BudgetTravel

Our best plan, however, is to do all of Highway 50 in one shot. It means a full day of driving, but Dagny insists that there's so little to see in the towns along the way, you need to string them together to make the trip worthwhile. She's right, and in fact, I find the views between them far more interesting anyway. Nevada has 314 mountain ranges, more than any other state in the continental U.S.

We almost miss one of the few sights, when Dagny flies around a bend and mentions that we just passed the Shoe Tree. Over the years, drivers have flung shoes into the cottonwood. The area is so deserted we stand in the middle of the road and take pictures--just because we can.

A cowboy in Virginia City (Dave Lauridsen) MAY 2006 ISSUE • Table of Contents • Maui: Friendly, Quirky, and Full of Soul • Secret Hotels of Bali • 25 Reasons We Love Oaxaca • Family Travel: Guide to Summer Vacations • Road Trip: Nevada • 40 Best Vacations

The second spectacle is Sand Mountain, a 600-foot-tall dune. It's a natural anomaly that has become a favorite of off-road enthusiasts, and ATVs buzz around like bugs.

Fallon has what may be the strangest sight of all: the Oats Park Art Center, an oasis of culture in the desert. Kirk Robertson, the center's program director, tells us that the Chicago improv group Second City performed the night before. We settle for the current exhibit of Japanese embroidered silk. After our four-day immersion in the Old West, it's a refreshing change of pace--one made all the sweeter by the simple fact that Mark Twain never went there.

Activities

Finding your way

Most major airlines fly into Reno-Tahoe airport, where rental cars start at roughly $140 for four days. There's no reason not to switch the order of this loop, heading to Elko first and saving Genoa for the end. To get from Carson City to Genoa, head 13 miles south of the city on Route 395 to Route 206; it's about a 30-minute drive. You can stay in Genoa instead of Carson City. The Wild Rose Inn starts at $125 a night (877/819-4225, wildrose-inn.com). It's also possible to break up the long drive back across U.S. 50 by spending a night in Fallon or Austin, both of which have plenty of motels. But if you choose to do it in one haul, the three big stops we mention are ideally spaced out, about two hours apart.