Rye Patch State Recreation Area
Encyclopedia
Rye Patch State Recreation Area is a state park
unit of Nevada
, USA, adjoining the 11000 acres (4,451.5 ha) Rye Patch Reservoir. The reservoir is impounded behind the Rye Patch Dam on the Humboldt River
. The recreation area is located at the end of State Route 401 (Rye Patch Road), which connects to Interstate 80
/U.S. Route 95
about 22 miles (35.4 km) northeast of Lovelock
.
In the mid-19th century, particularly during the California Gold Rush
, the Applegate-Lassen Cut-Off of the California Trail
left the main route of that Trail near present-day Rye Patch Reservoir, and crossed the Black Rock Desert
, on the way to Goose Lake
in northwest California, and the California gold fields.
State park
State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the federated state level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural beauty, historic interest, or recreational...
unit of Nevada
Nevada
Nevada is a state in the western, mountain west, and southwestern regions of the United States. With an area of and a population of about 2.7 million, it is the 7th-largest and 35th-most populous state. Over two-thirds of Nevada's people live in the Las Vegas metropolitan area, which contains its...
, USA, adjoining the 11000 acres (4,451.5 ha) Rye Patch Reservoir. The reservoir is impounded behind the Rye Patch Dam on the Humboldt River
Humboldt River
The Humboldt River runs through northern Nevada in the western United States. At approximately long it is the second longest river in the Great Basin, after the Bear River. It has no outlet to the ocean, but instead empties into the Humboldt Sink...
. The recreation area is located at the end of State Route 401 (Rye Patch Road), which connects to Interstate 80
Interstate 80 in Nevada
In the U.S. state of Nevada, Interstate 80 traverses the northern portion of the state. The freeway serves the Reno-Sparks metropolitan area, and also goes through the towns of Fernley, Lovelock, Winnemucca, Battle Mountain, Elko, Wells and West Wendover on its way through the state.I-80 follows...
/U.S. Route 95
U.S. Route 95
U.S. Route 95 is a north–south U.S. highway in the western United States. Unlike many other US highways, it has not seen deletion or replacement on most of its length by an encroaching Interstate highway corridor, due to its mostly rural course...
about 22 miles (35.4 km) northeast of Lovelock
Lovelock, Nevada
Lovelock is a city in western Nevada that is the county seat of Pershing County, the location of a prison, and the namesake of the area's Cold War gunnery range...
.
In the mid-19th century, particularly during the California Gold Rush
California Gold Rush
The California Gold Rush began on January 24, 1848, when gold was found by James W. Marshall at Sutter's Mill in Coloma, California. The first to hear confirmed information of the gold rush were the people in Oregon, the Sandwich Islands , and Latin America, who were the first to start flocking to...
, the Applegate-Lassen Cut-Off of the California Trail
California Trail
The California Trail was an emigrant trail of about across the western half of the North American continent from Missouri River towns to what is now the state of California...
left the main route of that Trail near present-day Rye Patch Reservoir, and crossed the Black Rock Desert
Black Rock Desert
The Black Rock Desert is an arid region in the northern Nevada section of the Great Basin with a lakebed that is a dry remnant of Pleistocene Lake Lahontan...
, on the way to Goose Lake
Goose Lake (Oregon-California)
Goose Lake is a large alkaline glacial lake located in the Goose Lake Valley on the Oregon-California border. The north end of the lake is in Lake County, Oregon and the south end is in Modoc County, California. The mountains at the north end of the lake are part of the Fremont National Forest...
in northwest California, and the California gold fields.