Nevada Magazine’s 2011 Historical Calendar Now Available

The 2011 Nevada Historical Calendar, produced by Nevada Magazine, is now available for purchase. For more than 30 years, Nevada residents and enthusiasts have enjoyed the award-winning calendar full of photographs from years gone by. It also makes for a great holiday gift.

Each calendar is $12.99 plus $4 shipping and handling. To order, visit nevadamagazine.com, or contact Publisher Janet Geary at 775-687-0603 or jmgeary@nevadamagazine.com.

Nevada state employees can get the calendar for a special price of $10 each by contacting Pati Stefonowicz at 775-687-0633 or pati@nevadamagazine.com.

Also available for pre-order is Nevada Magazine’s 75th-Anniversary Edition, which will be printed in early December, in plenty of time for holiday gift giving. This 192-page collector’s piece, selling for $19.95 each plus $4 shipping and handling, will feature photos and stories from the past eight decades. Visit nevadamagazine.com for further details, or contact Geary.

By clicking here, customers can order the anniversary edition, the calendar, and a one-year subscription (six issues) to the magazine for the great value of $41.95.

In Nevada Magazine’s November/December 2010 issue

Nevada Magazine’s November/December 2010 issue is available on newsstands throughout Nevada. Featured in the edition are the opening of the Hoover Dam Bypass, which includes the Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge, and a roundup of new Nevada-themed books. Nevada Magazine also names its inaugural Writers’ Contest winner, Eddy Ancinas. The Lake Tahoe resident took gold with her story, “Back in the Saddle,” about an Elko-area cattle drive.

Also in the November/December issue, the magazine spotlights Made In Nevada businesses, offers a comprehensive listing of buffets around the state, explores the popular Las Vegas attraction CSI: The Experience, and concludes its Tour Around Nevada in Elko.

Sparks resident wins Nevada Magazine’s 2010 Great Nevada Picture Hunt

A year after a Texas man won the grand prize in Nevada Magazine’s annual photo contest, a Sparks resident has delivered the gold back to the Silver State.

Sean Kukowski, who captured a thrilling 2009 summer lightning storm over the Reno area, is the Grand Prize winner of Nevada Magazine’s 33rd annual Great Nevada Picture Hunt—the feature story in the publication’s September/October 2010 issue.

The winning image (above), titled “Reno Lightning,” was taken from a hillside off of State Route 445, known as Pyramid Highway. “This storm took me by surprise,” Kukowski says. “It had some of the most impressive lightning I have ever seen.”

In addition to the Grand Prize, photographers were judged in five different categories: City Limits, Wide Open, Adventure, People, and Events. All the 2010 category winners are Nevada residents, including Las Vegas’ Bill Gerrard, who won the City Limits category and took Runner-Up in Events. Gerrard’s winning photo is of the tram that connects CityCenter to other Strip resorts.

Ellen Sargent, from Indian Springs, swept the People category with sepia images taken at the Overland Ranch in Ruby Valley. The subject of the winning image, Len Wines, was captured during his final branding at the 137-year-old ranch. The Runner-Up image is that of Len’s grandson, Pat, from the same branding.

Other winners are Reno resident Michael Horsley (Wide Open, “Incline Night Shot”) for his nighttime winter overview of Incline Village; Reno’s Krista Williams (Adventure, “Hidden Beach Paddle Surfers”) for her intriguing photo of two paddle surfers taken from the shore of Lake Tahoe; and Ralph Willits of Las Vegas (Events, “Shot Show”) for capturing a leaping dog at an annual hunting and outdoors trade show.

To view the winning images, pick up the latest issue (at right) at national bookstores and where magazines are sold in Nevada, or visit NevadaMagazine.com. Look for an ad in a future 2011 issue covering rules of submission for the 2011 contest, or check back regularly at NevadaMagazine.com.

Also in the September/October issue, Nevada Magazine highlights some of the state’s more accessible ghost towns, visits Virginia City’s Mackay Mansion Museum, Lake Tahoe’s Thunderbird Lodge, and Reno’s Freight House District, covers two fabulous Fallon restaurants, and continues its Tour Around Nevada in Boulder City.

Nevada Magazine announces 2010 Best of Nevada winners

Nevada Magazine’s July/August 2010 issue is available on newsstands throughout Nevada. In the edition, the winners of the 13th Annual Best of Nevada readers’ survey are revealed. From Brewery to Wedding Venue, the anticipated annual listing includes 17 categories.

Readers can also explore some of the Silver State’s unique, fragile environments via a feature on Nevada’s lakes and the environmental challenges facing them and a story about Nevada’s nine National Wildlife Refuges. Desert NWR in southern Nevada and Sheldon NWR in northwestern Nevada are covered extensively.

A story about Nevada tour companies (the cover image, also shown below, features a helicopter view of Hoover Dam) helps travelers plan their next Nevada adventure, and after a day of Nevada sightseeing, nothing hits the spot quite like southern-style soul food, the topic of this issue’s Cravings story.

A piece on St. Thomas tells the interesting history of a town that was once submerged by rising Lake Mead. The ghost town is now above water due to prolonged drought in southern Nevada. The Events Spotlight takes readers to the counter-culture festival in the Black Rock Desert, Burning Man, and the People feature spotlights Madeleine Pickens and her nonprofit, Saving America’s Mustangs.

Finally, the magazine’s Tour Around Nevada continues in the historic town of Ely. On July 17, Nevada Magazine will attend Nevada Northern Railway’s celebration of Engine No. 40’s 100th birthday. Visitors to the Ely event can pick up free magazines and other Nevada information, and Nevada Magazine staff will present a plaque and framed story to the town.

Writers’ Contest Deadline is Approaching

In addition to its popular Great Nevada Picture Hunt photo contest, Nevada Magazine is holding its first Writers’ Contest in 2010. Submissions — writers are required to keep their stories at 1,500 words or less — must be received by Monday, August 2 at 5 p.m. (PST). The first-place winner will be published in the November/December 2010 issue.

See contest details at nevadamagazine.com. Refer questions to Editor Matthew B. Brown at editor@nevadamagazine.com or 775-687-0602.

July/August 2010 cover image photo by Matthew B. Brown

The Mackay Mansion Museum

A visit to The Mackay Mansion Museum—or Virginia City in general for that matter—truly is a "Step Back in Time" (which just so happens to be the slogan of the Northern Nevada historic town's Convention and Tourism Authority).

The museum reopened for tours on May 1 of this year, and we were lucky enough to be escorted around the property by the man behind the mansion's renaissance: Octavio A. Cresta. He has leased the mansion through 2014 and has furnished its bedrooms with period pieces from his Uniquities Fine Antiques and Home Decor store out of Incline Village.

A stroll through the mansion is eloquent, rugged, and a little bit of spooky all rolled into one. When you walk into the stylish bedrooms, you get a feel for how absurdly rich John Mackay was. Mackay was the "Boss of the Big Bonanza," which put his net worth at about $100 million in his glory days. He moved into the mansion, originally built as the Gould and Curry mining offices, after his home was destroyed in the city's Great Fire of 1875. The grand room (see photo above) of the Italianate-style house claims the original fireplace and overhanging mirror—the mirror's frame appears to be plated with gold.

The museum also has its share of rustic items, from an old fire-fighting wagon to myriad household items of the day (stoves, sewing machines, laundry soap, etc.). Like many old Nevada buildings, there are rumors of the paranormal at the mansion, too. The most famous story concerns actor Johnny Depp. While filming the movie "Dead Man," Depp stayed in Mackay's former bedroom. He supposedly saw a ghostly apparition in the form of a little girl, who other people have claimed to see in the house.

The mansion is open to the public for tours daily, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Winter hours, which begin around November 1, are to be determined. Private, exclusive tours can be tailored to your needs. Call 775-847-0373 for more information.



Photos & story by Matthew B. Brown. See more photos here.

Vote in Nevada Magazine’s Best of Nevada 2010 readers’ poll

Nevada Magazine’s annual Best of Nevada readers’ poll is now available online at NevadaMagazine.com. The 13th annual poll allows readers to weigh in on categories ranging from Best Casino, Hotel, and Restaurant to Best Place to Take Kids.

Results will be published in the July/August 2010 issue and on NevadaMagazine.com in late June. “We encourage everyone to go to our Web site and vote for their favorites, including in our small towns and rural areas,” says Publisher Janet Geary.

To vote, visit the NevadaMagazine.com homepage and click on the Best of Nevada 2010 logo, or just click here to get started. The categories are divided into three parts: Northern, Southern, and Rural Nevada. You do not need to fill out all the categories to submit your survey. However, two lucky voters out of those who complete their ballots will win complimentary two-night stays at Eldorado in Reno or The Venetian/The Palazzo in Las Vegas. Voting ends on Thursday, April 15.

The 2008 and 2009 Best of Nevada winners can be viewed at NevadaMagazine.com.

In Nevada Magazine’s March/April 2010 issue

Nevada Magazine’s March/April 2010 issue hits newsstands in late February. In it are features on the 75th anniversary of Nevada’s state parks and the Pony Express sesquicentennial—150 years ago riders saddled up to deliver mail via the historic trail, crossing Nevada between Sacramento and Missouri.

Also highlighted are the newly reopened V&T Railroad route (connecting Virginia City and Carson City) and other places to ride the short line, Basque eateries, six ways to splurge in Las Vegas, Barry Manilow’s new show at Paris Las Vegas, Genoa’s first Cowboy Poetry and Music Festival, and the magazine’s Tour Around Nevada continues in Lovelock.

To vote in Nevada Magazine’s Tour Around Nevada, click here.

Writers’ Contest

Click here for more details.

Valley of Fire State Park cover photo by James Phelps

Nevada Magazine introduces Writers’ Contest

In addition to its popular Great Nevada Picture Hunt photo contest, Nevada Magazine is holding its first Writers’ Contest in 2010. Submissions — writers are required to keep their stories at 1,500 words or less — must be received by Monday, August 2 at 5 p.m. (PST). The winning entries will be published in the November/December 2010 issue.

“We ask that interested writers visit our Web site, NevadaMagazine.com, to review submission rules carefully,” says editor Matthew B. Brown. “We look forward to reading everyone’s work. Nevada is a big state, and we know there are some hidden journalistic gems out there waiting to be uncovered.”

Questions should be referred to Brown at editor@nevadamagazine.com or 775-687-0602.

The magazine’s latest issue, January/February 2010, features the 50th anniversary of the VIII Olympic Winter Games at Squaw Valley and the Reno Rodeo Cattle Drive. Also included is a story about Cirque du Soleil’s new Las Vegas show, “Viva ELVIS,” and The King’s Ransom Museum, Imperial Palace’s tribute to The King.

In addition, the issue covers Las Vegas’ Club Tattoo, turquoise mining, steakhouses, a history story about legendary Carson Valley mail carrier “Snowshoe” Thompson, and the magazine’s Tour Around Nevada continues in historic Austin. To vote for the rural Nevada town you’d like covered, click here. A new “Nevada Wide Web” page gives readers insight into the magazine’s social media endeavors, including Facebook, Twitter, Flickr, and YouTube.

For more information on the Great Nevada Picture Hunt, contact art director Tony deRonnebeck at tony@nevadamagazine.com or 775-687-0606. Nevada Magazine is sold on newsstands around the state and in national bookstores. For a Web Special subscription rate, visit NevadaMagazine.com.

Cover photo: Eddy Ancinas