Nevada’s state artifact is a duck decoy, and it’s been sitting in a desert cave for 2,000 years

They’re Nevada’s state artifact

About 20 miles outside the small town of Lovelock, a dirt road leads to one of North America’s most important archaeological sites.

The Lovelock Cave Backcountry Byway takes you on a 40-mile round trip through open desert, farmland, and wetland views before dropping you at the mouth of a cave that changed what we know about ancient life in the Great Basin.

What came out of that cave ended up in the Smithsonian. The story of how it got there starts with bat guano.

Thousands of years of shelter and storage

Native peoples, including the Northern Paiute, used this cave for thousands of years. They stored tools, clothing, and supplies inside, and the bone-dry desert air kept everything intact for centuries.

When researchers finally got inside, they pulled out more than 10,000 items, including baskets, woven mats, and textiles so well preserved you can still see the weave patterns.

The cave earned a spot on the National Register of Historic Places in 1984, and the reason sits in what those walls protected.

Tule reed decoys that fooled real ducks

The cave’s biggest claim to fame is a set of duck decoys made from bundled tule reeds. They date back about 2,000 years, making them the oldest decoys of their kind ever found anywhere on Earth.

Eleven turned up in all, eight finished and three still in progress. The finished ones had feathers attached and paint applied to look like canvasback ducks.

Ancient hunters shaped, covered, and colored them by hand to lure real birds close enough to catch.

From a desert cave to the Smithsonian

In 1995, the tule duck decoy became Nevada’s official State Artifact. That tells you how seriously people take these things.

The craftsmanship alone is worth the recognition.

Each decoy was built to mimic a canvasback duck so closely that living birds would swim right up to it. You can’t see the originals at the cave anymore, but you can find them at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C.

Step onto the wooden deck at the cave’s mouth

A wooden deck lets you walk right into the mouth of the cave. The main chamber stretches about 150 feet long and 35 feet wide, so it’s bigger than you’d expect.

Look up and you’ll see the ceiling still dark with soot from ancient fires. Bring a flashlight for the deeper sections where the daylight doesn’t reach.

The cave is empty of artifacts today, but you’re standing in the exact spot where those 10,000 items sat for centuries.

A half-mile trail climbs to a valley overlook

A short nature trail loops about a half mile up the hill above the cave. Rocks line both sides of the path, so you won’t lose your way.

About three-quarters of the way up, the trail opens to a wide overlook where the valley spreads out below you. Interpretive signs along the way explain the area’s history and the plants and animals that live here.

The walk is short, but a few sections are steep and rough, so wear solid shoes.

An Ice Age lake carved this whole valley

Everything you see from that overlook was once underwater. A massive Ice Age lake called Lake Lahontan filled this entire basin thousands of years ago.

As the climate shifted, the water slowly dried up and left behind the desert and dry lake beds that stretch out below the trail.

That ancient lake is the reason so much wildlife once gathered in this valley, and it shaped the land the cave sits in today.

Herons, eagles and ibis along the wetlands

The byway passes near wetlands that pull in birds from across the region.

Great blue herons wade the shallows, white-faced ibis pick through the mud, and egrets stand still as posts along the water’s edge. Hawks, golden eagles, and prairie falcons work the open sky above the desert.

Barn owls and smaller songbirds fill in the gaps.

The nearby Humboldt wetlands make this stretch of road a favorite for birdwatchers, so bring binoculars if you have them.

Wagon ruts from the California Trail still cut the ground

The byway crosses the old California Trail, the same route 1800s emigrants walked and rode on their way west toward new lives. In some spots, you can still see the wagon ruts pressed into the ground.

The drive also passes ranch land and farm fields that tell a more recent chapter of the valley’s history. Keep your eyes open for a windmill built by the Civilian Conservation Corps in the 1930s standing along the route.

Two miners digging bat guano changed everything

The cave sat quietly for a long time before two miners showed up in 1911. They came to dig bat guano to sell as fertilizer, not to make history.

But as they dug into the cave floor, Native American artifacts started turning up, and lots of them. Word reached researchers, and formal excavations kicked off in 1912.

Archaeologists came back to study the site on and off for decades after that, and many of the artifacts ended up in museums across the country.

Silence and open desert all to yourself

You won’t fight crowds here. Most visitors have the cave and trail nearly to themselves, and the only sounds are wind and birds.

The site sits far from any city, and that distance is part of the draw.

If you’re driving Interstate 80, the byway makes an easy side trip that takes a couple of hours and puts you in a place most people never hear about.

Many travelers pair it with a stop in Lovelock for food and fuel.

Pick up a free tour booklet at the Marzen House

The byway starts at the historic Marzen House Museum in Lovelock.

Grab a free self-guided tour booklet or a children’s activity book at the museum or the kiosk out front. Inside, the museum covers the area’s ranching and farming roots, giving you context before you hit the road.

From there, road signs marked “Lovelock Cave Byway” guide you the entire way. The town itself has the basic services you’ll need before heading into the desert.

Drive the Lovelock Cave Backcountry Byway in Nevada

You can pick up this drive right off Interstate 80 in Lovelock, starting at the Marzen House Museum.

The roads are mostly well-graded dirt and gravel, and you don’t need a high-clearance vehicle, though a few rough patches will slow you down.

Plan for two to three hours to take in the full byway and spend time at the cave. Bring plenty of water, sun protection, and sturdy shoes, because there’s nothing at the site.

Watch for rattlesnakes in warm months and keep kids close near the cliff edges.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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