Diesel Fuel on US-50??? (Loneliest Highway in America)

[ATCguy]

Hi folks... question for those who may know:

Planning to depart the Reno area late next week, and wanted to detour off the interstate to tow my 5th wheel east across the part of US-50 known as the Loneliest Highway in America. But... I can't seem to find any recent info about diesel fuel availability east of the NAS Fallon area to Ely, NV.

Google Maps says it's approximately 260 miles between those 2 areas... and with the mountainous terrain & some high passes to climb, I don't think I can make it that far with my F-450 dually pulling a heavy 5th wheel toy hauler. In that type of terrain, I usually only plan for getting about 6-mpg... and with a 36-gal fuel tank, I'm gonna be gettin real nervous after about 200 miles.

So I'm wondering if anyone has any KNOWN diesel fuel locations?

Google does show 2 Chevon gas stations along the route... one in Austin, and another in Eureka... but the Chevron website doesn't show them having diesel available, so I'm guessing they're not options. And yeah, I know I could buy a couple of 5-gal diesel fuel cans... but I really don't wanna resort to that when I can just stay on I-80 if I need to, and not worry about it

Input appreciated... Thanks.

[ppine]

Austin usually has the highest fuel prices in the state. It is remote, almost the exact middle of the state. It could be $5.00 or more for diesel. Fallon and Ely for fuel.

[caver]

Side note: if you need groceries Austin doesn't have anything from what I remember. Eureka has a small shop downtown. Ely has Ridley's on the SW edge of town. I was there (Ely)back in Sept last year. I think they have a Family Dollar in town too. Years ago I camped at a FS CG near Kingston and was bummed to find no grocery store in Austin. If Chevron didn't have it, tough luck. I asked a local and they said they drive to the Round Mountain area for groceries.

[Willcamp4]

You can get gas or diesel in Austin, Eureka and Ely (heading East.) In case you don't have it, I encourage getting the GasBuddy app on your smart phone, presuming you have one. It is free and great, and you can search stops along your route to plan fuel stops. As the number one selling car in Nevada is the Ford Crew Cab pickup with a diesel, you can get diesel all over the place, sometimes easier than gas. Enjoy the trip. It's really beautiful, especially this time of the year.

[ATCguy]

Ok... thanks everyone for the replies.

[4runnerguy]

There is diesel at the Chevron stations in both Austin and Eureka. Between the mining and the ranching, there are lots of diesel trucks in this area, so I'm sure they sell a lot of it.

Enjoy the drive. IMHO a much better option for going across NV than I-80. Our preferred route.

[MarkTwain]

6 mpg??? I would suggest having your engine checked out. That kind of milage I hear reported for Big class A pushers. My Diesel 3500 gets 11 to 12 mpg while towing a 12K 5th wheel.

[ppine]

I used to drive US 50 the Lincoln Highway once a month for a couple of years. Top off your tanks in Fallon. Austin has the highest price on the road, avoid buying fuel there. Ely is your best bet. Stop in Eureka, one of the nicest small towns around. Austin has great history.

US 50 crosses many mountain ranges, there are 276 of them in Nevada, classic Basin and Range country. The Toiyabe Range east of Austin is the steepest. Take your time and gear down over the central ranges like the Taquimas and Monitors. Spring is the grand time to be out there. The valleys have greened up with plenty of snow in the mountains. There is a lot to look at. I love 50. Watch out for livestock on the road, cattle and horses. It is best not to drive at night.

Take some time to appreciate the mining and ranching heritage of the area.

[accsys]

When we drove that route back in 2013 we drove from Carson City to Moab with three stops in between. It is a little over 500 miles from Carson City to the Flying J at Scipio, UT just after you get on I-15. That is the only fill up we did during that portion of the trip. Since you are pulling a fiver , I would think you would be stopping somewhere along that journey and could disconnect and get you truck into one of the many filling stations that exist in the larger towns along that route - Ely and Delta come to mind. Ely has a Loves Travel Center that I'm sure has diesel. That particular section of the trip is also covered in our blog with the first stop in Ely, NV.

[bucky]

55 gallons times 11 mpg = 605 miles. Or did you mean when not towing?

[MarkTwain]

azdryheat wrote:
I have a 91 gallon diesel tank in my truck bed so I'm good for about 1000 towing miles. Get an extra tank in your bed, even a small one, and you'll never again be looking for a gas station on a lonely road.

Was going to make the same suggestion!!! Call "Transfer Flow" in Chico for a replacment diesel tank. The best $1200 dollars I ever spent. They can remove and replace your original tank with a larger tank in 1 day. My tank is now 55 gal. and at 11 mpg I can get approx. 1000 to 1200 miles before needing a refill depending on how heavy my foot is on the fuel petal:):) This also allows me to drive until I find the lowest price diesel.

[azdryheat]

I have a 91 gallon diesel tank in my truck bed so I'm good for about 1000 towing miles. Get an extra tank in your bed, even a small one, and you'll never again be looking for a gas station on a lonely road.

[Ed_Gee]

My GasBuddy app shows the two Chevron Stations along that route DO have Diesel.
I find it hard to believe that any major vendor gas station along such a route would not carry diesel, given the huge number of diesel powere pickups and cars today,

[Nv_Guy]

It's been a while since I ran hwy 50 with my Diesel.
According to Gas Buddy, the Chevron in Austin has Diesel (775) 964-2579) as does the Chevron in Eureka.
Both stations are right on their main streets and are fairly accessible.
The worst pull is right out of Austin, other than that it isn't all that bad a route. Do pay attention to the speed limits in and around the small towns.