Nevada is a beautiful state to travel in, and has many historic sites and scenic vistas to enjoy on your visit.
Nevada is one of the most interesting states in the union when it comes to travel. There is something for everyone in this colorful state that is full of beautiful scenery, exciting nightlife, and historic landmarks. Many visitors come to Las Vegas, Nevada for its wonderful shows, nightlife, great restaurants, gaming, and an all around good time for family members. However, if you have never ventured outside of Las Vegas, there is so much more to see, especially related to Nevada's historic past, and also its beautiful desert scenery.
Southern Nevada sports several interesting ghost towns and attractions. It is also the "˜gateway' to Death Valley, California, which is also full of interesting scenic attractions and beautiful highways and byways. Drive out of Las Vegas in a north-westerly direction and you will suddenly be driving into slightly higher elevations and into vast expanses of desert and mountain scenery. There are some very interesting landscapes and historic mining towns not too far away. The first interesting point off the Highway 93-95 is Lathrop Wells. If you turn left or west off the highway at this point, it will lead you to Death Valley Junction, home of the Amargosa Opera House, where dancer/artist Marta Beckett still performs onstage. From here you can opt to drive back to the highway and finish driving straight up through Nevada, or you can continue on around the Death Valley Loop which takes you to scenic attractions such as Zabriske Point, and the Furnace Creek Inn. This area is truly beautiful and worth the drive to photograph!
If you do not decide to carry on through Death Valley, your other option is to continue to drive northward on Highway 93-95 through Nevada toward Reno. If you decide to take this route, you should stop at the Amargosa Sand Dunes, which are just off the highway approximately 20 miles south of Beatty, Nevada. These fabulous dunes are beautiful to photograph at all times of the year. It gets very hot there in the summer, so it is suggested that you travel through this part of Nevada during the winter months! After you snap a few photos of the Amargosa dunes, drive on to Beatty, which is a cute little remnant of a mining town. Beatty sports several hotels and casinos, bars and shops, and is wonderful to visit. Be sure to stop by the Beatty Museum and ask Claudia Reidhead, the curator, for directions to Rhyolite, the charming ruins of a small mountain gold and silver mining community. Go to Rhyolite near sunset and capture some stunning photos of the ruins of the Cook Bank building in the waning light. Stop by the Bottle House there and see the charming author Suzy McCoy, the ghost town caretaker who will share interesting lore about the town with you over a cold soda.
The friendly folks of Beatty will make you feel so at home there, that you will not want to leave, but you should carry on, and keep heading north on the highway until you see a small sign that takes you westward to Gold Point, Nevada. This little charming town, just seven miles off the highway, sits high upon a mesa and is full of fantastic old mining town memorabilia, including perfectly preserved miner's cabins, and a lovely mercantile store. After you walk around and capture some pictures here, you will want to make your way back to the highway and start climbing up into the higher desert region. The next town you come to will be Goldfield, Nevada. This very functional, inhabited "˜ghost town' is quite a lovely locale reminiscent of the old west in its finest glory. You will find antiques galore in Goldfield, and please do visit the old cemetery atop a hill on your way out of town, it is very interesting, and in a lovely scenic and quiet location.
Tonopah, Nevada is the next town of a much larger scale on the trek northward that you will pass through. Tonopah is a very historic town in its own right and is a great place to stop for gasoline, and a snack before you press on through this historic state. This town is a "˜jumping off point' for several other interesting and colorful spots on your trip through the Nevada desert. If you head west out of Tonopah, you will connect with Highway 6, which takes you all the way to beautiful Yosemite, California. If you take this route to Yosemite, you will pass Mono Lake, which is beautiful and worth capturing on your digital camera. You will also pass Bodie, a wonderful working ghost town that has tours daily and is a "must" if you plan to pass through this route.
Another route leading out of Tonopah takes you to the Reese River Valley, and the beautiful town of Austin, Nevada. This sleepy little town is probably in one of the most scenic valleys in the west. Outside Austin, there is a road that takes you up high to a strange little spot called "Stokes Castle." From this building site, you can see over 100 miles in several directions overlooking the beautiful Reese River Valley. Stunning is a word that comes to mind in trying to describe the beauty you will find in and around Austin, Nevada. Austin sports several nice hotels and restaurants. There is a terrific restaurant called the International House that boasts a wonderful Swedish menu. Next door you will find a fantastic little antique store that has oodles of beautiful gemstone jewelry.
However, if you are really in the mood for something more "˜off the beaten path,' you may want to take the eastern leg of Highway 6, which takes you into the vast back country of Nevada and high into the mountain settlements of such places as Belmont and Berlin, fabulous ghost towns in their own charming ways. The road to Belmont is full of incredible scenic vistas, but is rather remote, so if you are planning to travel this way, be sure you have a good set of tires on your vehicle, and also plenty of water and snacks, as it is a long trek; especially to the next point of interest that you will want to see for sure. Once you arrive in Belmont, stop at the beautiful Belmont Hotel and get directions to "Diana's Punchbowl." You will have a seemingly long drive out into the most remote desert valley you will probably ever see, but it is very much worth the long trip to see the most bizarre feature of the desert! Diana's Punchbowl is really a small volcanic fault in the desert floor which contains boiling water. This perfectly round, immense hole is atop a small hill and is amazing to visit, especially during cold weather when you can see the hot water vapors being eerily emitted through the round opening.
Back on the highway at Tonopah, you can drive for about another hour northward and take an eastern jaunt off the highway toward the Berlin Ichthyosaur National Park. This is a wonderful addition to any Nevada trip for sure. Berlin is one of the most beautiful, scenically located mining settlements in Nevada. Most of the original buildings are intact and have the most gorgeous wooden structures to examine. The huge mine buildings are very much in condition to tour and there is a wide array of scenic vistas to peruse and snap photos of. If you get there at an early enough time, you can take a tour hosted by the forest rangers there, to the Berlin Ichthyosaur cave. This prehistoric creature left quite an "˜impression' on the side of a lovely cave at this amazing place.
There are many wonderful stops on and off the highways and scenic byways between Las Vegas, and Reno, Nevada. Have fun on your road trip through this beautiful and historic state!
