Cave Lake State Park is a public recreation area occupying more than 4,000 acres in the Schell Creek Range, adjacent to Humboldt National Forest, in White Pine County, Nevada. The state park is located at an elevation of 7,300 feet 20 miles southeast of Ely and is accessed via U.S. Route 50 and Success Summit Road. It features a 32-acre reservoir for fishing, flat-wake boating, and camping.
Although the lake is currently drained for dam reconstruction, we hope it will re-open in time for the 2025 NCKMS conference.
Audio Tour: Cave Lake & Ward Charcoal Ovens
The park is popular for brown and rainbow trout fishing, ice fishing, crawdadding, camping, and picnicking. Hiking is offered on four developed trails, three to five miles in length. For overnight stays, the park offers a yurt and two designated campgrounds, Elk Flat and Lake View, with modern facilities. Winter activities include ice fishing, ice skating, cross-country skiing, and snowmobiling.
Ely's annual Fire and Ice Festival is held in January at the park, sufficient ice and snow permitting. The event, which began in 2005, features an ice and snow sculpture contest, and concludes with a fireworks show. Bathtub races have also been held at the lake each year since 2010. Both events have been named by the American Bus Association among the top 100 events in North America.
Cave Lake State Park is located about 20 miles southeast of Ely via U.S. 93. Turn off on the Highway 486 exit and continue about 6.4miles to the park entrance.
Video compliments of KNPB - PBS Reno, Nevada
German brown trout are found in Cave Lake and the park's streams. Hatchery rainbow trout are stocked in the lake, which is fed by Cave Creek and empties into Steptoe Creek. Big game animals such as elk and mule deer, and predators such as bobcat, mountain lion and coyote, reside in the area. Hawks and eagles are common, as are vulture, pinyon jay, magpie and varieties of waterfowl and songbirds. Several varieties of reptiles are present including the occasional western rattlesnake.
Park vegetation is typical of the Great Basin and includes aspen, big sagebrush, rabbitbrush, Mormon tea, wild rose, chokecherry and currant. A pinyon/juniper woodland area interspersed with wetlands surrounds Cave Lake. Sedimentary limestone and shale, typical of the Great Basin, dominates park geology, and the area is characterized by large up-thrusts, narrow canyons and shallow caves.
Park weather is highly seasonal with wide variations in temperature. Summertime highs may range from 90°F to a low 40°F. Wintertime highs are often in the 30s and 40s, and nights are often below zero. Extreme lows may reach thirty below zero. Snow is common from early December through early April, with several feet on the ground through peak winter months. The remainder of the year is relatively dry, and rain and snow showers are infrequent. Ely, Nevada, weather reports are consistent with weather at the park.
Elevation: 7,198 ft
State: Nevada
District: White Pine County
Coordinates (WGS84): 39.19376, -114.69638
Nearest town: Ely, NV
Distance from the convention center: 21 miles
The reservoir you see today at Cave Lake was originally built to serve the Civilian Conservation Corps, who were working in the area during the 1930s. The property switched hands a few times among local ranchers, but in 1968, all 1,240 acres of the modern day park was sold to Nevada Department of Fish and Game for a whole $10.00. In 1973, the land was transferred to Nevada State Parks, and has been welcoming recreationalists since. Image courtesy of Nevada Commission on Tourism.
There are 48 miles of perennial streams, and over 400 springs in the South Snake Range, home to Great Basin National Park. Over 75% of wildlife species are dependent upon these riparian areas for food, water, and cover at some stage of their life cycles.
Scattered rain showers between 11am and 2pm, then scattered showers and thunderstorms between 2pm and 5pm. Mostly sunny, with a high near 57. North northeast wind around 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 30%. New rainfall amounts less than a tenth of an inch possible.
Partly cloudy, with a low around 29. North northeast wind 10 to 15 mph.
Scattered showers and thunderstorms between 11am and 5pm. Partly sunny, with a high near 61. Northeast wind 10 to 15 mph. Chance of precipitation is 40%. New rainfall amounts less than a tenth of an inch possible.
Troglodyte Playing Cards
We have no idea what these will look like yet, but we couldn't think of hosting NCKMS in Nevada without offering some themed-out playing cards. There's a good chance the card backs will feature a cave animal of the year, but we still have some time to figure it out.
Advance registration for the 2025 symposium is expected to open in mid-2024. We will send an email to past attendees when that system comes online.
Feel free to join our mailing list if you would like to receive occasional updates on our plans.