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After having been beaten nearly to death by the one armed bandits, we left Vegas in search of some shade where we might rest and lick our wounds. We drove through the Amargosa Desert, a miles wide basin between two Sierra mountain ranges, along Nevada's ET Highway -- so called because it runs parallel to Nellis Air Force Range, home of the infamous Area 51. Along the way there was little to see except whirlwinds dancing across the desert floor and occasional pools of sand where no vegetation grew. We pondered these pools for a while and decided that they were UFO landing sites. This seemed to satisfy our curiosity.
We also passed through many ghost towns in the making, once prosperous mining communities that now have more empty or dilapidated buildings than ones in use. Even the ones that were occupied were falling to
wreck and ruin and were surrounded by heaps of rusting and rotting junk. In fact, the only enterprises that seemed to flourish along this lonely stretch of highway were the brothels (which are legal in Nevada).
When we crossed the Monte Cristo Mountain range there were a few surprises. The first was hundreds of army munitions bunkers built in neat rows through several acres of fields, protected by little more than a cattle fence…a terrorist’s dream. This was also home to the Naval Undersea Warfare Unit, though it is baffling why they'd put an undersea warfare unit in the middle of the desert.
We then came upon Walker Lake, a beautiful blue jewel in this barren landscape, and on the far side of the lake we could see a slow-moving herd of buffalo grazing. It wasn't until we reached the head of the lake that we realized the buffalo were actually trees, which goes far to explain their slow movement.
In the distance we could see snow-capped mountains and though it seemed impossible that snow could survive so near to the oppressive heat, we aimed for them anyway. This took us through some lovely farming communities. The air was thick with the smell of freshly mowed hay and I felt a pang of homesickness. We passed through the Humboldt Toiyabe National Forest and drove up into the mountains through dense pine forests, finally coming to rest in South Lake Tahoe.
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