U.S. Route 50

The Loneliest Road in America Wikipedia (Creative Commons)

U.S. Route 50 Davemeistermoab on Wikipedia (Creative Commons)

The Loneliest Road in America Wikipedia (Creative Commons)

The Loneliest Road in America Sit Stay on Flickr (Creative Commons)

US 50 just east of the Shoe Tree, with a lightning-caused fire in the Desatoya Mountains. This fire was allowed to burn out on its own. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

US 50 through Austin, Nevada. Looking east. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

US 50 dropping into Austin from the east. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

City park in Austin, Nevada. US 50 cuts diagonally across the photo. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

just w of ut border sthomper (Atlas Obscura User)

Near the former townsite of Fairview in April 2023 cl94 (Atlas Obscura User)

"I survived the loneliest road in America" Louchebonvivant (Atlas Obscura User)

Milky Way seen from HWY 50, unedited cmjones1117 (Atlas Obscura User)

WhiskeyBristles (Atlas Obscura User)

Spinach (Atlas Obscura User)

October 2015 paulruta (Atlas Obscura User)

US 50 east of Eureka, Nevada. Mt. Hamilton on the skyline. The Mt. Hamilton gold mine is visible below the crest. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

Stock tank and windmill on US 50, a few miles west of Middlegate. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

Dropping into Austin, Nevada on US 50, with a storm approaching from the west. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

Slag just off US 50 on the east side of Eureka, Nevada. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

Justin V (Atlas Obscura User)

Old Lander County courthouse in Austin, Nevada. US 50 is the street in the foreground. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

Illapah Reservoir, just off US 50 between Eureka and Ely, slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

Austin, Nevada, looking north. US 50 is the prominent highway crossing the photo. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

Wheeler Peak (13,065 ft/3982 m) in the Snake Range, overlooking Spring Valley. Looking east; US 50 is in the near foreground. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

Dropping into Austin, Nevada, on US 50. Looking west; the heavy haze is smoke from wildfires in California. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

Devil's Gate on US 50, about 7 miles west of Eureka. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

Petroglyphs at Hickison Summit, on US 50. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

Ruins of Pony Express station just off US 50 near Sand Mountain. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

Spring Valley wind farm, just off US 50. Snake Range on skyline. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

One of my favorite places conradvalone (Atlas Obscura User)

Ruins of New Pass Overland Stage station, built 1861, in New Pass on US 50. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

Ruins of Cold Springs Overland Stage Station, built 1861, on US 50 about 12 miles east of Middlegate. On US 50 slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

US 50 near its intersection with US 93. Looking east; Spring Valley wind farm in the distance on the left. slgwv (Atlas Obscura User)

While the length of the U.S. Route 50 highway stretches from Sacramento, California, in the west to Ocean City, Maryland, in the east, the portion crossing through Nevada was scathingly dubbed the “Loneliest Road in America,” a title which surprisingly caught on and was adopted by the state tourism board.

According to a 1986 article in Life magazine, the length of U.S. 50 running straight through the middle of Nevada was described as follows, “It’s totally empty. There are no points of interest. We don’t recommend it. We warn all motorists not to drive there unless they’re confident of their survival skills.” This unpleasant description was included in a story called, “The Loneliest Road,” prompting the route to be dubbed the “Loneliest Road in America.”

However, instead of taking umbrage with the review, the powers that be in the Nevada Tourism Department embraced the moniker, going so far as to put the name on road signs and print up free “survival guides” for drivers attempting to conquer the desolate stretch of road.

To be fair, the unbroken road has only a few small towns along its length to break up the seemingly endless straight road, creating a true feeling of being isolated among the expanse. However this loneliest road could also be considered the most serene or tranquil—it all depends on your perspective.