Northern Nevada

 After leaving Snowflower we stopped in Sparks to resupply and to receive a bunch of packages for future trailer upgrades.

Loaded up with food we left Sparks and followed the Truckee River until I-80 left it near Fernley.  We spend the night at Rye Patch State Park, then crossed the desert to Elko.  Our final stop in Nevada was at Wendover.  Our original plan had been to head south at Wells to Ely and then west across Nevada on US-50, but that would have to wait.  Were were heading to Utah.

We made a friend in Sparks

On the map below you can see the route of the California Trail following the Humboldt River through Nevada.  The Humboldt River starts in the Ruby Mountains near Elko and ends in a salty marsh between Lovelock and Trinity.  The pioneers had no water source in the Forty Mile Desert between Trinity and Fernley. There they met the Truckee River flowing out of Lake Tahoe.  We left the trail at Wells and headed to West Wendover.

Map of the California Trail through Nevada

Having survived the Forty Mile Desert we made camp at Rye Patch State Park between Lovelock and Cosgrave on the map above.

Camping at Rye Patch State Park

It was a beautiful night and we enjoyed a campfire and a full moon.

Campfire at Rye Patch

Full moon at Rye Patch

The next day we hitched our mule to the wagon and set out across the desert again

California Trail Center just west of Elko

Old fashioned truck and Trailer

While in Elko we visited Lamoille Canyon, a beautiful glacial canyon in the Ruby Mountains.

Lamoille Canyon in the Ruby Mountains in eastern Nevada

Relaxing on the back porch in Elko

Painted boots around town in Elko

Over 650 miles from Wells to Beverly Hills.
Seems premature for an exit sign.

I-80 between Elko and West Wendover

Wendover Will in West Wendover

While in Wendover we visited the Bonneville Salt Flats which are famous for fast cars, but are also part of a larger story of ancient Lake Bonneville.

Remnants of Lake Bonneville