Pahranagat Valley

The Pahranagat Valley is located in the central part of Lincoln County, Nevada. "The Rolling Stones of Pahranagat", a hoax article written by Dan De Quille of the Territorial Enterprise, made this valley world famous in 1862.

The Crystal Springs area, used as a watering spot and campsite, was a principal stop-over on the Mormon Trail Alternate Route. In the late 1850s, the area was a haven for outlaws who pastured hundreds of head of stolen cattle and horses on its meadows.

Silver ore was discovered in 1865 on Mount Irish, and Logan sprang briefly into existence. A mill to process the ore was built in Hiko, the ruins of which are still in existence.

Since the late 1800s, Pahranagat Valley has been primarily an agricultural community. Presently it is also a bedroom coummunity for many who work in Las Vegas even though the commute is over 100 miles one way.The more fertile part of Pahranagat Valley is a narrow ribbon of green (no more than 1 mile wide) like an oasis in the vast Nevada desert. It is approximately 40 miles long running north and south and is watered by three large natural springs of water (Hiko Springs, Crystal Springs and Ash Springs) and many smaller ones as well. It has four lakes, two near the north end of the valley (the Nesbitt Lake and the Frenchie Lake) and two towards the south end (the Upper Pahranagat Lake and the Lower Pahranagat Lake). The southern half of the valley including the two lakes is home to the Pahranagat Valley National Wildlife Refuge.

Pahranagat Valley is bordered on the west by a range of mountains called the Irish Range and then the Pahranagat Range. It is bordered on the east by the Hiko Range. State Route 318 and then U.S. Route 93 traverse the entire length of the valley.

The more inhabited areas in Pahranagat Valley include (from north to south) Hiko, Ash Springs, Richardville and Alamo, the town of Alamo being the largest and where all of the schools for the valley are located. The closest town to Pahranagat Valley is over 50 miles to the east at Caliente, Nevada.

The geology of the region includes the Alamo meteor impact which scattered layers of impact debris across the area near Alamo.

The Pahranagat Valley is home of several endangered species like Fluminicola merriami, Bufo nelsoni and endemic subspecies of Gila robusta, Rhinichthys osculus and Microtus montanus.

External links

* [http://dmla.clan.lib.nv.us/docs/shpo/markers/mark_38.htm Nevada State Historic Preservation Office]
* [http://www.ghosttowns.com/states/nv/hiko.htm Ghosttowns.com]
* [http://www.lincolncountynevada.com/history.html History of Lincoln County]