Shortly afterwards it started to very lightly sprinkle but it was kind of nice while driving through the desert. We approached our second stop of the day, a pair of kilns that used to be used to make charcoal for smelting silver. We got to the turn off for it and saw that the drive off to it was a dirt road. Court decided that we are on an adventure so off we went to get closer. We see this structure that they have built over them to help preserve them and pull up next to it. We open the doors to go get some pictures and it smells very strongly of urine. While we are still reeling a bit from the odor another car comes rolling by from deeper in the desert. We rush through some pictures, Gideon and I being willing to brave it a bit longer than Court and Abby and get back in the car. Court decided to go down the way the other car came out to see if there was a nice vista out there but we decided pretty quickly that we should head back. Through the drive back it continued to smell of urine so strongly that we switched the car from fresh air to recirculate.
We drive on and decide to stop at a visitor center for the Inyo National Forest since we all need to visit the bathroom and it's an opportunity to add to the ever growing collections again. As we step out here it still smells strongly of urine so we have decided by this point that it has something to do with the rain and desert. After the visit we keep driving down the road and Abby mentions that she misses seeing the cleaning robots in Stop and Shop and that she likes how they put "boobily eyes" on them. We all enjoy a lot of conversation about what that would look like and what other stores things like that might belong at.
Lunch time rolls around and we decide to go to a local place that the reviews indicate you should ignore the apparence of because the burgers are excellent. Again since Gideon is such a burger buff we decide to give it a shot. As we approach it we are in a residental area and it doesn't look like there's burger shop here at all. We pull off and sure enough there is a place here and it is REALLY sketchy looking. There's even a sign saying that you can't turn back once you enter. There is already a car at the window though so we figure why the heck not. As we pull up behind them we notice that it looks like there are no lights on in the ordering area at all and it looks like the people from the car in front of us are milling about trying to figure out what's going on. We let them do that for a bit before we decide to attempt to back out even though the sign said not to since the people in front of us appeared a lot more determined than we were willing to be. A few panicked and slow minutes later of backing out, the people in front of us pull out so we just pull through. As we get to the window we can see for sure that no one is here. We head off to get some food at Taco Bell since no one was willing to try anything else new at this point and head out. Since we are in Bishop and the next gas station is over 160 miles away, we fill up too while here and grab some pictures with the start of Route 6 sign.
We spend a long time driving and checking out some ghost towns before we roll into Tonopah which apparently used to be a big place to be while the silver mines in the area were booming but now it is a smaller place but still has a lot of character. Like most of the other small towns like this, it feels like the casinos, which really should be called slot parlors, are in every business. Every business except for the World Famous Clown Hotel. Yes you ready that right and it's about as horrifying as you think it might be. There are HUGE decorative clowns on the outside and the office has a big colorful clown face. We drive by glad that we don't have a reservation there for the night.
Shortly after this town there is the ghost town of Warm Springs which I was looking forward to because it has this old pool that's fed by a hot spring so I thought that it might be a cool place for pictures. It's also at the intersection with the Extraterrestrial Highway which is kind of fun. As we get near and turn a corner we see a "Low Flying Aircraft" sign which is interesting considering I don't see anything in the arae but what's more amusing is that someone has put a black stripe at the top of the L and the sign now says "Cow Flying Aircraft". Now, this was funny on its own but when we got to the bottom of the hill and saw that the only inhabitants of Warm Springs now was someone's herd of cattle that were grazing among the buildings, it made it even more amusing. Unfortunately there were all sorts of keep out signs around the town and there was a barbed wire fence up around it so we didn't go getting pictures.
We finally make it to Ely for the night and as we drive we realize that, according to the signs at the town line, there are more churches here than places to eat. We pull into the hotel and there's a casino, hotel and restaurant next door. It has been a long day of driving so we figured we would eat here for the night since it was Mexican and all of us can find something we want to eat at a Mexican place. You have to walk through the casino to get to the hotel and Gideon keeps repeating "I just don't want to get arrested" while waiting for our seat. We finally get our seats, order and eat at what feels like a normal pace but here is where things go south. The kids decide to order dessert of a chocolate cake and fried ice cream. After what feels like an eternity without anyone stopping by or clearing our dinner plates, Court just tells the waiter nevermind on the dessert. He informs us that the kitchen is just really backed up but they could get the chocolate cake quickly so we agree to that. The chocolate cake comes out but still no check. We wait for a long time for the check to come and while we are waiting Court overhears the people in the next booth complaining about how long it's taking too. Eventually we flag the guy down, pay and head back to our hotel for the night.