Seeing Nevada (4-5 August)

Travelling from Great Basin National Park in the very east of Nevada, via Highway 50 ("The lonliest road in the world") through the desert, then going for a lovely hike with our nephew Sean along a tumbling creek near Reno and finishing our stay in this amazing State at the top of the Mount Rose Pass, we have the feeling we have really seen Nevada.

The drive along Highway 50 took us over rocky passes and past vast, sagebrush filled stretches of flat plains. Unfortunately, smoke from the many forest fires in Nevada and California made the otherwise fascinating distant views more a sea of milky white fog. And the wind was really horrific. Between Austin and Fallon we met this adventurous cyclist who was making his way from Virginia on the East Coast of the States all the way to San Francisco. We offered him some water and admired his stamina and vision.

Our nephew, Sean, intrepid hiking guide

Looking for a place to stay near the foot of Mount Rose, we passed through Virginia City. This old mining town, perched on the side of a mountain, has become a roaring tourist attraction and especially on this weekend, it was filled with revelling advocates of old cars and lots of beer. After a brief attempt at finding a motel, we moved on, quite relieved to leave the noise and action behind us, especially after having enjoyed the peaceful quiet of Great Basin. The decision was doubly lucky, because we found a good, cheaper(!) motel at the edge of Reno and were able to make contact with our nephew, Sean. We have not had much opportunity to get to know Sean and our dinner together, along with a lovely hike up Thomas Creek the following morning went far to making up for that.

Moving on into California in the afternoon, we made a stop at the top of Mount Rose Pass and hiked out to the waterfall at the top of the page. Mount Rose itself would also have been a hiking goal...but next time, perhaps.

Mount Rose


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