Rye Patch State Recreation Area
Reservoir from I-80 south of Imlay
Map showing the location of Rye Patch State Recreation Area
Map showing the location of Rye Patch State Recreation Area
Location in Nevada
LocationPershing County, Nevada, United States
Nearest cityLovelock, Nevada
Coordinates40°36′07″N 118°18′25″W / 40.60194°N 118.30694°W / 40.60194; -118.30694[1]
Area2,448.99 acres (9.9107 km2)[2]
Elevation4,137 ft (1,261 m)[1]
DesignationNevada state recreation area
Established1971
Visitors25,556 (in 2017)[3]
AdministratorNevada Division of State Parks
WebsiteRye Patch State Recreation Area

Rye Patch State Recreation Area is a 2,400-acre (970 ha) state park unit of Nevada, United States, adjoining Rye Patch Reservoir, an 11,000-acre (4,500 ha) impoundment on the Humboldt River, and the smaller Pitt-Taylor Reservoirs. 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 km) northeast of Lovelock.[4]

History

The park is located in a part of Nevada that in prehistoric times was under Lake Lahontan. When the lake had receded lower than the present-day reservoir, by about 23,000 years ago, animals such as camels, horses, rabbits, and squirrels would drink from the river, and some of their fossils have been found about 14 miles (23 km) north of the dam. Archaeological evidence from Lovelock Cave and elsewhere shows that humans would camp along the Humboldt about 8,000 years ago.[5]

In the mid-19th century, particularly during the California Gold Rush, travelers along the Humboldt would graze their cattle on the wild ryegrass in the area near present-day Rye Patch Reservoir, which was known as Lassen Meadows. At Lassen Meadows the Applegate-Lassen Cut-Off of the California Trail, which provided a quicker route to Goose Lake in northeast California and the California gold fields, left the main route of that trail and headed toward the Black Rock Desert.[6]

The Rye Patch Dam was constructed between 1933 and 1936 by the Public Works Administration as a New Deal relief project during the Great Depression.[7] In 1971 the reservoir was made a Nevada State Recreation Area.

Activities and amenities

Among the facilities the park offers are a campground, picnic areas, and a launch for boating. Visitors can fish for crappie, wipers, white bass, channel catfish, black bass, and walleye.[5][8]

References

  1. 1 2 "Rye Patch State Recreation Area". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  2. ↑ "Inventory of State Lands" (PDF). Nevada Division of State Lands. April 27, 2018. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
  3. ↑ "Division of State Parks Performance Audit" (PDF). Nevada Legislature. 2018.
  4. ↑ "Chapter 5: Inventory" (PDF). Nevada 2005 State Recreational Trails Plan. Nevada Division of State Parks, Planning and Development Section. pp. 85–86. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 21, 2016. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
  5. 1 2 "Rye Patch State Recreation Area". Nevada State Parks. Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
  6. ↑ Horton, Gary A. (2000). Humboldt River Chronology: An Overview (PDF). Carson City, Nev.: Nevada Division of Water Planning. Retrieved June 5, 2012.
  7. ↑ "Humboldt Project". Projects and Facilities. U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Rye Patch State Recreation Area Brochure" (PDF). Nevada Division of State Parks. November 2011. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 21, 2016. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
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