Fallon, NV

We knew starting the day that the possible destination of Middlegate Station, a former stage coach station, would have limited lodging and camping options, and we were right. So we decided, since we had an early start, that we would just keep going and finished in Fallon after 112 miles. Another decision we made was proven to be a good one. Just west of last night’s town of Austin there was the choice to continue to follow US 50, or take Nevada 722 for 59 miles, the old US 50, over Carroll Summit. We chose the latter and it was a very scenic ride through a canyon and over the summit. If US 50 is the “loneliest road in America”, old US 50 is lonelier. Outside of a few scattered ranches, we probably saw no more than 20 vehicles during the four hours it took to ride this section of road. As we neared Fallon we dropped in elevation to below 4000’ and the landscape became much drier and flatter. Much of the riding was through salt and sand flats, and the afternoon temperatures were warmer. At one point we passed a large 500’ sand dune where the wind had pushed sand into a box canyon. Fallon is the home of a naval air base. Now why the Navy has an air base in the desert is interesting, I guess they need to learn over land before water. At any rate during the last few miles into town watching fighter jets take off provided some entertainment. Fallon is a good sized town and marks the end of the most sparsely populated portion of the Great Basin. Lake Tahoe is about 60 miles away and there will now be more towns on the route.