I’m fascinated by ghost stories and quirky places.
But I wasn’t expecting to discover them so soon on a 233-km “Reno to Lake Tahoe” road trip, which begins in Reno and takes in stunning views of the Sierra Nevada on the way to Lake Tahoe, North America’s largest alpine lake.
Just half an hour after driving away from Reno’s landmark arch, proclaiming casino-dominated Reno as “The Biggest Little City in the World,” we arrived in the historic town of Virginia City, considered one of the most haunted places in Nevada.
Looking like a western movie set, with a sprinkling of mansions from the Gilded Age, the town is definitely quirky, and locals have plenty of ghost stories to tell.
With me was my childhood friend, who like myself grew up watching reruns of The Twilight Zone and was fine with delaying our highly anticipated first visit to Lake Tahoe for possible paranormal sightings of our own.
Often packed with tourists during the day in high season, Virginia City is eerily quiet at night. After dinner we walked on now empty wooden boardwalks, lining both sides of the main street, wondering which of the false front saloons and old brick buildings might be haunted.
During the day we’d seen shopkeepers busy catering to tourists (more than two million visit annually), but on this night it seemed we were the only ones left.
The authentic Victorian-era town, designated a National Historic Landmark, sprang up almost overnight in 1859 with the discovery of one of the world’s richest silver deposits, the Comstock Lode. Now, just 1,000 people call Virginia City home, but at its peak the town was as large as San Francisco back then, with a population of around 30,000 people.
Among the first settlers was Samuel Langhorne Clemens, who started his writing career as a newspaper editor with the Territorial Enterprise. He would later adopt the pen name Mark Twain, while living here between 1861 and 1864.
To get a good idea of what Virginia City was like during Twain’s time, his book Roughing It describes a town bursting with miners, bartenders, bandits, robber barons and prostitutes.
“Virginia had grown to be the ‘livest’ town, for its age and population, that America had ever produced. The sidewalks swarmed with people — to such an extent, indeed, that it was generally no easy matter to stem the human tide,” wrote Twain.
“The streets themselves were just as crowded with quartz wagons, freight teams, and other vehicles. The procession was endless. So great was the pack that buggies frequently had to wait half an hour for an opportunity to cross the principal street … Money was as plenty as dust … There were military companies, fire companies, brass bands, banks, hotels, theatres, ‘hurdy-gurdy houses,’ wide-open gambling palaces, political powwows, civic processions, street fights, murders, inquests, riots, a whisky mill every fifteen steps … and half a dozen jails and station houses in full operation and some talk of building a church.”
My friend and I stayed in the heart of town at the Tahoe House Hotel, one of the original hotels built in 1859. This is also where Twain lived, when it was “a men’s boarding house and part brothel,” according to owner Paul Hoyle.
“When you start to bring in thousands and thousands of people they have to have a place to stay so one of the very first things to be built are boarding houses. Back then you’d get a cot, or two cots in a room, a basin of water, and the bathrooms were out back. They were very modest accommodations,” he said.
Today, guests can stay in one of 14 updated rooms, each with a private bathroom and decorated with thoughtfully curated antiques, or the private cottage out back.
I was lucky to stay where Twain once lived in the “Mark Twain study,” which opens out to a semi-private balcony above the boardwalk, with views of the hillside and some of the old mining shafts.
Although the hotel is said to be haunted I didn’t see any signs Twain’s spirit was around.
Hoyle is adamant he’s never seen anything out of the ordinary during his time at the hotel.
However, the hotel’s housekeeper/barkeeper Jennifer Reed said she has heard footsteps stomping down the hall, when alone at the hotel. But she added, most of her paranormal encounters have happened at the nearby Washoe Club, built in 1862 and featured on the Travel Channel’s Ghost Adventures show.
“I was at the club and I was making fun of Ghost Adventures. You know, the way that they did the show, when I felt a push. My arms got tingly, and since then I never made fun of ghosts again,” said Reed.
She said another time when she was there with her son they both saw the spirit of a dead miner and have the photo to prove it.
After Reed told me some tourists taking the Washoe Club’s daily ghost tours have been scratched by a malicious ghost, who allegedly haunts one of the upstairs rooms, I opted to forgo the tour for a quick peek inside the saloon, instead.
But I do like visiting heritage houses, so curiosity got the better of me when it came to the Mackay Mansion, where actor Johnny Depp stayed while filming Dead Man in 1995 and said he saw the ghost of a little girl sitting at the foot of his bed.
The girl, who was the daughter of a servant who died of tuberculosis, apparently isn’t the only haunting at the mansion, our tour guides tells us. Others have also seen a man’s shadow, believed to be that of the mansion’s former owner John Mackay, who made his fortune from the Comstock Lode, but we did not. Nor did we see anything otherworldly while in Virginia City but still thoroughly enjoyed our overnight stay — ghost or no ghost.
> See TAHOE, xx
Before heading to Lake Tahoe, just an hour’s drive from Virginia City, we passed through the state’s scenic capital of Carson City then stopped for lunch in Genoa at the Historic Pink House and check out “Nevada’s oldest thirst parlor,” The Genoa Bar & Saloon built in 1853.
Genoa is also quirky. One only has to step inside the bar to see why. Hanging on deer antlers, beside a dusty buffalo head and other western memorabilia, is Raquel Welch’s bra.
The story goes the actress and film siren, who rose to stardom in the mid-1960s, came in for a drink and donated her bra after the owner promised to get rid of all the other bras hanging from the ceiling. Again, it wasn’t something I was expecting on the “Reno to Lake Tahoe” road trip, but definitely memorable.
IF YOU GO
Where to Stay
Reno — The Renaissance Reno Downtown Hotel & Spa, located on the shores on the Truckee River, is a great option for visitors who want to stay at a non-gaming hotel. The hotel has a Mediterranean restaurant, sports bar, outdoor pool, gym and a bocce ball court. It’s also just a short walk from the Nevada Museum of Art and National Automobile Museum.
The Peppermill Reno Resort is a Tuscan-themed casino hotel, conveniently located 3 km from Reno-Tahoe International Airport. The rooms are decorated with what some would call kitschy, custom mahogany furnishings and feature marble bathrooms. The resort also boasts 11 restaurants and bars, two outdoor pools, a fitness centre and spa.
Virginia City — You, too, can experience the old west as it was in the 1800s at the quaint but comfortable Tahoe House Hotel, where guests are welcomed with a free drink at its historic lobby bar/great room in the heart of this historic town. Bring a book, as guest rooms do not have television sets.
Lake Tahoe — Harveys Lake Tahoe is the first casino built on the lively South Shore and has stunning views of the lake and the Sierra Nevada. It also has two celebrity-run restaurants — Hells Kitchen by Gordon Ramsay and Wolf, opened recently by Lisa Vanderpump — with a diverse menu ranging from fine dining to more affordable casual options.
Hyatt Regency Lake Tahoe Resort, Spa and Casino in Incline Village is directly on the waterfront and offers a choice of either modern suites in the main resort or private, lakefront cottages. The Lone Eagle Grille is a great fine dining restaurant, with stunning views of the upscale resort’s private beach on the lake.
Edgewood Tahoe Resort in Stateline has a park-like setting right on the lake and has Lake Tahoe’s only lakefront golf course. The luxury 154-room lodge, opened in 2017, has an impressive lobby with vaulted ceilings and massive windows and takes inspiration from old National Park lodges. While it is expensive, you can still enjoy the property by stopping in for a meal. We had breakfast at The Bistro Edgewood, then spent some time relaxing on Edgewood’s lakefront.
Kim Pemberton was hosted by Travel Nevada, which did not review or approve this article. Follow her on instagram at kimstravelogue.
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