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53-519: It is the only natural transportation artery across the Great Basin and has historically provided a route for westward migration. Additionally, two major railroad routes loosely follow its path. Interstate 80 follows the river's course from its source to its mouth. The river was named by John C. Frémont for the German naturalist Alexander von Humboldt . The region of the river in northern Nevada

106-583: A 2-foot (0.6 m) rise over the past 17 years along Maggie Creek. Stream flows are more perennial, making more water available for wildlife and livestock and protecting populations of native trout. Maggie Creek has a Beaver Creek tributary which flows from Beaver Peak in the Tuscarora Mountains . The Humboldt River and its surrounding areas have raised some concern about the increasing levels of toxic elements such as arsenic and mercury . These elements show in fish and other wildlife that consume

159-655: A comeback in Elko County , possibly due to less fur trapping combined with reduced consumption of riparian willow and other vegetation by cattle. Maggie and Susie Creeks, which enter the Humboldt River near Carlin , have benefited from 20 years of work by ranchers, agencies, mines, and non-profit groups via improvements in grazing techniques and specific projects. A remote sensing project found 107 beaver dams along 20 miles (32 km) of Maggie Creek in 2006, which rose to 271 dams in 2010. Beaver dams are accelerating

212-644: A few miles of Park City as it follows a route through the mountains toward the junction with the eastern terminus of the western section of I-84 . From the junction it continues up Echo Canyon and on toward the border with Wyoming , near Evanston . The route of the Utah section of I-80 is defined in Utah Code Annotated § 72-4-113(10). In Wyoming , I-80 reaches its maximum elevation of 8,640 feet (2,630 m) above sea level at Sherman Summit , near Buford , which, at 8,000 feet (2,400 m),

265-516: A milestone in the history of highway construction in the United States. It was also noted at the dedication that this was only 50 miles (80 km) south of Promontory Summit , where another first in a transcontinental artery was completed—the golden spike of the US's first transcontinental railroad . John McPhee described the geology revealed by the building of I-80 in a series of books on

318-482: A narrow gap located just downstream from Comus. The lower basin is an area encompassing some 4,100 square miles (11,000 km) from below Emigrant Canyon and extending through the Humboldt Sink in northwestern Nevada. A hydrologic definition instead divides the Humboldt River drainage into two basins—one above and one below Palisade—based on flows that increase above and decrease below this part of

371-559: A severe threat. Interstate 80 Interstate 80 ( I-80 ) is an east–west transcontinental freeway that crosses the United States from San Francisco, California , to Teaneck, New Jersey , in the New York metropolitan area . The highway was designated in 1956 as one of the original routes of the Interstate Highway System ; its final segment was opened in 1986. The second-longest Interstate Highway in

424-930: Is located within 10 miles (16 km) of the Michigan state line but does not enter that state. From the State Road ;9 (SR 9) and I-80/I-90 interchange, the sign marking the Indiana–Michigan state line is visible. I-80/I-90 passes through the South Bend–Mishawaka metropolitan area , passing the University of Notre Dame and the University Park Mall , intersecting with the St. Joseph Valley Parkway . At another point in northern Indiana, I-80/I-90 comes within about 200 yards (180 m) of

477-428: Is still contaminated. They believe the contamination came from prior mining excursions. Mercury was commonly mined in the area and so was gold. Whether it was leaching from the gold mining process or leftover mercury ore, these toxic elements entered the environment and waterway. Since then, these levels have gone down considerably. The U.S. Geological Survey and other committees conducted a couple of surveys to determine

530-819: Is the highest community on I-80. Farther west in Wyoming, the Interstate passes through the dry Red Desert and over the Continental Divide . In a way, the highway crosses the Divide twice, since two ridges of the Rocky Mountains split in Wyoming, forming the endorheic Great Divide Basin , from which surface water cannot drain but can only evaporate. I-80 enters Nebraska west of Bushnell . The western portion of I-80 in Nebraska runs very close to

583-742: Is the main east–west freeway through the central part of the state. It runs from the Ohio state line near Sharon to the Delaware Water Gap Toll Bridge over the Delaware River and is called the "Z.H. Confair Memorial Highway". It traverses the extreme northern section of Greater Pittsburgh . I-80 serves as the western terminus for I-376 which connects it to Pittsburgh International Airport and on to Downtown Pittsburgh and suburban Pittsburgh. I-80 intersects I-79 , which connects with Erie (about 75 miles (121 km) to

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636-542: The Great Salt Lake Desert , is extremely flat and straight, dotted with large warning signs about driver fatigue and drowsiness. East of the salt flats, I-80 passes the southern edge of Great Salt Lake and continues on through Salt Lake City , where it merges with I-15 for three miles (5 km) before entering the Wasatch Range east of the city. It ascends Parleys Canyon and passes within

689-614: The Little Humboldt River . The source of the main stem of the river is a spring called Humboldt Wells at the northern tip of the East Humboldt Range , just outside the city of Wells . The river flows west-southwest through Elko County , past the communities of Elko and Carlin . Approximately 15 miles (24 km) upstream from Elko, the river receives the North Fork of the Humboldt River and receives

742-754: The Mississippi River into Illinois. The majority of the highway runs through farmland, yet roughly a third of Iowa's population live along the I-80 corridor. In Illinois , I-80 runs from the Fred Schwengel Memorial Bridge across the Mississippi River south to an intersection with I-74 . It then runs east across north-central Illinois just north of the Illinois River to Joliet . I-80 continues east through

795-775: The Ohio Turnpike . I-80 runs concurrently with I-90 from near Portage, Indiana , to Elyria, Ohio . In Pennsylvania , I-80 is known as the Keystone Shortway , a non-tolled freeway that crosses rural north-central portions of the state on the way to New Jersey and New York City. I-80 begins at an interchange with US Route 101 (US 101) in San Francisco and then crosses the San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge into Oakland . It then heads northeast through Vallejo , Sacramento , and

848-815: The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) and the PTC signed a 50-year lease agreement, which would allow the PTC to maintain and, eventually, toll I-80. However, the application for a toll was rejected by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). I-80 does not enter New York City . Once the I-95 / New Jersey Turnpike was extended in 1971 from its former terminus at US 46 in Ridgefield to I-80 in Teaneck ,

901-794: The Reese River near Battle Mountain and receives the Little Humboldt River approximately 5 miles (8 km) upstream from Winnemucca . Past the junction with the Little Humboldt, the river turns southwest, flowing past Winnemucca and through Pershing County , along the western side of the Humboldt Range and the West Humboldt Range . In central Pershing County, the Rye Patch Dam impounds

954-575: The Sierra Nevada before crossing into Nevada . A portion of the route through Pinole involved the experimental transplantation of the rare species Santa Cruz tarplant in the right-of-way . In Nevada , I-80 traverses the northern portion of the state. The freeway serves the Reno metropolitan area , and it also goes through the towns of Fernley , Lovelock , Winnemucca , Battle Mountain , Elko , Wells , and West Wendover on its way through

1007-658: The Transcontinental Railroad . In the 20th century, the valley of the river became the route for U.S. Route 40 , later replaced by Interstate 80 . In the latter part of the 20th century, about 45,000 people lived within 10 miles (16 km) of the river, roughly a third of the population at that time of the State of Nevada outside of Western Nevada and Southern Nevada , before the rapid 21st-century growth of Southern Nevada changed these population figures. The Humboldt River can be divided geographically into

1060-535: The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) listed the Lahontan cutthroat trout (LCT) as “endangered”. In 1975 it reclassified LCT as “threatened” to facilitate management and to allow regulated fishing. Genetic and meristic studies of LCT indicate that the Humboldt River Basin LCT is a unique subspecies of cutthroat trout. North American beavers ( Castor canadensis ) seem to have been making

1113-750: The Western United States : the Oregon Trail across Wyoming and Nebraska , the California Trail across most of Nevada and California , the first transcontinental airmail route, and the route of the first transcontinental railroad , except for the vicinity of the Great Salt Lake . From near Chicago east to near Youngstown, Ohio , I-80 is a toll road , containing most of both the Indiana Toll Road and

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1166-606: The southern suburbs of Chicago and joins I-94 just before entering Indiana. In Indiana , I-80 runs concurrently with another Interstate Highway for its entire length. It runs with I-94 on the Borman Expressway from the Illinois state line to Lake Station, Indiana , then with I-90 on the Indiana Toll Road from Lake Station to the Ohio state line. Between La Porte and the Toledo metropolitan area , I-80/I-90

1219-461: The Bonneville expedition called it "Ogden's River", the name used by many early travelers. By the early 1840s, the trail along the river was being used by settlers going west to California . The river provided drinkable water to earlier travelers on foot, but later emigrants using wagons required the significant riparian vegetation along its length as forage for their draft animals . In 1841,

1272-601: The Border Fault, it pussyfoots along on morainal till that levelled up the fingers of the foldbelt hills. It does a similar dance with glacial debris in parts of Pennsylvania. It needs no assistance on the craton. It climbs a ramp to the Rockies and a fault-block staircase up the front of the Sierra. It is geologically shrewd. It was the route of animal migrations, and of human history that followed. It avoids melodrama, avoids

1325-760: The Grand Canyons, the Jackson Holes, the geologic operas of the country, but it would surely be a sound experience of the big picture, of the history, the construction, the components of the continent. Marys River (Nevada) Marys River is a stream in the U.S. state of Nevada . It is a tributary to the Humboldt River . Marys River was named by a pioneer citizen after his Native American wife. 41°03′12″N 115°17′01″W  /  41.05333°N 115.28361°W  / 41.05333; -115.28361 This article related to

1378-671: The Grand Island area and milemarker 390 near Lincoln . Along this length, the road does not vary from an ideally straight line by more than a few yards. After Lincoln, I-80 turns northeast toward Omaha . It then crosses the Missouri River in Omaha to enter the state of Iowa . Part of I-80 in Nebraska is marked as a Blue Star Memorial Highway . I-80 is the longest Interstate Highway in Iowa . It extends from west to east across

1431-401: The Little Humboldt, encountering the main river at the confluence near Winnemucca . Ogden explored the river for several hundred miles, blazing a trail along it and making the first known map of the region. He initially named the river "Unknown River", due to the source and course of the river still unknown to him, and later "Paul's River", after one of his trappers who died on the expedition and

1484-647: The Michigan border. In Ohio , I-80/I-90 enters from the Indiana Toll Road and immediately becomes the Ohio Turnpike. The two Interstates cross rural northwest Ohio and run just south of the Toledo metropolitan area . In Rossford , the turnpike intersects I-75 in an area known as the Crossroads of America. This intersection is one of the largest intersections of three Interstate Highways in

1537-629: The Mississippi River, 2,250 feet (690 m), although other Interstate Highways east of the Mississippi, including I-26 in North Carolina and Tennessee, reach higher elevations. In 2007, the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission (PTC), combined with state legislature Act No. 44, initiated plans to enact a tolling system on the entire span of I-80 throughout the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. On October 15, 2007,

1590-596: The South Fork approximately 7 miles (11 km) downstream of Elko. In northern Eureka County , it passes through Palisade Canyon between the southern end of the Tuscarora Mountains and the north end of the Shoshone Range . At Battle Mountain , the river turns northwest for approximately 50 miles (80 km), then west at Red House and past Golconda and a spur of the Sonoma Range . It merges with

1643-545: The United States after I-90 , it runs through many major cities, including Oakland , Sacramento , Reno , Salt Lake City , Omaha , Des Moines , and Toledo and passes within 10 miles (16 km) of Chicago , Cleveland , and New York City . I-80 is the Interstate Highway that most closely approximates the route of the historic Lincoln Highway , the first road across the United States. The highway roughly traces other historically significant travel routes in

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1696-451: The United States. In Elyria Township , just west of Cleveland , I-90 splits from I-80, leaving the turnpike and running northeast as a freeway. I-80 runs east-southeast through the southern suburbs of Cleveland. Just northwest of Youngstown , the Ohio Turnpike continues southeast as I-76 , while I-80 exits the turnpike and runs east to the north of Youngstown, entering Pennsylvania south of Sharon, Pennsylvania . In Pennsylvania , I-80

1749-673: The central portion of the state through the population centers of Council Bluffs , Des Moines, and the Quad Cities . It enters the state at the Missouri River in Council Bluffs and heads east through the southern Iowa drift plain . In the Des Moines metropolitan area , I-80 meets up with I-35 and the two routes bypass Downtown Des Moines together while I-235 proceeds straight through the metro and rejoins both on

1802-832: The far side. In Ankeny , the Interstates split and I-80 continues east. On the west edge of the Iowa City metropolitan area , it intersects I-380 , a segment of the Avenue of the Saints . Northwest of the Quad Cities in Walcott is Iowa 80 , the world's largest truckstop. I-80 passes along the northern edge of Davenport and Bettendorf and leaves Iowa via the Fred Schwengel Memorial Bridge over

1855-481: The formation of the continent of North America , books that were published between 1981 and 1993 and collected in a one-volume edition in 1998 Annals of the Former World which won a Pulitzer Prize in 1999. In "Basin and Range" (1981), he described how the idea emerged in a conversation with Princeton geologist Kenneth S. Deffeyes : What about Interstate 80, I asked him. It goes the distance. How would it be? "Absorbing," he said. And he mused aloud: After 80 crosses

1908-504: The north) and Pittsburgh (about 55 miles (89 km) to the south). Further east, I-99 connects with State College and Altoona . A spur from I-80 ( I-180 ) runs to Williamsport . Upon entering the Pocono Mountains region, I-80 meets I-81 , connecting Syracuse, New York , and Harrisburg , and I-476 which connects with Scranton , Wilkes-Barre , Allentown , and Philadelphia . Another spur ( I-380 ) runs to Scranton. In Clearfield County , I-80 reaches its highest elevation east of

1961-418: The original route of the Victory Highway , State Route 1 (SR 1), and US 40 . After crossing Utah 's western border in Wendover , I-80 crosses the desolate Bonneville Salt Flats west of the Great Salt Lake . The longest stretch between exits on an Interstate Highway is located between Wendover and Knolls , with 37.4 miles (60.2 km) between those exits. This portion of I-80, crossing

2014-459: The recovery of riparian vegetation and widening the riparian zone as they slow the water and collect sediment that used to be lost downstream. In five years, beaver ponds have increased the amount of impounded water on Maggie Creek from 9 miles (14 km) of the stream to 16 miles (26 km). The impounded water is seeping into the ground and raising the water table. Newmont 's shallow groundwater monitoring wells along Maggie Creek have shown about

2067-419: The river (then known as Mary's River) first became the route of the California Trail with the Bartleson–Bidwell Party , later becoming the primary land route for migrants to the California gold fields . In 1845 the river was explored by John C. Frémont , who made a thorough map of the region and gave the river its current name. In 1869 the river was used as part of the route of the Central Pacific segment of

2120-480: The river's flow ceases to increase and begins to decrease. Also, since the Humboldt's water comes almost exclusively from snowmelt, its flow is highly variable from season to season (peak flow occurs during the spring melt) and from year to year (depending on the amount of snow every winter) The Lahontan cutthroat trout ( Oncorhynchus clarki henshawi ) is an inland subspecies of cutthroat trout endemic to northern Nevada, eastern California, and southern Oregon. In 1970,

2173-413: The river, forming the Rye Patch Reservoir , which stores water to irrigate farms near Lovelock , 22 miles (35 km) downstream. The Humboldt empties into an intermittent lake in the Humboldt Sink on the border between Pershing and Churchill counties, approximately 20 miles (32 km) southwest of Lovelock. The river gains most of its water from snowmelt in the mountains in the eastern part of

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2226-419: The river. The river in the upper basin is 92 miles (148 km) long, and in the lower basin it is 218 miles (351 km) long. The major tributaries of the upper Humboldt River basin are (heading downstream) Bishop Creek, Marys River , Lamoille Creek, North Fork Humboldt River , South Fork Humboldt River , Susie Creek , Maggie Creek , and Marys Creek; of the lower basin they are Pine Creek, Reese River, and

2279-422: The safety of the drinking water. In 1962 the Water Resources Bulletin, out of Carson City , conducted one of the first main tests. This preliminary test was to determine every mineral, element, and ion present. The next big test was done in 1985 by the U.S. Geological Survey. They took samples from a much more local area and determined concentrations were high, but not abnormally high. Another more recent test, which

2332-506: The section from Teaneck to Fort Lee was resigned as I-95, and it is the latter roadway that enters New York City via the George Washington Bridge . I-80's designated end (as per signage and New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) documents) is four miles (6.4 km) short of New York City in Teaneck, before the Degraw Avenue overpass. There, signs designate the end of I-80 and the beginning of I-95/New Jersey Turnpike northbound. One section of I-80 running from Netcong to Denville

2385-439: The state of Colorado , without entering the state. The intersection of I-76 and I-80 is visible from the Colorado–Nebraska state line. From its intersection with I-76 to Grand Island , I-80 lies in the valley of the South Platte River and the Platte River . The longest straight stretch of Interstate anywhere in the Interstate Highway System is the approximately 72 miles (116 km) of I-80 occurring between exit 318 in

2438-436: The state. The Nevada portion of I-80 follows the paths of the Truckee and Humboldt rivers, which have been used as a transportation corridor since the California Gold Rush of the 1840s. The Interstate also follows the historical routes of the California Trail , first transcontinental railroad , and Feather River Route throughout portions of the state. I-80 in Nevada closely follows, and at many points directly overlaps,

2491-409: The upper, middle, and lower divisions based on Palisade Canyon and Emigrant Canyon being the major constriction points along the Humboldt River Valley. The upper basin begins in northeastern Nevada and drains about 5,000 square miles (13,000 km) upstream from Palisade . The middle basin has a drainage area of about 7,800 square miles (20,000 km) and lies between Palisade and Emigrant Canyons,

2544-473: The water. The quantity being absorbed by fish specifically is not of concerning levels, though. Brumbaugh and May took samples of fish from the south fork of the Humboldt River. They determined that mercury levels within the fish were between 0.061 and 0.082 micrograms per gram of flesh. This is well below the EPA's guideline of 0.30 micrograms per gram. However, though low levels are found in animals, many people are concerned that drinking water and surrounding land

2597-404: The watershed, most importantly the Ruby Mountains , Jarbidge Mountains , and Independence Mountains . River flow generally decreases downstream to the west, partly due to water removal from the river for irrigation, especially near Lovelock. Stream-gauge measurements undertaken by the United States Geological Survey suggest that Palisade Canyon, between Carlin and Beowawe , is the point where

2650-409: Was buried on the river bank. He later changed it again to "Mary's River," named after the Native American wife of one of his trappers, which later somehow became "St. Mary's River". However, in 1829 he suggested that "Swampy River" best described the course he had traversed. In 1833 the Bonneville–Walker fur party explored the river, naming it "Barren River". Washington Irving 's 1837 book describing

2703-401: Was constructed in 1958. I-80 was included in the original plan for the Interstate Highway System as approved in 1956. The highway was built in segments, with the final piece of I-80 completed in 1986 on the western edge of Salt Lake City . This piece was coincidentally dedicated close to the 30th birthday of the Interstate Highway System, which was noted at the dedication and considered to be

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2756-608: Was done in 2002, was specifically on mercury being leached from abandoned mines. However, this test determined that mercury levels dropped off very quickly the further away the tests were done. Finally, the most recent study, done in 2019, was an extremely comprehensive test which included samples from numerous places throughout the river's path. This test was based out of the University of Nevada Reno and determined what elements and minerals were present. It also determined that toxic element concentrations were fairly consistent. This means that while these elements are present, they do not pose

2809-427: Was sparsely inhabited by Numic-speaking people at the time of the arrival of European American settlers. The region was little known by non-indigenous peoples until the arrival of fur trappers in the early 19th century. The first recorded sighting of the river was on November 9, 1828, by Peter Skene Ogden of the Hudson's Bay Company , during his fifth expedition to the Snake Country . Odgen came southward along

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