13 Ghost Town Hikes And Haunted Saloon Tours Dominate Rural Nevada Adventures
Under an endless desert sky, wind whistles through shattered windows and hollow doorframes, carrying whispers from another century. Sunlight fades across empty streets where laughter and gunfire once echoed, leaving only silence and the creak of weathered wood.
In Nevada, forgotten boomtowns rise like ghosts from the sagebrush, their saloons and graveyards steeped in tales of fortunes won and lives lost. Each autumn, these haunted remnants invite the daring to wander through echoes of the past, where history lingers in every shadow.
1. Rhyolite Ghost Town Hike – Beatty, NV
Crumbling bank walls and the skeletal remains of the train depot stand sentinel against the Nevada’s desert backdrop. Once home to 5,000 souls during the 1905 gold rush, Rhyolite now whispers tales of boom-and-bust through its ghostly ruins.
The bottle house, constructed from 50,000 beer bottles, remains remarkably intact. Sunset casts long shadows across this silent town, creating an atmosphere photographers and history buffs find irresistible.
2. Goldfield Haunted Saloon Tour – Goldfield, NV
Amber glasses still line the shelves at the Goldfield Hotel’s bar, untouched since the 1940s. Local guides share hair-raising stories about Elizabeth, a woman allegedly chained in Room 109 whose cries echo through empty hallways.
Paranormal investigators flock to this former mining hub in Nevada that once boasted 20,000 residents. Strange cold spots and unexplained footsteps make even skeptics question what lingers in this historic saloon.
3. Belmont Ghost Walk – Belmont, NV
Weathered headstones tilt at odd angles in the cemetery that greets hikers entering Belmont. Founded in 1865, this silver mining settlement once rivaled nearby Nevada towns with its brick courthouse standing proud against the sagebrush landscape.
The monitor tower’s bell occasionally rings without human intervention. Moonlight tours reveal why locals swear the saloon’s piano sometimes plays by itself, drawing visitors seeking both history and supernatural encounters.
4. Berlin-Ichthyosaur Ghost Town Trek – Berlin, NV
Ancient marine reptiles and abandoned mining equipment create an unusual pairing at this distinctive Nevada site. Berlin preserved as if miners might return from their shift, with tools resting against walls and calendar pages frozen in time.
Hiking trails wind through the 1890s stamp mill and schoolhouse. The real surprise comes at the adjacent ichthyosaur fossil beds, where 225-million-year-old ocean predators now rest in high desert mountains – adding prehistoric ghosts to this already haunting landscape.
5. Virginia City Haunted Saloon Crawl – Virginia City, NV
Bartenders at the Silver Queen Hotel pour whiskey while recounting tales of Rosie, the lady of the night who took her life in Room 11. Mark Twain’s spirit supposedly lingers in the newspaper office where he once worked, pen still moving across ghostly pages.
Creaking floorboards and swinging chandeliers greet visitors at the Old Washoe Club. Ghost hunters have captured EVPs and mysterious orbs in this three-story brick building that once served the Comstock Lode’s wealthiest miners.
6. Pioche Phantom Hike – Pioche, NV
Boot Hill Cemetery tells the bloody story of this once-lawless town where 75 men died from violence before anyone died from natural causes. The creaking aerial tramway cables still stretch across the canyon, silhouettes of ore buckets dangling against mountain backdrops.
Hikers exploring Nevada’s hillside mines often report cold spots and phantom footsteps. The Million Dollar Courthouse, which actually cost $800,000 due to corruption and interest, stands as testament to Pioche’s wild silver rush days.
7. Tonopah Old West Spirits Tour – Tonopah, NV
Red velvet curtains frame the stage at the Mizpah Hotel where the Lady in Red met her violent end. Guests report jewelry mysteriously moving or disappearing, attributed to this jealous apparition who still roams the fifth floor.
The Old Tonopah Cemetery sits adjacent to the Clown Motel (yes, really). Nighttime tours weave between mining disaster victims’ graves and former saloon sites. Brave souls can sample period-authentic whiskey while guides recount tales of underground tunnel brawls.
8. Nelson Ghost Town Night Hike – Nelson, NV
Rusty automobiles from the 1930s frame the entrance to this photogenic ghost town south of Las Vegas. Moonlight illuminates the Techatticup Mine’s entrance, once the richest gold mine in southern Nevada, now rumored to harbor spirits of miners lost in cave-ins.
After dark, the abandoned gas station’s neon casts eerie shadows across weathered wood buildings. Guides lead small groups through the town with lanterns, sharing tales of claim jumpers who met violent ends – their restless spirits said to follow hikers back to their cars.
9. Silver Peak Haunted Saloon Stroll – Silver Peak, NV
Nevada’s oldest mining town still operates, though ghosts outnumber residents in this remote outpost. The 1864 saloon features original swinging doors that occasionally move without breeze, while bartenders report bottles rearranging themselves overnight.
Mary’s grave sits unmarked behind the schoolhouse, but locals leave trinkets for the child who reportedly follows visitors with ghostly giggles. The tour concludes at the still-operational general store where miners’ ledgers from the 1800s remain open on dusty counters.
10. Austin Ghost Town Shadows Hike – Austin, NV
Three historic churches stand sentinel over this living ghost town along the Loneliest Road in America. Founded when a Pony Express horse kicked over a rock revealing silver, Austin’s boom days left behind ornate buildings now housing spectral residents.
Stoke Castle, a three-story stone tower, looms on the hillside above town. Hikers climbing to this mining magnate’s folly report disembodied voices and the sensation of being watched. The International Café still serves meals alongside stories of miners who never left.
11. Eureka Haunted Saloons & Streets Walk – Eureka, NV
The meticulously restored Opera House anchors this remarkably intact mining Nevada town where 19th century buildings outnumber modern structures. Phantom music drifts from the opera house at night, reportedly from a heartbroken performer who took her final bow with a pistol.
Jackson House Hotel’s saloon serves drinks beneath original pressed tin ceilings where mysterious footsteps pace empty hallways. The self-guided walking tour passes the courthouse where judges’ benches still display bullet holes from an 1879 shootout – and where spectral defendants reportedly still plead their cases.
12. Manhattan Deserted Town Trail – Manhattan, NV
Wooden mine headframes punctuate the landscape around Manhattan, Nevada where gold fever struck in 1905. Unlike many ghost towns, Manhattan’s buildings sit scattered across sagebrush hills rather than along a main street, creating an intimate hiking experience.
The schoolhouse chalkboard sometimes shows fresh markings overnight. Hikers report children’s laughter near the playground where only rusted swing sets remain. The Manhattan Bar and Hotel foundation outlines hint at wild Saturday nights where miners once celebrated their fortunes.
13. Ward Charcoal Ovens Ghost Adventure – Ely, NV
Six beehive-shaped stone ovens stand like alien structures against the desert landscape east of Ely. Built in 1876 to produce charcoal for silver smelting, these 30-foot structures later sheltered stagecoach bandits and wintering prospectors.
Nighttime visitors report glowing lights inside empty ovens. The trail winds through collapsed miners’ cabins where personal items remain untouched. Paranormal investigators capture unusual temperature fluctuations inside these acoustic marvels where whispers from one end are clearly heard at the other.
