Day 105 - Monday, September 13
We ended the route yesterday at Bob Scott Campground after a brutal climb at the end of the day when it is also the hottest. So, I was toast afterwards and I was tired heading out this morning. Under crystal clear sky and crisp temperatures I chose the off road path out of camp down to Austin, NV. Austin is an old mining town that is well preserved and is located in a canyon in the mountains. Once out of the town I hit another valley desert floor where I heard someone scream from behind me, “I knew I’d catch the guy in the cowboy hat!!! I was told by Erin & Chris to look for you!”
Steve is a biker riding from Denver to San Francisco raising awarenes for Meniere’s Disease which he suffers from. His wife and 19 year old child are supporting him and his positivity uplifted my spirits so that my fatigue from the prior day melted away. I enjoyed interviewing him which you can find below.
Every day Chris and I don’t think it can get any better…and then it does. Each mountain range opens a new panorama which then in turn happens in every valley. The sights, smells and sounds are overwhelming.
We ended up in the middle of a vast valley surrounded by mountain ranges on either side and Chris found an RV park 18 miles away that we went to bunk up for the night.
On the Caldor wildfire front and the route through it to Sacramento, I was in touch with an officer at the El Dorado Sherrif’s office and he told me that they have opened Kyburz to some residents so there is a chance it will open by the time I get there. He told me to check back daily. Fingers crossed my luck holds up…
All for tonight - thank you for your support.
Cheers,
David.
Jupiter shingling brightly
Prior to 1862, central Nevada was a vast and largely unexplored area. Other than Native Americans, Pony Express riders and overland mail personnel were the only people that inhabited the area.
The first big strike occurred in May 1862 by William Talcott, a former Pony Express rider and resident of the Reese River Pony Express station (also known as Jacob's Spring). Talcott was said to have been cutting wood at Pony Canyon when he discovered a promising looking quartz vein. Samples were sent to Virginia City for assay which came back with confirmation that the vein was rich in silver. News of the discovery spread rapidly, and the Reese River mining district was organized in July. Hundreds of miners arrived at the district in 1862, but it wasn't until January of 1863 that the great Reese River silver rush attracted thousands of miners and prospectors. Initally two camps were established - Austin on the slopes of Pony Canyon, and Clifton on the flat at the mouth of the canyon. Ultimately Austin would become the district's boom town and by late 1863 Clifton was mostly abandoned.Although Austin was in a remote part of Nevada, it's location on the established Pony Express route made it one of the easier boom towns to reach at the time, which accelerated the pace at which the district was developed. An April newspaper article described the cost and distance of stage fare to the Reese River district:
For the benefit of those wishing to visit this region, I will give the rates of fire by stage; From Sacramento to Virgina City, $28; from Virginia City, via Dayton, to Reese River Station, $35; from Reese River Station to Clifton, $1.50. Time — From Sacramento to Virginia, 30 hours; from Virginia or Dayton to Reese River Station, 40 hours. Meals — $1 each.
By summer of 1863, thousands of claims were staked in Pony Canyon and Austin became a tent city with over 2,000 residents. Businesses were rapidly built to serve the flood of miner's entering the district. By late 1863, Austin had bakeries, barber shops, breweries, a hotel, and a weekly newspaper the Reveille. Four stamp mills were completed before the end of the year. Austin became a staging point prospectors interested in discovering new mines in central Nevada. Numerous discoveries were made and new camps established. The booming town was the center of a growing mining empire and by late 1863 had over 7,000 residents. In September 1863 Austin became the county seat. Austin was incorporated as a city in January 1864. Later that year a police force and fire department were established. As the city continued to develop, many brick buildings were built, schools opened, gas works provided lighting for city streets, and the Reveille became a daily paper. The White Pine excitement of 1869 resulted in many miners and prospectors leaving Austin for that new district, and the city experienced a brief slump. However, by 1871 the Reese River district settled into a period of stable production that provided Austin with prosperity for more than decade. In 1880 the Nevada Central Railroad built a line from Battle Mountain, on the transcontinental railroad, to Austin. The early 1880s saw a decline in production from Austin mines and by 1887 most major mines were closed. Almost $20 million in silver production is credited to the district up until this point. Subsequent efforts to reopen mines and operations by smaller operators, mining both gold and silver, have increased total production of the district to around $28 million (based on late-1960s metal prices).
The mill today
Meeting another crosser on lonely Highway 50!
Chris met meets me on the road and we walk to the rv together
Wild horses along the route today
And a tombstone near a herd of wild horses
Grand finale of the day was traveling through a canyon to the valley floor
An odd shaped stone just hanging off the wall!
Remains of New Pass Station:
In 1861, the rocks composing the walls of this stage station and freighter stop were in neat rows and roofed with bundles of willow. It was one part of "stagecoach king" John Butterfield's Overland Mail & Stage Company road systems, which at the time began traversing this central route between Salt Lake City, Utah and Genoa, Nevada.
The natural spring here was inadequate for both humans and horses. However, Division Superintendent Thomas Plain's support ranch, one mile to the west, kept this important team-watering and stock replacement stop operating.
Completion of the first transcontinental railroad meant the eventual demise of the Overland Stage Line. Butterfield sold out to Wells Fargo and Company. By February 1869 Wells Fargo suspended all operations on the Central Route and the New Pass Station faded into history.
End of day sag wagon, happy to be home!