MILES
559
STOPS
4
ORIGIN
Eagle, CO
DESTINATION
Ely, NV
DRIVE TIME
~8.5 hrs
TOTAL TIME
~13 hrs
Today’s first priority was an early hike to one of Colorado’s most iconic destinations: Hanging Lake. After that, we planned to work our way west across the state, connect with U.S. Route 50—The Loneliest Road in America—and continue on to Ely, Nevada.
Beyond completing the hike and reaching our destination at a reasonable hour, I had two personal goals for the day: stopping in Fruita, Colorado for lunch at Hot Tomato, and visiting Over the Edge Sports to pick up a few essentials for Ari’s bike.
🛑 Stop 1: Hanging Lake, Colorado
We grabbed a quick breakfast at Yeti’s Grind in Eagle before heading east toward Hanging Lake, just outside Glenwood Springs. I had purchased hiking permits in advance and scheduled a 10 a.m. start, which felt reasonable—enough time to sleep in a bit, eat breakfast, and make the roughly hour-long drive to the trailhead.
We ended up checking out earlier than expected and arrived at the trailhead just after 9 a.m. Thankfully, the staff let us start early and gave us a three-hour window to complete the hike—plenty of time.
The climb to Hanging Lake is demanding, but Ari and I felt confident. After all, we’d tackled the Salkantay Trek together, so we knew what we were capable of. Still, the ascent was no joke.
Every step was worth it. As we approached the top, the views opened up, and once we reached the lake itself, we were greeted by a serene, almost otherworldly setting—clear turquoise water, delicate waterfalls, and a sense of quiet that made the effort fade away. We spent about thirty minutes at the lake before heading back down and continuing west.
Hanging Lake Panorama - a series of film frames from my Kodak Retina IIIc
🛑 Stop 2: Fruita, Colorado
After the hike, we had a relatively short drive—about an hour and a half—to Fruita. This marked my third visit to town, though the first two were spent riding trails for several days at a time. This visit was brief but purposeful.
We stopped at Hot Tomato for lunch, where I paired my pizza with a couple of local brews, courtesy of having a designated driver. Afterward, we headed over to Over the Edge Sports to pick up a few essentials for Ari’s bike, including flat pedals, a cable lock, and a handful of other small but important items.
It felt a little wrong to be in Fruita without my mountain bike—but at least the stop scratched the itch.
🛑 Final Stop: Ely, Nevada
Ari drove the next stretch along I-70 until we veered south onto U.S. Route 50 in Salina, Utah. After topping off the gas tank, I took over driving duties and followed the highway through Delta, Utah, and west toward our final destination for the night: Ely, Nevada.
We debated whether to push all the way to Ely. Leaving Fruita shortly after 2 p.m. meant a roughly 6.5-hour drive, much of it after dark, along the Loneliest Road in America—not an especially comforting thought. Unfortunately, lodging options between Salina and Ely were limited, so we committed and pushed through.
In the end, I was glad we did.
We checked into the Prospector Hotel and Casino in Ely. While the casino itself was heavy with cigarette smoke, the rooms were thankfully smoke-free. It wasn’t my favorite overnight stop of the trip, but after such a long and full day, sleep came easily.
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U.S. Route 50: The Loneliest Road in America
That nickname was coined by Life Magazine back in 1986, when they warned readers that there were “no points of interest” and “no attractions worth seeing” along the route. Ironically, locals loved the label — and turned it into a badge of honor.
Today, you can even pick up a “Loneliest Road Passport” in towns like Ely, Eureka, and Fallon, and get it stamped at each stop to earn a certificate proving you “survived the Loneliest Road.”
I wish I had known about the Passport before we ventured out on the trip, I would have definitely had it stamped along the way.