In the morning we head down 395 to cross into Nevada near Reno. Just east of Reno is Sparks, where we stop for some travel info and to gas up. Lucky stop, for we notice we have a dual rear tire flat. While Roger takes care of the repair, I look for a place to take advantage of the stop to paint. While a perfectly fine town, Sparks is not exactly the most scenic place in Nevada, especially walking within earshot of the interstate. But I begin to walk down the ordinary looking streets with a belief in serendipity. After walking for about 20 minutes I am about to get discouraged when I
decide to try some alleys. There within 2 blocks of the tire garage is a sunlit pink vintage VW Beetle that would make a perfectly fine subject. After about an hour, the RV is ready and I have a little 6 x 8. And they did not even charge us!We head to Rt 50, which will take us all the way across Nevada on the "loneliest road in the America". We stop at the famous shoe tree as well as a few historic markers along the way that chronicle the pony express riders and stands. The job of pony express rider used to seem glamorous when I was a kid – grueling would be more like it. The Nevada landscape is surreal as Rt 50 snakes out in front of you like a never-ending thread. The distant mountains appear on the horizon and take forever to reach. We get to Eureka at sunset and find that both the campgrounds and the only hotel are full. After debating whether we should just stay in a parking lot, we opt to drive the additional 73 miles to Ely.
The following day we go to Great Basin National Park and Lehman Cave. We loose a little time because the cave tours are booked for the next 2 hours. Our plan was to get to Bryce Canyon that night but we will not make it. The cave tour is well worth the delay and is full of great stories of how the enterprising Lehman capitalized on owning a cave. For a dollar he allowed visitors to stay overnight have campfires and take souvenirs they could break off from the giant stalactites and stagmites. Fortunately the park service is now protecting the site the slow process of their formation is visibly continuing.
