September 13, 2014 Carson City/Virginia City, Nevada

We certainly enjoyed our time in Carson City.  Even though it is the capital city of Nevada, the city itself was quiet, friendly and the traffic was unbelievably light.  They had plenty of restaurants, stores, an occasional casino, and we were able to do our Walmart grocery run before we left, but what amazed us was the lack of traffic, even during what would be normal rush hour times.  Both the capital building,IMG_2345 IMG_2343 completed in 1871, and the State Legislature building have beautiful silver colored domes visible throughout the city.  The Kit Carson Trail runs throughout the city.  IMG_2342  IMG_2344IMG_2346 IMG_2347

Before arriving in Carson City we spent one day and night in Reno for the purpose of getting some repairs done on the RV.  Reno was the closest place in our travels to have an approved repair facility.  Bill and I are not gamblers and the lure of the casinos and all that goes with it did not appeal to us, so one night and day was definitely enough in Reno.

On our last day in the area we decided to make the fifteen mile trip over to Virginia City. IMG_2350 Just the mention of Carson City and Virginia City took our minds back to one of our favorite childhood TV shows, “Bonanza”. IMG_2348 As we neared Virginia City we were surprised at the 15% grade climb to get up to the city.  Along the way we saw mining operations since they are still mining for some gold and mostly silver in the area. The mining operations is bringing the mountain down around them.

Comstock Mining harvesting gold and silver

Comstock Mining harvesting gold and silver

Comstock Mining harvesting gold and silver

Comstock Mining harvesting gold and silver

Chollar Mine shaft as seen from town

Chollar Mine shaft as seen from town

Virginia City itself was even more touristy than we expected with every gimmick imaginable to get money from the tourists.  There were carriage rides, train rides, ghost tours, souvenir shops, fake gunfights and saloons galore.  We walked the main street wooden promenade and tried to imagine what life was like in the days of our beloved Bonanza, but it was hard to  IMG_2373 IMG_2370 IMG_2363 IMG_2360 all imagine with all the tourist attractions.  The one attraction advertised that we really wanted to do was ride in a stagecoach with Bill riding shotgun.  I had read great reviews of this attraction beforehand.  When we arrived we were disappointed to learn it was one of the few attractions closed for the season.   Bill had to be content with having a beer in one of the saloons and imagine that Miss Kitty would come along.  OOPS!  Wrong western! IMG_2356

We managed to grab a geocache before heading back to the car and back to Carson City. One thing we really liked was every few feet along both sides of Main Street they had banners with the names of men and women from the area who have served our country.  In one storefront we saw a small memorial to Sept 11. IMG_2365 The Comstock Lode definitely had a huge impact on the area.  George Hearst, owner of the newspaper and father of William Randolph, became rich from the Comstock Lode.  Many people came to this area in search of gold and silver, but we believe many more left disappointed than wealthy. IMG_2375 IMG_2376

 

2 thoughts on “September 13, 2014 Carson City/Virginia City, Nevada

  1. karnold249

    Very interesting…and I just figured out how to make your pictures bigger…duh!

    We feel the exact same way about gambling. Went to Las Vegas once, enjoyed the shows, but didn’t do much gambling. Just to say we did, but didn’t understand the machines!

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