Short drive North

We decided to do a long weekend North of Vegas, an area we haven’t explored since we first moved here. Our destination was Alamo Nevada, with old central Nevada towns dating back to the late 1800’s. We were surprised to actually see some wildlife that we hadn’t seen since my brother, Jerry, lived in Cheyenne Wyoming. Antelope were everywhere!

There are towns we have visited before that are within an hour East and West of Alamo. We didn’t remember how much of a mining town Pioche was. It very much reminded us of Virginia City. There are mining relics everywhere, and the buildings in town very much have that 1800’s feel. The arial tramway that hauled the ore down from the mines to the smelters still snakes its way through town.

Before leaving the county seat and heading to Caliente, we stopped at the Lincoln County Courthouse. The county seat moved as the new hot mineral loads were discovered. Crystal Springs was the first in 1866, followed by Hiko in 1867 and finally Pioche in 1871, all of which towns we visited in our journey. The current courthouse was built in 1938.

The original Lincoln County Courthouse in Pioche was built in 1871. It was early on dubbed with the nickname “Million Dollar Courthouse”, even though it didn’t cost that to build. People thought the actual $75,000 cost was outrageous given its small size, so they gave it that nickname to show their disgust.

Panaca was founded in 1864 by the Mormons – it is only 80 miles due West of Cedar City – at the time, some of the group apparently went South to St. George and the rest headed this way. The characteristic streets, wide enough for a horse drawn carriage to make a U-turn, make Panaca’s origin clear. Back in the mining days, the need for fuel for the smelters was so intense that outside Panaca in 1867, charcoal kilns were built to convert the nearby Pinion Pines into smelter fuel.

Not far out of Panaca was Cathedral Gorge State Park. We wormed our way to the base of the cliffs, and found that in between these spires were water worn paths. We ventured into several, able to poke our heads 30 or 40 feet inside. It was awesome and magical.

Finally, we made our way to Rachel Nevada. Located on the Extraterrestrial Highway, named in part because it is allegedly the most desolate stretch of highway in the US. But it is also named that as it runs alongside the infamous Area 51. We were able to find the South entrance to Area 51 out in the middle of the desert. While there were no cameras or guards, it was very clear that public access was not welcome.

We came to Rachel 20 years ago, and checked out the Little A`Le`Inn. We saw it this time, but chose not to venture inside this time. We did manage to find something we missed 20 years ago. Just outside Rachel stands a black mailbox with no buildings in sight. Apparently, believers leave mail in the black mailbox hoping that visiting UFO pilots and crew will pick up the mail. We didn’t see any responding mail inside the box however.

On our way back to Alamo the night before we departed, we stumbled on the Oak Springs Trilobite Area, managed by the BLM. 500 million years ago this area was a lake bed, and shale deposits abounded. Trilobites, a group of extinct arthropods, flourished in these wet, boggy areas, and their bodies got trapped in the hardening shale. Because nobody else was there, we took our time searching for the best fossil to bring home – allowed based on the signage.

Talk to you soon.