Road trip Nevada | Wonders of a Free-Range Art Highway

Road trip Nevada | Wonders of a Free-Range Art Highway

Haunting: The Ghosts of Goldwell is a must-see in your travels along the Free Range Highway. Picture: TravelNevada

Desert art and sleepy ghost towns of the most unimaginable kind add a whole sense of drama and beauty along the Free Range Highway in Nevada. If the arts is your thing, strap on your seatbelt in your Las Vegas motorhome rental and prepare to let your imagination run wild.

Whispers in the wind

If you have an eye for quirky styles and wildly colourful artistic displays, the Free-Range Highway will turn your road trip journey into the adventure of a lifetime as you discover the arts on the Nevada Highway.

The best way to begin the 475-mile journey along the Free-Range Art Highway in your Las Vegas motorhome rental is from Las Vegas to Tonopah or Reno. To get the artsy vibe juices flowing, start off with the Las Vegas Arts District on the way out.

On the road, you’ll soon see plenty of sleepy ghost towns and some of the wildest works of art you have ever seen against the vast and dry Nevada desert, all from the comfort of your own vehicle.

Magic in the air: Stop off at Seven Magic Mountains. Picture: Kaitlin Godbey/Sydney Martinez TravelNevada

Hit the Free Range Art Highway

So if you’re planning to head to US Route 95 on your next road trip there is plenty to do and see that will make those 7 hours in the car go quickly.

If you choose to head out a little west of Nevada to start your trip, one of the colourful and offbeat art installations in the region is called Seven Magic Mountains, an Instagram-er’s delight! This is the work of renowned Swiss artist Ugo Rondinone.

Make your way through the bright lights of Las Vegas and Route 95 soon comes alive as you discover there’s even more magic in the air and some more extraordinary art.

CHECK OUT TRAVEL NEVADA’S 22 REASONS TO STOP ALONG THE FREE RANGE HIGHWAY

Desert art: The Goldwell Open Air Museum is an unmissable Free Range Highway stop off point. Picture:Lora Rose Robb/TravelNevada

Ghostly encounters in the desert

Near the ghost town of Rhyloite, at the northern end of the Amargosa Valley and just minutes from town of Beatty is the Goldwell Open Air Museum, an outdoor sculpture park, which features an eerie rendition of ‘The Last Supper’ in copper by Belgian sculptor Albert Szukalski.

Other works of art you can also view at the museum is a 24-foot miner and his penguin companion, a towering cinderblock lady and so much more. The eye-catching Red Barn is the site of an arts festival called Albert’s Tarantella, which is held in October every year.

Car art: A car forest features the works of “Rocket Bob” Robert Van Kauren. Picture: Sydney Martinez/TravelNevada

Art Cars of Rocket Bob

As you get closer and closer to Tonopah, you will cruise through the town of Goldfield which has some of the most unusual artistic gems you’ll get to see on the Free-Range Art Highway.

At the Goldfield Art Car Park is the Art Cars of Rocket Bob, which was designed by artist Robert Van Kauren, and you’ll soon see what makes this display so special and unique. Hours and hours of work, engineering and design has gone into making this work of art what it is today.

Taking it to the streets: Reno offers murals and dozens of “post-Playa” sculptures. Picture: Sydney Martinez/TravelNevada

Theaters, murals, sculptures & more

A few hours along, The Yerington Theater for The Arts and the Jeanne Dini Cultural Centre are two other pits stops you should make on your road trip.

Located in the city of Yerington, the Yerington Theater for The Arts located inside the Jeanne Dini Cultural Centre is regarded as one of Nevada’s finest art organisations. Don’t worry about making a booking, just pop in as the Theater always has plenty of events and galleries open so that road trippers and families can enjoy the arts.

As you reach the end of your road trip at either Tonopah or Reno, there are still plenty of works of art for you to enjoy because we’ve saved the best until last.

On the streets of Reno there are plenty of commissioned murals and dozens of ‘post-Playa’ sculptures to celebrations that get the own town involved, like Sculpture Fest, Off Beat Music Fest and Artown. In Tonopah, don’t forget to keep your eye out for several murals, including the ‘Queen of the Silver Camps’.

Scott Podmore

Scott Podmore

Award-winning writer, editor, photographer, videographer and owner of October Grey Media. Specialising in travel and lifestyle content and a full member of the Australian Society of Travel Writers. Has contributed regular content for the NewsCorp stable of newspapers and magazines, TravelTalk mag, The Departure Lounge and many more publications in Australia and internationally. Follow on Twitter & instragram #scottpodmore

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