Nevada

Nevada is a vast Great Basin desert of mountains and solitude, offering hiking remote ranges, exploring red-rock canyons and ghost towns, stargazing, and recreation on Lake Tahoe's east shore and the Colorado River. Great Basin National Park, Red Rock Canyon near Las Vegas, and Valley of Fire are the headliners.

Spring and fall are ideal across most of the state. The low deserts (Las Vegas, Valley of Fire) are best October–April; the high Great Basin ranges and Tahoe are summer destinations.

Desert bighorn sheep, pronghorn, wild horses (mustangs roam more of Nevada than any state), mule deer, and the ancient bristlecone pines — among the oldest living things on Earth, some over 4,000 years — define the state.

Cold Great Basin sagebrush desert dominates, with the Mojave Desert in the south and 'sky island' mountain forests rising to subalpine bristlecone groves and alpine zones. Nevada is the most mountainous state by number of ranges and the driest in the nation.

The Basin and Range province defines Nevada — over 300 parallel north-south mountain ranges separated by desert valleys, the result of crustal stretching — with the Sierra Nevada and Lake Tahoe on the western edge. Wheeler Peak (13,065 ft) in Great Basin National Park is capped by a small glacier and ancient bristlecone pines.

The Paiute, Shoshone, and Washoe peoples inhabited the Great Basin. The Comstock Lode silver rush drove statehood during the Civil War, and Nevada became the 36th state in 1864 — the 'Silver State.'

A frontier and mining-ghost-town heritage, desert solitude, dark-sky stargazing (Great Basin is an International Dark Sky Park), and Tahoe's lake-and-ski culture shape Nevada's outdoors.

Protecting the bristlecone pines, managing wild-horse populations and rangeland, water scarcity, and conserving sagebrush and sage-grouse habitat are key issues.

Las Vegas (LAS) and Reno (RNO) are the main gateways. Great Basin National Park is remote in the east; vast distances and few services mean careful planning and full fuel tanks.

Desert heat and remoteness are the chief dangers — carry abundant water, fuel, and supplies, and tell someone your route. Flash floods, cold high-desert nights, and absent cell service require preparation.

State parks charge a fee, and the Nevada Department of Wildlife administers licenses; Great Basin National Park requires reservations for Lehman Caves tours.

Carry water and fuel for the long, empty distances, and follow fire and dispersed-camping rules on BLM land.

Visit the low deserts in spring or fall and Great Basin's high country in summer. Carry plenty of water and fuel, tour Lehman Caves (reserve ahead), and stay for Nevada's exceptional dark-sky stargazing.

Nevada borders California, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, and Arizona, linking Tahoe, Death Valley, Zion country, and the Grand Canyon region.