Reno to Eureka
Route 50 — "The Loneliest Road in America"
Day 28 — US Route 50 across Nevada has been called "The Loneliest Road in America" by Life magazine. Ray drove it.
US Route 50 across Nevada: 'The Loneliest Road in America.'
Life magazine gave it that name in 1986, and it stuck. The road crosses the Great Basin Desert in a series of long, straight stretches between mountain ranges — no services, no towns, just the road and the sky. In spring, the desert was in bloom.
Ray called the scenery 'breathtaking' — and it is. The Great Basin in bloom, with wildflowers covering the valley floors between the mountain ranges, is one of the most beautiful sights in the American West.
A chance meeting with Academy Award-nominated filmmakers somewhere along Route 50 — the kind of encounter that happens when you're driving a notable car on a notable road.
Gold Country: the mining towns of central Nevada, remnants of the silver and gold rushes of the 1860s. Eureka, Nevada — the destination — was one of the richest silver mining towns in the state.
Photos from the Day
The Day's Route
US Route 50 — The Loneliest Road
US Route 50 across Nevada — 'The Loneliest Road in America.' The road crosses the Great Basin in a series of long valleys between mountain ranges, with minimal services and maximum scenery.
Desert in Bloom
The Great Basin Desert in spring bloom — wildflowers covering the valley floors between the mountain ranges. Ray called the scenery 'breathtaking.'
Academy Award-Nominated Filmmakers
A chance meeting with Academy Award-nominated filmmakers somewhere along Route 50 — the kind of spontaneous encounter that makes a road trip memorable.
Gold Country — Eureka, NV
Eureka, Nevada — one of the richest silver mining towns of the 1860s, now a small city on Route 50. The Eureka Opera House, built in 1880, is still standing.