Reno/Sparks and Carson City

After leaving Yosemite we stopped in the Reno/Sparks area for four nights staying at Sparks Marina RV Park. On Sunday we attended church in Carson City. Pastor Amen grew up in our home church. We have know his family for over 25 years. What a treat to listen to a sermon and bible study given by this young man.
Carson City, with a population of only 56,000, is the capital of Nevada. After a good lunch at Red's Old 395 Grill, we took a self-guided city tour that included walking the capital grounds.

Bethlehem Lutheran Church
Carson City, Nevada
Pastor Chris Amen

Streets of Virginia City. Nevada

On a loop tour from Carson City back to Reno/Sparks we drove up the Comstock Load Highway with a 15% grade. This road passes through Silver City and Virginia City. Built on a steep hillside, Virginia City looks much like it did 150 years ago. The Comstock Load yielded over $250,000,000 worth of silver and gold in its heyday.

Also in Virginia City, Saint Mary's in the Mountains, rebuilt in 1875, after fire destroyed it, is known as the cradle of Catholicism in Western Nevada.

A trip to Reno wouldn't be complete without a stop at the Casinos. Memorial Day we went downtown and entertained ourselves at the three interconnected properties of Circus Circus, the Eldorado and the Silver Legacy. Inside the Silver Legacy is a lofty dome containing an enormous mining rig contraption complete with fake thunderstorms that fire up each hour. We found an excellent lunch buffet at the Eldorado. The slots weren't as generous as some, but it did take a while to loose our alloted money in the penny machines.

Reno's really big on Bowling. Major tournaments take place here regularly. The National Bowling Stadium, downtown, has 78 championship lanes as well as a 440 foot video screen that projects state of the art scoring graphics. We sat in the free balcony and watched a game.