Tonopah 3937ax

Tonopah and the area south of it have a long history of mining and exploration, but also have a modern history of strong connection to the Cold War. Nellis Air Force Range (see nearby picture) runs from near Tonopah, all the way down to just north of Las Vegas -- a distance of about 200 miles. This is the area where new secret aircraft are tested, where the nuclear bomb tests after WWII were conducted, and is the location of the super-secret military 'area 51'. Like much of rural Nevada, Tonopah's economic history is cyclic, though apparently not as cyclic as some of the other parts of the state. The mining industry was successful from the late 1800's into the early 20th century, with continuing activity into apparently the 1950's. Income from military families picked up after that and helped carry the area until the Cold War ended in the latter parts of the 20th century. The town now has many abandoned buildings, but it definitely continues to have an active, working population.

As the nearby pictures will show, there's quite a bit to explore in the area. Unfortunately there's one drawback to exploring the Tonopah area -- for some reason there are almost no good campgrounds convenient to Tonopah. Thus I've been through the area a number of times, but the only times I've stayed there to explore were in the winter -- there's a good motel there.