The Town of Ely, Nevada OR Ely Come, Ely Go!

There are only a few ways across the center of Nevada: Interstate 80 in the north, route 6 slicing it's way northeast, and route 50, also called the Loneliest Road in America.

About 60 miles from the Utah border, 6 and 50 meet up in the small town of Ely, NV. (Pronounced ee-lee. Don't ask me why.)

It's about 4,000 people, and has a history as a pony express station, mining town, and traveler's stop-over…

...But I knew none of this. While journeying across the country, I chose Ely solely based on location and size. I wasn't sure what to expect, and the first thing upon entering was this guy:

I thought they didn't let miners into casinos... (Hah!)

A not so subtle reminder that you're still in Nevada, and with every Nevada town comes a casino.

At first glance it's easy to drive through the downtown of Ely.

It's got a couple casinos, some bars, and rather nice park, a couple restaurants… And then you're off, out of the town and back onto whatever trip you had planned…

...But take a look at the side of the casino up there. The one with the ass on it. (Not that kind of ass, silly.) Right below it is a mural.

There's also one here:

And here:

And over here:

And there were at least ten more throughout the town. Even in completely random places:

Only the best electric meter west of the Mississippi!

At first glance it seems people are kept alive only by the chance that a highway went through their town, and this would, of course, make them depressed, yearning to leave their tiny town…

...Except it seems many of the people of Ely actually do love living there. The large park just off the main drag was filled with people, celebrating the summer and having picnics. (It WAS July 3rd, so that's partially why.)

We saw posters for two different art fairs in the park, and two different theater fests.

And just behind the casinos are neighborhoods. Cute, tree-lined ones right out the idyllic manual. We found a rather large baseball diamond and stadium just next to the fire station that was really well-maintained. Hell, I almost wanted to play ball just to play there. (Almost.)

Not to mention the murals and historic sculpture:

That plaque mentions how the mayor has a thing for art and culture, which does explain the murals...

But more importantly, the plaque explains how the town was once a mining town for many, many years, much like most of Nevada.
The railroad and later route 50 kept the town going, keeping it relevant and alive while the mining towns around it crumbled. There's even an old smokestack in one of the neighborhoods just off the main area.

A guy in a pickup actually stopped to not be in the frame.
Seriously. These are some nice people.

The only remnant of a long gone ore processing plant or smelter.

But the people were good people. People who found themselves on one of the crossroads of life… And decided to stay there.

We ate at a local Mexican restaurant where the entry walls were COVERED with pictures of people in the "Birthday Sombrero."

They had three different choices, all of them incredibly ornate and authentic, and clearly many locals love to go there in their birthdays and take a silly picture with an awesome hat. And who doesn't love silly pictures with awesome hats?

Well, whoever those silly hat haters are, Ely will have no part of them. And quite honestly, neither would I.