One of the few buildings left in the Dixie Valley and it will not survive much longer. This appeared to be an out building of some sort at the home site we were using for our camp site.

Cording of a deteriorating tire on a farm wagon.

This was probably a beautiful setting for a families home at one time judging by the daffodils in the yard.

Every home site had free flowing wells that were left to run. Most of the larger farms had huge ponds feed by artisan springs. The water was sweet and cool. We used it to fill the tank on our RV before moving on.

Wild grasses, tules, rushes and other opportunistic plants grew in abundance where ever water flowed.

Looking south from the Dixie Valley the Nevada landscape became arid, hot and dry.

A 360 degree panorama of the Dixie Valley. The township and farms are all located where the trees are in the distance.

A few miles East of the Dixie Valley was the ruins of Westgate. A pony express station in 1860-61. Now just a coral and a wind driven water pump. We were lucky enough to see a cattle drive make it's way through.

Fortunately there was a pullout large enough to easily stop our RV at Westgate to watch the cowboys work the cattle.

Not only were there cowboys, but cowgirls too. A border collie worked at moving the cattle along as well.

The border collie did a fine job covering the cowboys flank as he returned this young calf back to the herd.

A horned lizards camouflage keeps it well hidden from predators.

The pony express station at Cold Springs was a mile and a half up the hill from the highway. It was a fine opportunity to take the mountain bikes out for a short spin. Indian attacks were always a problem at this location. Notice the gun ports in the walls behind Linda.

Linda taking in the remoteness of the Cold Springs Pony Express Station. Miles of sage, scrub brush and tumbleweed in all directions with nary anything else. This location was chosen because there is a small spring to water the horses at nearby.

The tub with the best view at Spencer Hot Springs. The entirity of the Big Smokey Valley stetches out in all directions. In the evening the Hickison burros always make their way down for a drink

The Hickison burro herd is probably one of the most famous wild herds in Nevada. When the mining ended and Hickison became a ghost town the burros were left to wander. They have thrived for almost 100 years.

Pronghorn make their way to Spencer Hot Springs to enjoy a drink and the fresh grass that grows around the tubs.

With a panoramic view of the Big Smokey Valley it does not take too much effort to enjoy a beautiful sunset.

Toquima Cave has over 300 beautifully preserved pictographs that date back to 3,000 years ago.

Pictographs are different than petroglyphs. Pictographs are painted on the walls whereas petroglyphs are carved into the stone. The colored pigment is over 1,500 years old.

The Shoshone have inhabited this area for millennia. The Toquima Cave is still very sacred to them.

The view from outside the Toquima Cave. Pinion Pines dominate the landscape. Still very valuable to the Native Americans for their pine nuts.

As we looked at the map before heading home, I saw this highway connecting Austin to Battle Mountain. Never traveled by either of us it did not take much debate to add a 150 mile detour home.