Looking out to Reno from Geiger Grade
Hairpin on Geiger
The worst encounter on this highway is truly the dreaded tourist of which there are many. Aside from crawling up the grade it is compulsory to stop every few miles and gawk over the cliffside. Now, I must admit, I was also gawking and photographing, however I choose a safe spot to pull my bike off the road and ample space to get back on the road at a decent speed. I can’t tell you how many people inch into the roadway without fear of the zippy UPS truck maneuvering the grade. Ah, ignorance is bliss.
Virginia City is bustling in the summer and today is no different. I once tended bar here and was mildly entertained at the tourist questions.
“How far is it to the Ponderosa? On Bonanza they rode horses in little time, so it must be nearby”
“Well, if you take your motorhome down steep Six Mile Canyon you will find a Bonanza of sorts located there.”
I winked at my co-worker and laughed a silent laugh as we sent yet another tourist family down Six Mile Canyon to the Brothel located below. Occasionally, one of the working girls would pay us a visit and chastise us for our shenanigans as apparently it wasn’t easy for a motorhome to negotiate the tight road and turnaround at the bottom.
The highway department has also recently tended to six Mile Canyon. Now the road ends conveniently on Hwy 50 E of Dayton, NV. This also is a fun motorcycling road with plenty of thrills and a gorgeous view and some amazing kilns built in the 1800’s.
Near the intersection of Six Mile Canyon and Hwy 50 you can find the entrance to the Sutro Tunnel which was built in 1860 to take water from the mines in Virginia City out to the Carson River. This process was used to vent the mines and drain the heated water used in the mining process. The tunnel was 33,315 feet long. This area is now all privately owned and no longer open to the public. When I worked in VC I lived in both Sutro and Silver City, two areas laden with history and great urban legands.
Looking from VC down Six Mile Canyon
C Street
St. Mary’s Church
Carriage rental
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