Nevada Cowboy Country

Elko is a mining and ranching town in Northeastern Nevada, in the middle of nowhere so-to-say. It is a world of its own, having nothing to do with glitzy Las Vegas or popular Lake Tahoe. Elko was founded in 1868 with the construction of the Intercontinental railroad, in 1870 it has a population of 2.500. It's also the homeland of the Western Shoshone Indians. This is down-to-earth cowboy country, rural, sparsely populated and anything else but touristy. First stop this morning was the California Trails Center (pics above and below), a new and very instructive museum about the California Trail, one of the main settler trails in the middle of the 19th century.

Between 1841 and 1869, up to 250,000 people sold their belongings, packed wagons, and set out for California. These pioneers endured a 2,000 mile trek, seeking land, gold, adventure or freedom. With dioramas and interactive exhibits visitors get the full trail experience inside and outside, where a reconstructed Shoshone village and wagon encampment is set up.
The Cowboys Art & Gear Museum honors a famous saddle and spurs/bits maker by name G.C. Garcia in his original home and workshop. It's a museum under construction right now, but it already gives a good idea about what to expect. Guadalupe S. Garcia was probably the most notable silversmith and saddle maker in the American West. Born in 1864 in Sonora, Mexico, his family moved to California in 1868. In 1893 he moved to Elko/NV and opened G.S. Garcia Harness and Saddle Shop. Among Garcia’s apprentices was a young man named Joe Capriola. In the course of time the company came in the hands of Doug and Paula Wright in 1985 and in the meantime John and Susan Wright, who we met (John is on the photo below), took over the business. It was highly interesting to get to know about saddle making, patterns and techniques, leather and industry, but, also, about cowboy lifestyle.

We had lunch at the Northeastern Nevada Museum, it was terrific how the local tourism people had set it up at a historic bar in the museum: sandwiches, salad, cookies and drinks. The museum itself is interesting, though a little old-fashioned, and explains about mining and ranching, fauna, flora and art in the area.

The Western Folk Life Center, our last stop, mostly deals with cowboy life todays and with the annual cowboy poetry festival (which we plan to attend once in the future).

Dinner at The Star was an experience of its own: This basque restaurant - there were many basque immigrants in the area and they were known as good sheep breeders - not only serves excellent food (mostly family-style) but also offered music and a dance presentation for us. We had cabbage soup and plenty of sides for the table and excellent bison steak and baked lamb, going with wine and their special punch. What a great hospitality they have showed!