Tuesday Travel Classics: Ely’s Hotel Nevada

Continuing our series of Travel Classics – those still-sparkling hotel gems of yesteryear -- we make a stop in Ely, Nevada and The Historic Hotel Nevada and Gambling Hall.

Back in 1929 when the six-story tall hotel opened, it was the tallest building in the State of Nevada.  (From my photo, you might still call it a ‘high-rise’ in this small town 250 miles north of Las Vegas). 

The Scout had researched the hotel prior to our Winter Road Trip, but we couldn’t fit in more than a lunch stop there on the southbound route. That little taste had us vowing to return, which is what we did on our return  from Arizona. And that time we spent the night. 

Just like those upscale casinos in Las Vegas, the hotel’s front desk is just off  – in this case – the ‘Gaming Hall’ (casino)  and the guest rooms are on the floors above it. Unlike those Vegas places, this one was small and filled with curios.



Buffalo heads, stuffed critters, the bigger-than-life bronze cowboy and antler chandeliers left no doubt you stepped back into the Ol’ West. Being December, all were decked out in bows and garlands as well. 

We can recommend the hotel restaurant for both the quality of its food and the portions.
This is my half of the French dip sandwich plate we’d ordered for lunch.






The hotel opened during a time in our country’s history when "Prohibition” was still in effect.  But thanks to the local bootlegging efforts the hotel was kept supplied with “Bath tub Gin” and “White Lightning,” the latter a grain alcohol that could reach 200 proof.

Back in its early days rooms rented for $1.50 a night and all had private toilets and nearly all had private baths as well. I suspect they might not have been as cute as the one we stayed in for only$54.95 (free wi-fi and a welcome margarita; no hotel fees, either!) Though we’d been warned that the old pipes carrying water to our shower in our en suite bath could go from cold to hot without warning, we didn’t have a problem (but we didn’t take long leisurely showers either).

Rooms are all named for and decorated with that person's musical memorabilia. 

Ours was Charlie Rich,  the Country Western singer. 

Bet you know this song of his (click the link to You Tube and go) 

“Behind Closed Doors”





If You Go:

Ely, is in White Pine County in the central part of eastern part of Nevada, sitting at the crossroads of U.S. 93 and U.S. 50. As you enter the town,you’ll find a selection of motels flanking the main drag.

But we’d recommend heading straight to The Hotel Nevada where they say, “Stay with us once and you’ll become a ‘customer for life’.”

That’s what happened to us.  We’ll be back. Hopefully, soon!

Have you stayed in a Travel Classic? Tell us about it in the comment section below or for those of you subscribers, head to TravelnWrite where you'll find the comment section.

Ely, Nevada: An Elixir for the Soul

While The Scribe was packing our suitcases, The Scout was planning the route for our Winter Road Trip through the Western United States. 



He’d calculated that on our second southbound day we’d reach tiny Ely, Nevada, (population 4,288 in 2011)  tucked away in the eastern part of the state in time for lunch. This town, that began in the late 1800’s as a stagecoach stop, is located at the northern tip of Nevada’s Great Basin. It became the county seat in 1887 and by 1906 was a copper mining boom town.



Illuminated by a mid-day sun against a blue sky background the the city park with its nearby towering County Courthouse called out Small Town Americana.   It’s a call that we find irresistible.



The Scout had read about the historic Hotel Nevada and Gambling Hall which  at six-stories it was until 1948, the tallest building in Nevada.  it was there we dined on our mid-day break.  (You can tell from the photo it is still one of the tallest buildings in town.)

So charmed were we by this taste of the Old West – both town and hotel -- that we vowed to return on our northbound trip – and three weeks later pulled in for a second dose  of small-town-soul-elixir.

By then winter had turned the little town into a Currier and Ives card:



Our arrival seemed synchronized with the snow that began falling in the mid-afternoon.


The small town seemed even more charming as -now bundled in winter coats and gloves -  we strolled along its darkening main street, named Altman.



One of our favorite ‘finds’ along the way was Economy Drug, an old-time combination pharmacy, gift and toy store, and boasting one of the coolest authentic drug store soda fountains we’ve ever seen.  Opened in the 1940’s the family’s on its third generation pharmacist.

We were warmly greeted by two camera-shy ladies running the eatery, one in particular was a ‘fountain’ of history about the town and the business. She told me not to miss the ‘naughty boy’  mural on the side of the building. So . . .

I didn’t want you to miss it either.  (Look closely near the lighted window.)

This time we stayed overnight in the historic Hotel Nevada and it’s a story unto itself. . .one that I'll soon be telling. . .

If You Go:

WHERE: 

• Ely, is in White Pine County in the central part of eastern part of Nevada, sitting at the crossroads of U.S. 93 and U.S. 50. As you enter the town,you’ll find a selection of motels flanking the main drag.

WHY:

• It’s a great base for outdoors enthusiasts as camping, hiking, fishing and places to climb are found within a close radius.
• In Ely, you are also in old Pony Express Country and not far from some old stage stops and mining ghost towns. 
• The old Ely Ghost Train, is an operating railroad museum. Between May and September you can take train rides powered by old steam engines No. 40 and No. 93 – both important links to the area’s mining past. For more information:  775.289.2085

Hope you’ll continue our journeys with us. Sign up to receive our posts in your inbox by using the box at the right. Or we’d love to see your photo among our other friends just mid-way down the column.

Raindrops and Rainbows~ Sunshine and Snowflakes

I sat reading a book Thursday evening in front of the fireplace as rain lashed the windows and the wind howled outside our adobe casita  - winter was announcing its arrival in Scottsdale, Arizona.


It was time for High Plains Drifters to head north.  We’d lucked out on the weather since our arrival the weekend after Thanksgiving as most of our days had been sunny and unseasonably warm in Arizona. As we headed out of town Friday morning  Black Mountain near Carefree was hidden behind a thick cloud cover.

Scottsdale roadways were covered in places with water and desert sand that had washed across the asphalt.

We would follow a route  that took through the small hamlet of Wikiup, past Hoover Dam and loop us around Las Vegas  as we headed to Highway 318 which would take us. . .

on a near magical journey through Nevada’s Great Basin.  If you’ve never visited this stretch of country we highly recommend adding it to your bucket list. 

One of its many highlights is about 90 miles north of Las Vegas,  the  8,400+square-mile Paharanagat National Wildlife Refuge, which was created in 1963, to provide habitat for migratory birds, especially waterfowl. The lakes and marshes are a rare sight in this part of Nevada.



Our plan was to reduce our travel time from four nights on the road to three – if road conditions permitted.  So far, so good, we thought.



From expansive vistas to winding our way through towering cavernous walls we sped north. . .


We planned to spend our first night in Ely, Nevada, a small community where mining provides the economic foundation, where the third generation pharmacist works in the independent pharmacy that opened in the 1940’s and where the County Courthouse that belongs in a Norman Rockwell painting, serves three of the sparsely populated counties around it.


It wasn’t until we were within minutes of  Ely, that rainbows and raindrops and sunshine gave way to snowflakes.  As we crossed Murray Summit, elevation 7,312-feet (more than twice as high as Washington’s Snoqualmie Pass) we encountered the first snow of the trip. Luckily Ely was only minutes away. . .

Eight hours, 609 miles later we concluded Day One’s in Ely –  I'll take you there later this week and then we’ll set a course north through Oregon as we wind down the Winter Western Roadtrip.