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Day 1: Arrival
Welcome to the biggest little city in the world, Reno, Nevada! Arriving
passengers will be met by your professional tour director and
transported to the hotel to freshen up before the festivities begin. Our
scenic dinner cruise on beautiful Lake Tahoe will give us an opportunity
to get acquainted and enjoy the splendid Sierra Nevada mountains.
Overnight: Minden (D)
Day 2: Virginia City, Carson City
Virginia City was the home of the famed Comstock Lode, whose riches
helped finance the Union victory during the 1860's, and coincidentally
accelerated the statehood process! Today it is a thriving community
proud to share its heritage with visitors yearning to experience that
gold rush era. Mark Twain began his illustrious career here as a
newspaper reporter for the Territorial Enterprise. We'll end our day of
exploring this fascinating town with a ride on the historic steam train
to nearby Gold Hill. Overnight: Minden. (D)
Day 3: Nevada State Railroad Museum
Today's ghostly
activities include a very special horse-drawn tour of historic Carson
City neighborhoods, a guided walking tour of the "Kit Carson
Trail" and visits to various historic homes hosted by "spirits
of the past". We'll also visit the Nevada State Railroad Museum,
considered one of the finest regional railroad museums in the country.
We'll see five steam locomotives and several restored coaches and
freight cars here. Rounding out the day will be the Nevada State Museum
& Mint, locateded in the former US Mint building (1870-1895). At
dusk we'll visit the cemetery (of course!) to hear what the residents
there have to say. Overnight: Minden.(B)
Day 4: Historic Genoa/Yerington
Step into the past in Nevada's oldest town. Situated at the base of the
Sierra Nevadas, Genoa has welcomed travelers since 1851. We'll pay a
visit to the replica trading post which supplied California-bound
pioneers and prospectors, and explore the picturesque town filled with
its quaint buildings and homes - and the oldest saloon in the state!
Next we'll tour Yerington's excellent community museum of pioneer
history. The Paiute holy man Wovoka, is buried nearby and a visit to his
gravesite could produce another ghostly appearance! Overnight:
Hawthorne. (B, D)
Day 5: Berlin and Belmont Ghost Towns
Our ghostly wanderings continue as we visit Berlin, the 1895 silver boom
town which is being maintained in a state of "arrested decay"
by the Nevada Division of State Parks. Our ranger-led tour will include
the impressive wooden mill, old assay office, blacksmith shop and
several miner's homes. Belmont is one of Nevada's oldest and largest
living ghost towns where picturesque ruins mingle with inhabited homes
and one business: the saloon. The rocky terrain is enhanced by pinyon
pine, cedar and sage as we travel on to our overnight in Tonopah. Once
one of the largest cities in the state, Tonopah offers a significant
number of historic structures, including the Mizpah Hotel, site of our
evening repast. Overnight: Tonopah. (B, D)
Day 6: Rhyolite Ghost Town
The agenda for today includes a couple of "living" ghost towns
and one whose meteoric rise was matched by its complete and speedy
collapse. Goldfield was once Nevada's largest community - and extremely
wealthy. The four-story Goldfield Hotel, now undergoing a restoration,
was once the most luxurious hotel between Kansas City and San Francisco.
Our local expert will fill us in on the town's ghostly past. Beatty is
today the gateway to Death Valley but it was originally an important
shipping terminal for nearby mining camps. Perhaps the most photogenic
of Nevada's many ghost towns, Rhyolite was the sixth largest city in the
state just six short years after its founding in 1904. It's boom was
short-lived and today consists entirely of crumbling ruins. We'll
examine the remains and view the famous "bottle house" - built
by a miner of 50,000 beer and whiskey bottles - before ending our day in
Armagosa Springs. (D)
Day 7: Pahrump Valley Wine Tour
Our ghostly adventure draws to a close with a visit to Nevada's only
winery, situated in the scenic Pahrump Valley northwest of Las Vegas.
We'll celebrate new-found friends and our unique journey with a
wine-tasting and gourmet meal in the elegant winery dining room
overlooking the vineyards. Afternoon departures from MacCarran
International Airport in Las Vegas. (B,L)
Package
Includes: 6
nights' lodging, 5 evening meals, 6 breakfasts, 2 luncheons, deluxe
motorcoach and driver, professional tour director, park entrance fees,
all admission fees, baggage handling, airport transfers
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