"A sapphire in the desert ... and one that couldn't be more refreshing! And, Cecil lurks somewhere in the depths of that mystical lake. Good thing I have my camera at the ready ..." -- June 2009

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At Sportsman Beach on Walker Lake, 16 miles north of Hawthorne Mineral   38.687805, -118.771067

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Original Date Visited: 6/27/09
Revisited: 3/24/22
Signed: Both lanes of US 95

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Street View

Here's what you'll see!

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Marker 16 in 2009 as it overlooked the slate blue inland sea of Walker Lake. Marker 16 in 2022. What a view! Welcome to Sportsman's Beach. Stay awhile. A very peachy sunset in 2009 Marker 16 was carefully moved to the parking area away from the highway.

Exact Description:
Nevada's earliest maps show Walker Lake. Jedediah Smith, first American into Nevada, passed here in 1829 during his remarkable trip across the state. Peter Skene Ogden was here in 1828, then Fremont in 1846 with his guide, Joseph Walker for whom the lake is named.

Until it's creation in 1911, Mineral County was apart of Esmeralda. The first county seat was at Aurora, but it was moved to Hawthorne in 1868, the year after the Carson and Colorado RR was built. The county had many well-known mining towns -- Aurora, Belleville, Candelaria, Rawhide and others.

Now if only this place could speak.

What's Wrong with Walker Lake?

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 COVERED IN US 95 ROAD TRIP

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Next Marker

PERSHING COUNTY

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Related Links & Markers:

 - 60 - Hawthorne ...   - 154 - Belleville   - 183 - Walker River Reservation   Nevada Towns: Aurora   Nevada Towns: Belleville   Nevada Towns: Candelaria   Mineral County Official Website 

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