Gouge Eye, Nevada

Travel Update: Full Post to Follow

Fifteen years after my first visit to Gouge Eye there is still almost no information on the former town. Gouge Eye is not listed in any of my reference books. I found only 2 mentions of Gouge Eye online. A Humboldt County site said Gouge Eye existed in the county at some point in time. And a Humboldt County genealogy site mentions Gouge Eye as a location within the county. My handy dandy much loved and used Nevada Atlas has the Gouge Eye site marker. That’s it!

What I remember about Gouge Eye is that Hubby, our toddler son and I were on a Nevada ghost town vacation. We had been staying at the wonderful Old Pioneer Garden Bed and Breakfast in Unionville. While driving to Elko we made a detour to Paradise Valley. Our plans after exploring the Eko area ghost towns had been to continue to Ely and the Ward Charcoal Ovens and Nevada Northern Railway Museum. But we had both fallen in love with Paradise Valley and the Stonehouse Bed and Breakfast. We made a unanimous decision and canceled our reservations in Ely and returned to Paradise Valley for remainder of our trip.

It was during that trip when we visited Gouge Eye. I have no idea how we first learned of Gouge Eye. Hubby thinks it may have been an obscure online footnote. I wonder if it was from word of mouth. Either way, we found the site. Not much remained, a few low lying rock walls. Had we not been looking, we never would have noticed that the site had once been a town.

We have stayed at the Stonehouse several times since but have not returned to Gouge Eye. My sister and I are planning a girl ghost town trip to the area after travel opens up again. Gouge Eye is on the top of my list of places to see! I will also be visiting the Humboldt County Museum for research.

Visited July 2005.

Follow me on social media:

• 
• 
• 
•