10-acres
in “the Canyon.” It was acquired through the Indian Reorganization Act of 1934.
Most of this land was too steep for homes, however, with only about two useable
acres. In 1973 the tribe leased 11 acres in “the Terrace” subdivision in Ely.
It purchased this land outright and there are now homes, administrative
offices, a gymnasium and a small park at this location. In 1977 the tribe
received an additional 90 acres on the southern edge of Ely, about 50 homes
were built there. All three of the present Shoshone parcels are surrounded by
development. So, to accommodate expected future population growth, the tribe
asked the Bureau of Land Management to transfer additional public lands near
Ely into a trust account for the tribe. In December of 2006, the White Pine
County Public Lands bill transferred 3,525 acres to the Ely Shoshone for
traditional, ceremonial, commercial and recreational purposes. The tribe also
operates a smoke shop and a textile business and a truck stop on Highway 50 / 93
on the eastern edge of Ely.
We are traveling all day today on US 50. There is a
portion of US 93, which runs concurrently with US 50 from Ely to the Great
Basin National Park. It is the final leg of what is called the Great Basin
Highway. It originates in Las Vegas and ends at the National Park.
Outside of Ely, we came upon a beautifully blue lake,
Comins Lake. Comins Lake was built in 1953 from the realignment of Highway 93,
which created the dam for this impoundment.
The Department of Wildlife acquired the reservoir in 1999, which is
situated on the Steptoe Valley Wildlife Management Area. The reservoir has been chemically treated
twice to remove northern pike, first in 1989 and most recently in the summer of
2015. In both instances, northern pike
decimated the reservoir’s trout and bass populations. Predictably, once pike exhaust their food
supply, they turn cannibalistic. This results in a population crash and
development of stunted-sized pike. Since
its most recent renovation, Comins Lake has been restocked with trout and
largemouth bass. Largemouth bass are
self-sustaining and generally need on further stocking, while trout are stocked
annually in the spring and fall. There is some good fishing there again! I
would love to sit on a boat and enjoy the blue, blue water!
Driving on this route, to the west of you, in the
foothills of the Egan Range, lie the Ward Charcoal Ovens and five miles north
from there, is the ghost town of Ward. The six well-preserved ovens furnished
charcoal for the furnaces at Ward. The Ward Charcoal Ovens are six
beehive-shaped historic charcoal ovens. They are the best preserved of their
kind in Nevada and were added to the National Register of Historic Places on
September 28, 1971. In April 1875, the Martin & White Company from San
Francisco invested money to extract silver ore, bought up several small claims
and built smelters (furnaces for melting ores). The Ward Charcoal Ovens
operated from 1876 through 1882, the silver boom years of the Ward mines.
What are charcoal ovens you ask? Pinion pine was the
raw material fed to the ovens. Each oven could produce a $600 batch of charcoal
which sold for 18 cents a bushel. A million dollars’ worth of silver was taken
from a single chamber of the Ward mine. The boom lasted from 1872 to 1882. The
Ward Charcoal Ovens served diverse purposes after their function as charcoal
ovens ended. They sheltered stockmen and prospectors during foul weather and
had a reputation as a hideout for stagecoach bandits.
We have seen many National Forests on this trip, we
just entered another, the Humboldt-Toiyabe Forest. The Humboldt-Toiyabe National
Forest's spectacular 6.3 million acres makes it the largest national forest in
the lower 48 states. The Forest’s landscapes range from towering snow-capped
peaks to wide-open sage steppe. Elevation varies from a low of 4,100 feet to a
high of 12,374 feet, providing a great diversity of habitats. The vegetation
changes from wide open desert with cactus and scrub to ponderosa pine forests,
which in turn give way to spruce and aspen then lodgepole pine and alpine
tundra. Wet and dry meadows, as well as numerous water bodies including
streams, rivers, lakes, and wetlands add to the variety of habitats that
support the over 350 wildlife species found on the Forest.
Driving on this single two-lane highway for 23 miles
before crossing the narrow waist of the Schell Creek at Connors Pass, an
elevation of 7,722 feet. It is one of only two areas of Nevada located above
the tree line. As you ascend toward the pass, the air cools and freshens, the
single-leaf pinon and Utah juniper appear and thicken, and, cresting the
summit, the mighty Snake Range, including 13,061-foot Wheeler Peak, elevation
13,063 feet, in Great Basin National Park, comes into view.
At Majors Place, there’s a dusty old roadhouse with
beer, burgers, and a pool table. Then US 93 splits off from US 50 and US 6. We
stayed on the latter two heading east toward Utah. We came into Spring Valley
and saw Nevada’s first wind farm. The wind farm, in consideration since 2003,
was finally put into operation on August 8, 2012. The wind farm provides power
to Nevada Energy, which is its sole customer as part of a 20-year agreement
that was reached with Pattern Energy, the owner of the wind farm.
Nevada has most of their historical markers that all
look alike, paying homage to the great historical events and places in Nevada. Osceola,
was the most famous of the White Pine County gold producers, It was also one of
the longest-lived placer camps in Nevada. The gold-bearing quartz belt found in
1872 was 12 miles long by 7 miles wide.
Placer gold was found in 1877 in a deep ravine indenting the area. Miners first used the simple process of the
common 49” rocker. Hydraulic monitors
later were used to mine the gold from the 10’ to 200’ thick gravel beds. One gold nugget found was valued at $6,000. Osceola
was a good business town because of its location near the cattle and grain
ranches and gardens in the Spring and Snake Valleys. Famous district mines were
the Cumberland, Osceola, Crescent and Eagle, Verde, Stem-Winder, Guilded Age,
Grandfather Snide, Red Monster, and the Saturday Night. The camp produced
nearly $5 million, primarily in gold, with some silver, lead, and tungsten.
We have seen many many antlers while we have been on
this journey. The last archway of antlers we saw, actually it was four antler
arches and they were on the town square in historic downtown Cody, Wyoming.
Well, thanks to a rancher in Nevada … we have seen one more! This is unique
though, it has antler candle operas hanging on each side of the arch.
Great Basin National Park is the nation’s newest
national park includes the impressive Wheeler Peak, and ancient Bristlecone
Pines Caves. The magnificent National Park is found just a short distance off
Highway 50, the Loneliest Road. Aside from its valuable structures, the park
boasts exquisite natural features, including the Lehman Caves. During World War
I, tungsten mines in this area supported the development of high strength
steel, a key element in the US war effort. Located by this fascinating park’s
Visitor Center is the historic Rhodes Cabin. The HistoriCorps led volunteers in
the log cabin’s rehabilitation. The Rhodes Cabin, on the National Register of
Historic Places, was built in 1928 to house visitors to what was then the
Lehman Caves National Monument. The cabin is the only surviving structure of
its era in the park. It was named for its builder, Mr Clarence Rhodes, who at
that time served as a chauffeur to Nevada’s governor. For his salary, the
governor granted him custodianship of Lehman Caves and allowed him to keep any
tour guide fees he collected.
 |
| Photo Credit: NPS |
Great Basin Bristlecone pines are remarkable
for their great age and their ability to survive adverse growing conditions. In
fact, it seems one secret to their longevity is the harsh environment in which
most bristlecone pines grow. They grow in isolated groves just below tree line.
Conditions are harsh, with cold temperatures, a short growing season, and high
winds. Bristlecone pines in these high-elevation environments grow very slowly,
and in some years don't even add a ring of growth. This slow growth makes their
wood very dense and resistant to insects, fungi, rot, and erosion. Vegetation
is very sparse, limiting the role of fire. Bristlecone pine seeds are occasionally
cached by birds at lower elevations. Bristlecone pines grow more rapidly in
more "favorable" environments at lower elevations, but they do not
achieve their legendary age or fascinating twisted shapes.
We arrived at the Nevada and Utah border. There was
no “welcome sign” when we arrived, but there was a “thanks for visiting Nevada”
sign. But, just like when we arrived in Nevada, there is a casino right on the
border.
Utah let us know we were in their state and we are back
into Mountain Time, again. Notice all the people that have to place stickers on
the legs of the sign … why?
Route 50 in Utah crosses the center of the state. The
highway serves no major population centers in Utah. The largest city along its
path is Delta, where we are headed. Most of the route passes through desolate,
remote areas. There was a sign that indicated that there is 83 miles to the
next service, 83 miles of nothing … in my opinion, this is going to be the
loneliest road!
While passing through the Great Basin the highway
crosses two mountain ranges, the Confusion Range via Kings Canyon and House
Range via Skull Rock Pass, before arriving at the shore of Sevier Lake.
Why do people have to deface things that are not theirs?
Grrrrrrr
Sevier Lake is an intermittent lake which is fed by
snow melt from many mountain ranges in the eastern half of the Great Basin. From
US-50, water is only usually visible in the spring months. The highway follows
Sevier Lake to Delta.
We arrived in Hinckley, Utah. There was not much to
the town, in fact everything I read about, said the first town on Route 50 is
Delta, not Hinckley.
On the outskirts of Delta, I saw my first pumpkin
patch … Fall is in the air and in the fields!
We arrived at Antelope RV Park, it was a windy, windy day …
so, we stayed inside.
I was able to go outside at sunset and get a few pictures
of the sunset and the after sky.
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