This old mining town is a bit of a hike from Las Vegas, about three hours north on the scenic Highway 93. But it's well worth a day trip.
Situated in a picturesque mountainside setting, Pioche is filled with hulking, rusting remnants of mines that yielded $5 million in ore from 1869 to 1872 (this figure would be worth nearly $90 million in today's dollars).
Pioche was a rough and tumble place, filled with saloons, gunfights and 10,000 inhabitants at its peak. Now it's home to around 700 people.
Of special interest to travelers are the gravity-powered tramway that moved ore across the Pioche sky, the well stocked Lincoln County Museum and the Million Dollar Courthouse, a real boondoggle of an old building.
-- Review by Greg Thilmont
