Wild Nevada

Use the map to follow our trip from Wadsworth to Gerlach, Nevada. This trip is featured in Wild Nevada #106, "Pyramid Lake & Black Rock Desert."

The Trip:
This trip we explore some of the lakes of northern Nevada. We take a tour of Pyramid Lake and then explore one of the largest dry lakebeds in the United States, the playa of the Black Rock Desert.

Pyramid Lake's Stone Mother We begin in Wadsworth, Nevada, just off of Interstate 80 about 8 miles west of Fernley. The small community sits on the edge of the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe Reservation. We take State Route 447 north into the reservation and to the town of Nixon with the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe Museum and Visitors Center. The Visitor Center offers beautiful views of the lake as well as the information and displays on the tribe's history and culture. The facility also sells Pyramid Lake camping, boating, and fishing permits.

Leaving the Visitor's Center, we make our way to State Route 445 and make the short drive to the shores of Pyramid Lake. We set out on a boat tour from the Sutcliffe Marina. On the boat, we have the opportunity to see some of the lake's unique geology up close, including the "tufa" rock formation known as the Stone Mother. We also have the opportunity to see the Anaho Island National Wildlife Refuge, a protected white pelican-nesting colony.

From Pyramid Lake we continue north on Route 447 to Gerlach. We have about 70 miles to drive before we reach our destination. Along the way, the highway offers views of the open desert, including the dry lakebed of Lake Winnemucca.

Gerlach is a small community of about 430 residents. The town is well known as the gateway and service center to the Black Rock Desert. Its few restaurants, bars, and single hotel are welcoming to weary, often dusty, travelers.

We pull into Gerlach and Bruno's Country Club and Resort as the sun begins to fade, and just in time for dinner. Bruno Selmi, the establishment's owner and founder, has earned himself the title of "The Ravioli King" with his homemade pasta.

On the second day of our adventure, we head out of Gerlach on State Route 34 and into the Black Rock Desert.

Wisdom from Guru Drive Just 4 miles out of town we make a short side-trip to enjoy one of the area's more colorful offerings - Guru Drive. The narrow dirt road features a multitude of rocks carved with bits of humor and philosophy by the late Duane "Dooby" Williams, the Guru of Gerlach.

The unusual road parallels the highway, so after enjoying the detour we return to the highway and finish the short drive to the Black Rock Playa. The playa is dry enough for us to travel safely on it, and we set out across the dusty, flat expanse of the ancient lakebed.

Our arrival at the Double Hot Springs marks the end of our trip on the playa. The springs make for interesting sight-seeing. The water temperature is extremely hot, making it unwise and dangerous to even consider doing anything more than looking at the waters.

From the springs we take a very rough four-wheel drive route to the Black Rock Range. The outcropping of volcanic peaks lends the desert its name and served as a major landmark for the settlers who used the Lassen-Applegate Trail to travel west. Before ending our trip and heading back to Gerlach, we make a short hike up into the Black Rock to enjoy the view of the unique desert landscape.

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