Venturing South

Bordering Carson City on the south is Douglas County. It is the wealthiest county in Nevada. Douglas County has about 60,000 people, but most of the county is suburban sprawl. It is a "bedroom" community for Carson City. The biggest town in the county is Gardnerville Ranchos, which is an unincorporated town of 14,278 people. It is a new town. Development began in the 1970s. It marks the southern edge of the suburban sprawl that spreads southward from Carson City. Four miles north of Gardnerville Ranchos is Minden, population 4,479. Minden is the county seat of Douglas County and has a beautiful, historic downtown business district that consists of many architectural styles.
Between Minden and Gardnerville Ranchos is Gardnerville, with 6,067 people. The old Douglas High School is located here. The original building of the school, which faces Main Street, contains a great historical museum. It is the managed by the county.
Douglas County is small, only 710 square miles. most of the population lives in the Eagle Valley, which runs north and south down the length of the county. There are also several thousand people in the west edge of the county, on the shore of Lake Tahoe. The eastern half of the county is nearly uninhabited, containing only handful of residents. The south part of the county is very rural.
The western part of Douglas County contains Lake Tahoe, one of the most famous lakes in the world. It is also one of the deepest lakes in the world, plunging to a maximum depth of 1,630 feet. it is also one of the bluest lakes in the world. The water is so clear that, in many places, a person can see over 100 feet down. Lake Tahoe is a fabulous resort area year round. In summer all area campgrounds are usually booked weeks or months in advance and many people also camp in undesignated areas because all the campgrounds are full. Such "primitive" camping is usually allowed in national forests. Lake Tahoe is bisected by the Nevada/California state border. About 1/3 of the lake is in Nevada and 2/3 of it is in California.
One of Nevada's most popular gambling destinations, the town of Stateline, is on the south shore of Lake Tahoe in Douglas County.
One of my favorite places in Douglas County is the tiny town of Genoa. Officially, it boasts the title of "oldest town in Nevada." This title was bestowed upon it by the state historical society. However, there has been a long running debate between Genoa and Dayton about which town is the oldest. Dayton is located a few miles east of Carson City in Lyon County and I went through that town on my way to Carson City. There is some evidence that says Genoa is older and other evidence that says Dayton is older. I have done alot of research into this matter and my research seems to indicate that Dayton is actually older than Genoa even though Genoa is "officially" older. I will delve into the facts of these towns in the next edition of this blog.