Day 7 on the Lincoln Highway - July 20th

Day 7 - July 20th

Day 7 - July 20th
Day 7 started in downtown Ely which is located on Route 50. Knowing that my trip on Route 50 was going to be a hot one, I decided to get on the road by 6:30. In 1986 Life Magazine stated that this road was “The Loneliest Road” because there were no attractions or points of interest to be found on the road from Ely to Fernely Nevada. Taking advantage of the article, the tourism board of Nevada now has a Loneliest Road Passport for the travelers. You stop in each town for a stamp in the book. When you have all the stamps (I got them all) you mail the stamp sheet in and receive an "I Survived the Loneliest Road Certificate" from the State of Nevada. COOL

The Nevada Hotel treats bikers like royal guest and gives them preferred parking right in front of the hotel. Knowing the bike was secure there I decided to load up the night before so I did not spend my morning time packing.

On the road at 6:30, the only thing I needed to do was get fuel which was right down the road from the hotel. While at the station I met a guy named Roy from Winnipeg and he was doing the same ride and was ready to go. So after a short discussion we decided it would be wise to ride out together.

Once on the road Rt50 out of Ely climbs into the mountains with temperatures in the low 40’s. As we moved across 50 the temp rose as the day went buy. By the end of the ride which was over 300 miles the temp was well over 100 degrees.
The Lincoln Highway was not marked to well but it was not too difficult to follow either. About 19 miles out of Austin I saw my first Lincoln Highway Marker on the side of the road. The hills going down into Austin were steep with many switch backs. Caution was the word of the day on these turns. Back in the day, owners of Ford Model T’s had to go up these hills backwards because the cars did not have fuel pumps to provide fuel to the engine. Instead they used a gravity feed system that had the gas tank higher than the carburetor. Because the hills were so steep, the gas tank was actually lower than the carbs. Fuel could not go up so backwards was the only way they would run on these hills.

The highlights’ of the day, besides the superb scenery were the shoe tree and Middle Gate Station. The shoe tree is an old tree in the middle of the empty stretch and for some reason people started throwing shoes up into the limbs. There are piles of shows scattered all around the base of the tree. It is an amazing sight to say the least. Middle Gate Station was built in 1869 and was a stage coach stop and was part of the Pony Express. Inside people write their names on dollar bills and staple them to the ceiling. Not certain why this started but there is not a spot to be found.

The day ended in Reno Nevada with a stay in the Circus Circus Casino. The rooms are cheap and I had a good dinner for my birthday.

The Lonliest Road is a must do ride. The scenery was superb and there were plenty of interesting sites to be found along the way.


See you tomorrow as I finish up the Lincoln Highway in San Francisco.

CH