highway 50 across nevada is beautiful. mountains draped in various shades of gold, tan and brown from the lush growth of last spring; patches of bright yellow where the cottonwoods and aspens are turning;and a clear, turqoise sky. They have called this the "loneliest road in america". The highway crosses basin and range country. We alternately ascend a mountain range, then descend into a basin. Each range becomes a bit higher than the previous one as we head east until, just west of Ely, we cross a pass at 8,000 feet.
Here along the road, in the middle of nowhere, is a great cottonwood festooned with hundreds of sneakers...much better than the one in the mojave near Amboy. the atmosphere around the tree isw redolent with the smell of old shoes and locker rooms, so we linger only long enough for a picture.
We have seen 3 bands of wild horses, with 10-12 in each band. Nancy's eagle eye scans the landscape along the road, and we pull over for even a distant sighting. The horses are so healthy that we suspect they may be domestic, until a local in Austin, NV confirms that they are wild.I think we could easily spend a week out here just taking back roads, looking for horses.