HWY 50 “The Loneliest Road in America”
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HWY 50 through Nevada has the “honor” of being called “The Loneliest Road in America” (By some writer that had clearly NEVER been on HWY 6 just a few miles south – that road is down right desolate – be warned now, there is NO gas on HWY 6). HWY 50 in fact has several small towns along its route and several gas stops. Most of the road is straight to the horizon. There is some fun stuff just to the east of Austin and on the east end nearer to Ely. The draw to this road is the amazing vista’s and it is not HWY 80. You can just stop and be in the middle of nowhere quite easily. If you are lucky you may get to see, but most likely just hear, the TopGun pilots from Fallon out practicing. I have included a photo of the late Shoe Tree … a world renowned tree that people started throwing shoes in decades ago for lord only knows what reason. There are many stories as to why … I think alcohol must have been involved. Recently vandals cut the tree down. Too bad for them, another tree has taken over … if you have a picture of the new tree, please add it.
In towns, GO THE SPEED LIMIT. No joke. Merciless in towns. You will get a ticket – period. On the open road, be wary of the State Troopers (they drive DARK BLUE cars). They are usually pretty easy going as long as you are not an idiot, your are dressed appropriately (if you are riding), and treat them with respect. They know what it is like out there and are very understanding. Don’t be the unlucky one tho. As nice as they are to talk too, don’t risk it.
There are many vista photo ops and there is a small booklet the State of Nevada puts out called “The Official HWY 50 Survival Guide”that you can get stamped as you cross the state. You can get your free copy at – you get something to do and the satisfaction of knowing that it is a blatant ploy to get travelers to stop and go into businesses.
And as boring as this road may seem, it really is far better than driving HWY 80 across the state.
Additional photos by Pod:
Rode across “The loneliest Road” last fall. The towns were about 80-100 miles apart. Not much of anything between them. For someone from the east coast visiting the west for the first time, it was a completely different world. Incredible scenery. The road surface was fairly well maintained and a few surprising hills/corners here and there, in between long flat straight sections. Highly recommended. On a side note, we rode the entire length of Rt 50. From one end to the other. All 3073 miles of it.
Thanks for coming back to the site Allan! I’d love to hear the story of you’re riding the full Route 50. Feel free to post a link if you have one. And thanks for adding the new roads 🙂