Episode 5 Itinerary: “Cowboy Country”
In this five-part series, world-renowned climber Alex Honnold ventures beyond his Las Vegas home base to explore Nevada in a way he never has before—uncovering wild, unexpected experiences that manage to surprise even him.
These episode-inspired field guides let you follow Alex’s lead to the destinations featured in the show, plus a few nearby stops worth a detour, so you can get a little out there for yourself.
Episode 5 Recap: In Elko, Alex joins endurance runner Peyton Thomas for an unexpected adventure in the Ruby Mountains. Off the trail, he dives into Basque culture, tries out some cowboy poetry, and silversmiths a romantic gift for his wife.
Ruby Mountains
Distance from Las Vegas: 420 miles
Alex arrived in northeastern Nevada with a plan: Run the entire Ruby Crest National Recreation Trail in a single day with elite endurance athlete Peyton Thomas.
The 43-mile route cuts along the crest of the Ruby Mountains, gaining 9,000 feet past alpine lakes, colorful meadows, and granite peaks. On clear days, Wheeler Peak in Great Basin National Park comes into view roughly 120 miles southeast. It’s typically hiked as a multi-day backpacking trip, but Alex and Peyton are anything but typical.
However, as she often does in Nevada’s higher elevations, Mother Nature had other plans. A storm buried the trail in 8 inches of fresh powder overnight, prompting the pair to pivot and push up snowy slopes toward Ruby Dome—the range’s highest summit at 11,388 feet—settling for an unforgettable view from atop Nevada’s Alps.
Many outdoor enthusiasts come to the Rubies specifically for conditions like these. In snowy months, Lamoille Canyon Scenic Byway transforms into a snowmobile superhighway. Snowshoers make fresh tracks, backcountry skiers carve lines in pristine powder, and Ruby Mountains Heli-Ski Experience (the oldest family-run heli-skiing outfit in the country) drops downhillers onto untouched peaks.
When the snow melts, the Ruby Mountains open up into a completely different kind of outdoor playground, with glacier-carved Lamoille Canyon as the range’s centerpiece. Road cyclists climb the scenic byway, mountain bikers send it on singletrack, anglers cast for tiger trout, and overnighters pack into creekside campsites. More than 100 miles of trails reward hikers with alpine lakes, waterfalls, wildflower-draped meadows, rugged peaks, and panoramic vistas throughout Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest and the Ruby Mountains Wilderness, too.
While You’re Here
- South Fork State Recreation Area—A 1,650-acre reservoir 15 miles south of Elko offering year-round fishing, boating, camping, and wildlife watching with stunning sunset views of the Ruby Mountains.
- Angel Lake—A glacial cirque lake at 8,378 feet harboring trails, campgrounds, and alpine wildlife like trout, mountain goats, and bighorn sheep.
- Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge—More than 40,000 acres of marshy wetlands attracting migratory birds and wildlife year-round, with winding waterways ideal for fishing and paddling.
The Star Hotel
Distance from Las Vegas: 420 miles
Back on pavement, Alex headed to downtown Elko to get a taste of northeastern Nevada’s history and heritage. He starts at The Star Hotel, an iconic restaurant and Silver State landmark that has been serving hearty Basque meals since 1910, back when it was a boardinghouse for seasonal sheepherders and the social hub for the local Basque community.
In the kitchen, owner Scotty Ygoa (who grew up ranching at the base of the Ruby Mountains) gave Alex a hands-on class in traditional Basque cooking. At The Star, meals often arrive family-style: soup, salad, several endless sides, and massive entrees served in steady succession at long communal tables, where strangers become dinner companions. It’s a format rooted in Basque boardinghouse culture, built around gathering, sharing, and staying awhile.
Basque influence runs deep across northern Nevada. Basque bars and dining rooms from Gardnerville to Reno to Elko serve their own takes on traditional dishes and the infamous Picon Punch. Annual Basque festivals also fill the summer months with dancing, food, and community gatherings, helping to keep the culture vibrant for generations to come.
While You’re Here
- National Basque Festival—A Fourth of July weekend celebration featuring traditional dancing, woodchopping competitions, live music, and plentiful Basque food.
- Basque Cuisine—A staple of northern Nevada’s culinary landscape, served at family-owned restaurants serving traditional dishes like lamb stew, chorizo, and giant steaks alongside abundant sides and communal-table hospitality.
- Picon Punch—Nevada’s official state drink, a highly potent, amer-based cocktail invented by Basque immigrants in the early 1900s.
J.M. Capriola Co.
Distance from Las Vegas: 420 miles
Just up the street, Alex stepped into J.M. Capriola Co., an Elko institution that’s been handcrafting saddles, leather goods, bits, spurs, and custom silverwork since 1929.
A proud “guardian of tradition,” co-owner John Wright engraves every piece using techniques passed down from legendary buckaroo gear maker G.S. Garcia—the same ones his grandparents used when they opened the shop in 1929.
Alex brought turquoise he mined in Tonopah (Episode 3: ”Digging Deeper”) and asked John to turn it into a pendant for his wife. John walked him through the silversmithing process: cutting and shaping silver, soldering a bezel, marinating the piece in a “pickle pot,” buffing and polishing, then setting the stone—all to create what Alex predicted would be “the most thoughtful thing my wife’s ever gotten.”
For visitors, J.M. Capriola Co. offers both a behind-the-scenes look at the craft and a chance to take home something uniquely Western. The shop stocks its handmade belts, buckles, boots, hats, and leather goods—each completely unique and built not just to last, but to be handed down for generations.
While You’re Here
- Cowboy Arts & Gear Museum—A free museum housed in the original J.M. Capriola building a few doors down from the current shop, showcasing historic bits, spurs, saddles, and the craftsmanship of famed silverworker G.S. Garcia.
- Silver State Stampede—Nevada’s oldest rodeo, founded by G.S. Garcia in 1912 and held annually each June, with PRCA-sanctioned events including bull riding, barrel racing, the infamous “Ring of Fear,” and a Western trade show.
National Cowboy Poetry Gathering
Distance from Las Vegas: 420 miles
While Alex and Peyton’s timing turned out less than ideal for a high-elevation trail run, it was just right for catching Elko’s premier cultural event: the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering.
Each January, Elko embraces its distinctly western roots as dozens of poets, musicians, and storytellers—along with thousands of fans—from across the country converge for six days of performances, workshops, dances, jam sessions, and townwide revelry. Headquartered at the Western Folklife Center since 1985, the Gathering has grown into the country’s largest celebration of authentic cowboy arts, culture, and working life.
Alex and Peyton sat down with Washington-based cowboy poet and musician Forrest VanTuyl, a frequent Gathering guest who performs as An American Forrest and often shares the stage with his wife, fellow cowboy country singer Margo Cilker. After a crash course in cowboy poetry, Forrest invited Alex to try writing some himself, with the two landing on a subject climbers and cowboys can instantly bond over: knots.
At first, Alex wasn’t so sure what to expect from the combination of cowboys and poetry, but it didn’t take long for him to learn the ropes and fall for the Gathering. The same held true for this entire adventure: Nevada’s cultural experiences wound up resonating far more than he ever imagined.
“It’s like a lifetime of adventure around Nevada,” he reflected. “So don’t be afraid to do things that feel a little bit different to you. Stop in the small towns that you would maybe drive past, check out the sights and scenes, enjoy the local culture a little bit more. Doing things that you’re not totally comfortable with, things that feel different to you, things that feel new.”
Things that help you get a little out there.
While You’re Here
- Elko Art Walk—A self-guided walking tour through downtown Elko featuring dozens of painted boot sculptures and more than 100 large-scale murals by artists from across the country.
- Northeastern Nevada Museum—Local, natural, and cultural history exhibits covering everything from pioneer life and mining heritage to the Great Basin ecosystem, with hundreds of storied local artifacts.
- California Trail Interpretive Center—Interactive exhibits and living history demonstrations exploring the overland migration routes that brought thousands of pioneers through northeastern Nevada.
