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Have you ever heard of Belmont, in the silver state of Nevada?  No, I hadn't either until,  back in 1994 I started digging around in the Fresno Public Library, as I was a resident of Fresno in those days...   Note:  I didn't Internet access back in those days; what is the Internet? ... Duh?  ... Well fate and my four wheeling interests led me to a book about Nevada ghost towns, as I was researching a trip that I was planning to take with a group of friends to western Nevada.  I started reading about Belmont and the more I read, the more I realized that I wanted to visit the place.  Since I now have Internet access, I don't hang around public libraries any more.  But that's another story...

Photos:  June 22, 1995 provides a view of Belmont from the east end of town and if you'll look to the right of the photos, the silver dome of the old Nye County courthouse can be seen.

Belmont is easily recognized as one of the finest ghost towns in Nevada, and definitely the premier ghost town in Nye county.  History of Belmont?  It started in the mid 1860's when an Indian discovered a large deposit of silver in the Toquima Mountains, north of the present day site of Belmont.  A few years later, Belmont boosted a population in the thousands, and the town featured modern amenities such as hotels, restaurants, banks, brothels and lots of saloons.  Belmont was also the county seat of Nye County, and the courthouse and jail annex survive, in very good condition.

Left:  Smelter chimney, at the east end of Belmont.  Right: Looking west on Main Street.

When it comes to Nye County ghost towns, Belmont is as good as it gets, in fact, Belmont rates with Rhyolite as a premier ghost town in Nevada.  You have the ruins of several mills to explore, you can park your car along main street and explore the 1920's vintage and earlier buildings, marvel at the former Nye County courthouse and jail annex, and enjoy almost complete solitude.  At the time of my visit to Belmont, June 22, 1995, the population numbered less than 50 souls.

Left:  Ex-hardware store along Main Street in Belmont.  Right:  Ruins of Mercantile Mining Company office, which was sadly destroyed in the late 1970's when a drunken group of four-wheelers decided to pull the historic building down and reduse it to a pile of rubble.  Although I am an avid four wheeler, I despise the actions of a small group of outlaw four-wheelers; check out CA4WDC's web site to learn all about responsible four-wheeling activities.

You can drive your family car to Belmont, but I wouldn't recommend it during winter, as the temperatures can get very cold and the snow can get very deep.  However during nice weather, it's just a few miles north of Tonopah, up Nevada Highway 378.  Watch for Nevada State Route 82 which turns off to the right; it's a wide, graded, gravel road which in good weather, won't impose any problems for your passenger car or your motorhome.  The road will head to the northeast through rocky hills covered with pinyon pines; just follow the road and you'll find Belmont after a drive of about 40 miles after leaving Highway 378.  It's a nice, scenic drive, so don't hurry, as you wouldn't want to miss anything.

Left:  A house, or what remains of it, exists along Main Street in Belmont.  Right:  The majestic ex-Nye County courthouse and the jail annex in back.  Yes, Belmont was at one time, the county seat of Nye County.  Now, Tonopah is the county seat.

You'll know Belmont when you see it, and you can't miss the silver dome of the old Nye County courthouse situated at the base of the hill, at the east end of town.  Park you car on Main Street and take a stroll.  The town is small, so you can walk anywhere from your base on Main Street.

When I visited Belmont on June 22, 1995, the town had absolutely NO services.  I understand that a bed/breakfast/bar has been opened, but I haven't had the information verified by a reliable source.  So when you visit Belmont, make sure your car has a full tank of gas, you have water, food, warm clothes and all of the yadda-yadda stuff that you need to carry with you when you tour the back roads of Nevada.

Left:  House on Main Street, Belmont, Nevada.  Right:  Smelter ruins at the west end of town.

I parked my 1987 Ford Bronco on Main Street and I just waked around, taking photos and field notes and just admiring the scenery and savoring the history.  I spent an entire day in and around Belmont, but that visit could easily be extended, as there are so many interesting things to do and so many fascinating views to savor.

Belmont is surrounded by the Toiyabe National Forest, and the area is subjected the preveiling rules of the forest, which are very lax.  Before visiting Belmont, I'd suggest you visit the headquarters of the Forest in Tonopah, or surf the world wide web to see what's going on.  The major issue will be fire restrictions, if you care to have a camp fire when you camp, as I do.  Whatever you do, visit the folks, as they're very friendly, and they will provide you with a lot of current, useful, information.

Left:  At the west end of town, here are smelter ruins, nestled among the pinyon pines.  Right:  Old Nye County courthouse is framed by a water tower to the left, a shed to the right, and the pinyon pine covered hills in the background.

Oh yes, don't forget to bring your notebook, your laptop computer and your digital camera.  I wish I had the latter items upon my last visit in 1995, but, alas, they weren't in consumer production at the time.  Well, here comes 2006...