July – August 2017

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HIGHLIGHTS IN THIS ISSUE

The results of our 20th annual readers’ survey—the 2017 Best of Nevada—are here! We took a little throwback approach this year and added in some categories from the first year’s contest, plus a few new ones just for fun. Take a look at the results on page 36, and congratulations to all the winners. We’re taking a peek at some of Nevada’s most notorious bad guys this issue; see which dastardly dudes made the cut on page 22. From bad guys to great women, we have a story on Mama Inez of Casale’s Halfway Club in Reno. Just 90 years young, this great lady serves up some tasty Italian food; read about it on page 44.

Ancient Nevada takes a look at the fossils found in the Silver State, and you can discover them on page 56. We’re continuing our state park series and you can find this issue’s story on page 62. Our 3rd annual Silver State Scavenger Hunt locations are in this issue! Grab your copy, and hit the road for this great contest. You’ll find this year’s list on page 68. And finally, it’s been 10 years since we’ve written about Burning Man but we rectify that on page 70. Prepare to be enlightened and engaged.

Issue Cover July – August 2017

What’s Inside

Nevada's Outlaws

If you were to ask the average Western history buff to name the most infamous desperados of the late-19th-century frontier, he would no doubt rattle off such names as Jesse James, John Wesley Hardin, and Billy the Kid. It is highly unlikely that such monikers as “Big Jack” Davis, “Three-Fingered Jack” McDowell, “Fighting Sam” Brown, or “Farmer” Peel would ever come up. And yet, these products of a raw and often lawless Nevada, as well as dozens of their contemporaries, were every bit as piratical as their more notorious counterparts. ... read more

Nevada Photographers: July/August 2017

NEVADA PHOTO TOUR GUIDES Nevada Magazine staff embarks on educational photography escapade. The bacon wave at Valley of Fire State Park. A sunset at Lake Tahoe’s Bonsai rock. The International Car Forest of the Last Church in Goldfield. Iconic images are everywhere in Nevada, but capturing them in photos can be tricky. Taking a photo tour wit ... read more

Best of Nevada 2018 winners

20th Annual Reader's Survey In the July/August 1998 issue, the Best of Nevada contest was born with a whopping 31 categories. Best revue, lounge act, and hotel reservation service were among the choices readers voted on that year, but today most folks wouldn’t even know what a hotel reservation service was (hint: It wasn’t Google). We did, how ... read more

Casale’s Halfway Club

Casale’s Halfway Club Family passes sauce and traditions through five generations. STORY BY ALEZA FREEMAN PHOTOS BY ASA GILMORE   T ... read more

Ancient Nevada: Fossils

Ancient Nevada - Fossils Fourth of six-part series unearths specimens that are older than dirt. BY ERIC CACHINERO   Evidence of ancient life is set in stone. Hundreds of millions of years ago, giant marine reptiles occupied the oceans that covered what would become Nevada. The ichthyosaur was one among many species whose bodies became ... read more

Nevada State Parks: Part 4

Nevada State Parks - Something For Everyone PART 4: THE COUNTIES OF WHITE PINE AND ELKO COOK UP A FEW WELL-HYDRATED SECRETS. BY MEGG MUELLER The neighboring counties of White Pine and Elko each have spectacular scenery, extraordinary vacation spots, and a whole lot of space. They both have two state parks, also, and while water plays a huge pa ... read more

Burning Man

“Welcome home.” They were the first words I remember hearing as I was received with open arms at the greeter station to participate in my first Burning Man. I was a Burning Man virgin in 2011 with no true concept of the weight of the words that welcomed me. ... read more

Cooling Off Naturally: Kayaking

BY KIPPY SPILKER By far, my favorite way to cool off naturally in Nevada is kayaking. One might say choosing to kayak in a state with so much desert is an odd choice, but there may be more places to paddle than you realize in the Silver State, especially with all the precipitation we’ve had this past winter and spring. My husband and I eve ... read more

Cooling Off Naturally: Waterfalls

10 Wow-Worthy Places to Catch the Spray BY PAUL SEBESTA Envisioning the country’s driest state with natural waterfalls is a weird and wonderful notion. The waterfalls of Nevada are a beautiful fortune awaiting the intrepid explorer and they steal the show in their unexpectedness. My wife and I found 10 plunges that absolutely took our bre ... read more

Maria Perry

Known to many as Mama Maria, Maria Perry has created a culinary institution in Las Vegas. She and her husband, Al, opened their first restaurant in 1949 and she hasn’t slowed down since. She recently turned 100, and while playing host to such celebrities as Howard Hughes, Marlene Dietrich, and Sammy Davis Jr., Maria raised a family including her ... read more

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