The Black Rock Desert is a semi-arid region of lava beds and playa, or alkali flats, situated in the Black Rock Desert–High Rock Canyon Emigrant Trails National Conservation Area, a silt playa 100 miles (160 km) north of Reno, Nevada that encompasses more than 300,000 acres (120,000 ha) of land and contains more than 120 miles (200 km) of historic trails. It is in the northern Nevada section of the Great Basin with a lakebed that is a dry remnant of Pleistocene Lake Lahontan.
Meek Cutoff was a horse trail road that branched off the Oregon Trail in northeastern Oregon and was used as an alternate emigrant route to the Willamette Valley in the mid-19th century. The road was named for frontiersman Stephen Meek, who was hired to lead the first wagon train along it in 1845. The journey was a particularly hard one, and many of the pioneers lost their lives.
Lassen National Forest is a United States national forest of 1,700 square miles (4,300 km2) in northeastern California. It is named after pioneer Peter Lassen, who mined, ranched and promoted the area to emigrant parties in the 1850s.
The High Rock Lake Wilderness is a wilderness area in Nevada containing the northern portion of the Calico Hills. High Rock Lake, for which the wilderness was named, was created about 11,800 years ago after a large rockslide closed the outlet to High Rock and Little High Rock Canyons. This new outlet cut a narrow canyon that empties at Soldier Meadows. One special geological feature in Fly Canyon is the potholes. The potholes were carved by whirlpool action of sand and gravel in the stream. Another unique feature is the Fly Slide where emigrants lowered their wagons with ropes into Fly Canyon portion of the Applegate-Lassen Trail. Elevations in the wilderness range from 4,000 to 7,660 ft with scattered vegetation of saltbrush and sagebrush.
The Black Rock Range is a mountain range in northwestern Nevada. It is named for Black Rock Point, which is located at the southern end of the range. The Black Rock Range divides the Black Rock Desert into eastern and western arms. Pahute Peak, also known as Big Mountain, is the highest point in the range at 8,566 feet (2,611 m) above sea level.
Calico Mountains Wilderness is a U S Wilderness Area in Nevada under the Bureau of Land Management. It is located in the Calico Hills.
The Black Rock Desert–High Rock Canyon Emigrant Trails National Conservation Area is the federal land in northwestern Nevada, under the Bureau of Land Management-BLM management and protection, and the ten Wilderness Areas within it.
The Black Rock Desert Wilderness is a U S Wilderness Area in Nevada under the Bureau of Land Management. It is located in the east arm of the Black Rock Desert playa east of the Black Rock Range and west of the Jackson Mountains. The wilderness has a land area of 314,829 acres, or 1,274.1 km². It is the largest U.S. designated wilderness area that is managed solely by the Bureau of Land Management, and the largest that is not located within a National Forest, National Park, or National Wildlife Refuge. It is located within the Black Rock Desert – High Rock Canyon Emigrant Trails National Conservation Area, also managed by the BLM.
The East Fork High Rock Canyon Wilderness is a U S Wilderness Area in Nevada under the Bureau of Land Management. It is located on the northeast side of High Rock Canyon but does not include the 4x4 trail inside High Rock Canyon nor a 4x4 trail to the Yellow Hills.
The High Rock Canyon Wilderness is a U S Wilderness Area in Nevada under the Bureau of Land Management. It is located on the southwest side of High Rock Canyon and north of the Little High Rock Canyon Wilderness. It does not include the 4x4 trail in High Rock Canyon.
The North Black Rock Range Wilderness is a U S Wilderness Area in Nevada under the Bureau of Land Management. It is located northeast of Soldier Meadows and south of the Summit Lake Indian Reservation.
The North Jackson Mountains Wilderness is a U S Wilderness Area in Nevada under the Bureau of Land Management. It is located in the Jackson Mountains north of the South Jackson Mountains Wilderness and east of the Black Rock Desert Wilderness.
The Pahute Peak Wilderness is a U S Wilderness Area in Nevada under the Bureau of Land Management. It is located in the central Black Rock Range west of the Black Rock Desert Wilderness.
The South Jackson Mountains Wilderness is a U.S. Wilderness Area in Nevada under the Bureau of Land Management. It is located in the Jackson Mountains, south of the North Jackson Mountains Wilderness and east of the Black Rock Desert Wilderness.
The Pueblo Mountains are a remote mountain range in the United States located mostly in southeastern Oregon and partially in northwestern Nevada. The highest point in the range is Pueblo Mountain. The dominant vegetation throughout is grasses and big sagebrush; however, there are meadows with cottonwood, aspen, and willow groves along some stream drainages. Most of the range is public land administered by the Bureau of Land Management. There is very little human development in the Pueblo Mountains, and most visitors come for backpacking cross-country, camping, and hunting.
The Trout Creek Mountains are a remote, semi-arid Great Basin mountain range mostly in southeastern Oregon and partially in northern Nevada in the United States. The range's highest point is Orevada View Benchmark, 8,506 feet (2,593 m) above sea level, in Nevada. Disaster Peak, elevation 7,781 feet (2,372 m), is another prominent summit in the Nevada portion of the mountains.
The Owyhee River Wilderness is located on the high basalt plateaus of Owyhee County in southwestern Idaho in the western United States. The wilderness area is named after and protects the upper Owyhee River, its tributaries, and the surrounding desert canyon landscape. Whitewater rafting is a popular recreational activity in this wilderness area. Managed by the Bureau of Land Management, it is the second-largest U.S. Wilderness Area that is not located within a National Forest, National Park, or National Wildlife Refuge. The BLM's Black Rock Desert Wilderness, located within Black Rock Desert – High Rock Canyon Emigrant Trails National Conservation Area, is larger. About 67.3 miles (108.3 km) of the Owyhee River is classified as a wild river.
The Battle of Kelley Creek, also known as the Last Massacre, is often considered to be one of the last known massacres carried out between Native Americans and forces of the United States, and was a closing event to occur near the end of the American Indian warfare era. In January 1911 a small band of Shoshones were accused of rustling cattle and then killing four stockmen who went to investigate the dead cattle. A posse of policemen and citizens was sent to track the band, who were found encamped near Winnemucca, Nevada, in a region known as Kelley Creek. A largely one-sided battle ensued on February 25 that ended with the direct deaths of nine people, eight Daggetts and one posse member. At the time the affair was briefly characterized as a Native American revolt, though it is now mostly regarded as a family's attempted escape from law enforcement.
Mike Daggett, original Shoshoni name Ondongarte(died February 25, 1911), was a Shoshone man who is best known for his involvement in the Battle of Kelley Creek, during which he was killed with several members of his family. Daggett was also known by many other names, including "Shoshone Mike", "Indian Mike," "Rock Creek Mike," and "Salmon River Mike."
Mary Josephine Estep was a Shoshone child survivor of the Battle of Kelley Creek, "the last massacre" of Native Americans in the United States, in 1911.
