What road is this? (Fallon, West Wendover: linear, tuition, stations) - Nevada (NV) - City-Data Forum

Sil3nt611 · 03-23-2011, 01:21 AM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-aU09WT5rXg

Go to about 5 minutes. What road is the curvy road they take? I tried to watch for signs on the video to no avail, and from their map they put up somewhere around 5:10 or so that road doesn't exist on Google Maps (at least in the general direction they put it on the map). I looked on street view of some roads I thought it might be but none of them look wide enough or newly paved enough. It looks like a really fun road to drive and I'd like to take it when I drive through the area on my road trip I have planned, but I can't find it...

What do you think?

humboldtrat · 03-23-2011, 02:44 PM

It's Hwy 50 between Fallon and Ely. At 1:00, there is a mile marker sign with a "LA" for Lander county. At 2:39, there is the famous shoe tree Shoe Trees. Roadside America. At about 3:59 there is a sign in a town (Austin or Eureka) that reads Hwy 50. The map at 5:10 is Hwy 50 near Ely.

I have taken this road before. It's called the "Loneliest Road in America". It takes all day to travel the whole thing and there's not much out there. Gas stations a far and few between. There are mountains and passes near the eastern end of the highway near Ely. The Loneliest Road in America

Sil3nt611 · 03-23-2011, 05:25 PM

I know what Hwy 50 was. I was actually taking about the road they took right after they got out of Ely (after they ate). Start the video at about 5:00 and let it play. They go on a curvy road. At 5:10 it shows a map, with their route, but after Ely their route doesn't make sense seeing as there's not an actual road where they put their route. My best guess is this road (link) but it doesn't really look right.

scirocco22 · 03-23-2011, 09:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sil3nt611

I know what Hwy 50 was. I was actually taking about the road they took right after they got out of Ely (after they ate). Start the video at about 5:00 and let it play. They go on a curvy road. At 5:10 it shows a map, with their route, but after Ely their route doesn't make sense seeing as there's not an actual road where they put their route. My best guess is this road (link) but it doesn't really look right.

I have to assume you're correct in thinking that it's Hwy 486 as that's the closest to "being in the mountains" as it is going to get when considering the routes one can take from the Ely area to the West Wendover area.

I'm trying to figure out where that one-lane bridge is, however. I don't see any railroad tracks in that vicinity on the maps.

humboldtrat · 03-24-2011, 11:48 AM

I don't think you're right about the highway being 486, also known as Success Summit (Loop) Road that goes past Cave Lake State Park. I also looked at it on a paper NV road map. I have never been on this road. However, alot of this road seems to be unpaved. http://www.exploringnevada.com/sceni...enic-drive.php This gives a discription of the road from north to south.

If anything, the section of mountain road in the video looks more like Hwy 50 just east of Austin, where the highway goes over Austin pass (about 7500 ft. elevation). The road is winding with many hair-pin turns. The video showed scrubby, stunted pinon pines and junipers which is common at that altitude. But there are a lot of winding mountain roads in Nevada, so who knows. Maybe the video wasn't shot in order??

scirocco22 · 03-24-2011, 12:00 PM

Ah, good point. That's probably why the Google Street view doesn't show the windy switch-backs on the Success Loop road as it is probably gravel at that point. Street View does show both ends where the road is paved however.

A good point about Austin Pass but for some reason I didn't have the same gut intuition. It could be but in a lot of places, it just didn't seem like Hwy 50 through that area. However, it could very well be.

I'd still like to find out where that one-lane bridge is located.

humboldtrat · 03-24-2011, 12:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by scirocco22

Ah, good point. That's probably why the Google Street view doesn't show the windy switch-backs on the Success Loop road as it is probably gravel at that point. Street View does show both ends where the road is paved however.

A good point about Austin Pass but for some reason I didn't have the same gut intuition. It could be but in a lot of places, it just didn't seem like Hwy 50 through that area. However, it could very well be.

I'd still like to find out where that one-lane bridge is located.

I know it isn't Hwy 50 as there are no one-lane bridges on Federal highways, but it does look like the Austin Pass area. On the other hand, the road in the video looks too good to be a seldom used rural road. The road in the video was wide with fresh striping. I'm begining to think the video wasn't shot in order and they just wanted to show the most scenic places. Who knows??

Go to MSR Maps to find USGS topo maps of this area. The road (486) does cross several creeks, but doesn't show any bridges.

Sil3nt611 · 03-24-2011, 12:53 PM

I don't really see it being Hwy 50 anywhere. There's no sharp hairpins in hwy 50 like there is on that road except the 2 by Austin that I can see. But looking at street view of those hairpins, they're not even close. I've been looking all around the area for any mountain roads, but none of them seem right...

humboldtrat · 03-24-2011, 01:02 PM

Here's a photo taken from Austin Pass looking down on the town of Austin. Hwy 50 is in the valley in the far background and then it climbs uphill to Austin and up over the pass.
Austin Pass Nevada | Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/willkenny/2563020290 - broken link)

scirocco22 · 03-24-2011, 01:02 PM

I think the tip-off for me is that there's no fog line, therefore, not Hwy50.

I agree, the video was not in order nor was it congruous as you can see where it is pieced together during the windy-road sequence and obviously not taken or edited in a linear fashion.

I'm still curious as to the one-lane bridge and where it could be. *heh*