Highway 50 crosses the heart of Nevada. It follows sections of trail first marked by John C. Frmont in 1845-1846 and early government surveyors in 1859. Pony Express riders raced over parts of the route in 1860, and the Lincoln Highway, the nation's first transcontinental highway, came this way in 1913. Today's traveler on what some call "America's loneliest road" will sample almost every aspect of Nevada's complex and exciting geology, will pass through historical mining towns that are evidence of Nevada's legacy as "The Silver State," and will cross the new Nevada gold belt where producing mines help make Nevada the number three gold producing region in the world. Several side trips explore ghost towns, petroglyph sites, rock collecting localities, and wildlife viewing areas along the way.

Traveling America's Loneliest Road: A Geologic and Natural History Tour through Nevada along U.S. Highway 50

History

Tingley, Joseph V.

Pizarro, Kris Ann

Americas

Nevada Bur of Mines & Geology

Las Vegas is surrounded by some of the most spectacular geology in the American Southwest. Looking outward from the glittering city center, one can see evidence of nearly two billion years of the Earth's history expressed in the rugged mountains that border Las Vegas Valley. Thick sections of limestone, sandstone, and shale, similar to rocks of the Grand Canyon, can be found. There are remnants of volcanoes and the volcanic rocks fill basins formed by faulting in the last few million years. Erosion of these geologic features by wind and water in this desert climate has resulted in the amazing landforms that can be seen today. 
Each of the five geologic tours in this newly revised and expanded guidebook takes the traveler to a different area of special geologic interest within a short driving distance of Las Vegas. Travelers can visit one of the three national recreation areas, two Nevada state parks, and even a national wildlife refuge protecting Desert Bighorn Sheep. These tours provide options for side trips, hiking, camping, wildlife viewing, and even fishing and boating at Lake Mead.

Geologic Tours in the Las Vegas Area: Expanded Edition (Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology Special Publication 16)

Science & Math

Duebendorfer, Ernest M.

Purkey, Becky Weimer

Smith, Eugene I.

Price, Jonathan G.

Castor, Stephen B.

Earth Sciences

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