I have lived in Ely for 8 years. Never have seen a skydiver here. But imagine my excitement at seeing our little town in a post! Random info for transients follows:
The FBO has a loaner pickup truck that is generally made available even for trips to the Great Basin National Park some 65 miles away. Call FBO manager Tim at 775-289-8804. Tim is top notch and has worked there for years. The FBO owner changed hands a little over a year ago, and I can't say the same for the new FBO out of state owner. Prices up and services down. No more A&P/IA. Sunday fuel sometimes by call-out with fee. No more rental cars at airport. Limited aviation oil/parts stock. Overnight in the FBO hangar was $35/night, but raised by new owner to $175/night. They apparently have really special 100LL since it is now the most expensive at non-towered airports in Nevada. $5.49, last I checked. Suggest you check Airnav for updates. NOTE: nearby airport 1L1, Lincoln County Airport in Panaca, just opened self serve 100LL pumps at $4.25/gallon. $4.98 at even-closer Eureka O5U (that is letter o). Anywhere is cheaper.
There are no rental cars (or cab service) for local use or people stuck out of town due to breakdown or animal collision. But, as mentioned, there is a good U-Haul dealer well stocked with box trucks (no vans or pickups), and sometimes one-way rentals gets those stranded to Elko (175 miles) or Las Vegas (242 miles) where there are rental cars. There might be a "Lyft" service soon, I am told. I may be able to loan a car for local use, as I live 2 miles from the airport. Some of the local hotels will pickup/drop off: Hotel Nevada (775) 289-6665 recommended. Was the tallest building in all of Nevada (6 stories) when built in the 1920's. Fun and historic place to visit, with reasonable prices and 24 hour restaurant.
Aviation info: There are 2 RVs here. An RV6 (serial number 5!) and my RV8A (not flying, pending panel upgrade). A Bearhawk, a SkyRanger, a Rans S7S, and a Kolb experimental, as well as another 4 or 5 single engine Cessnas. No twins. ASOS works well.
Other attractions in the area: the Nevada Northern Historical Railroad Museum with diesel and steam train rides and rentals, and a working steam train shop that is very welcoming to visitors (Head of Maintenance owns the Rans S7S mentioned above and is a retired airline flight engineer). And the Great Basin National Park --a beautiful park surrounding Mt. Wheeler at over 13,000 foot elevation. You can visit the high mountain lakes with short hikes and Bristlecone Pines, the oldest living plants on earth. It is a relatively new park, little if any crowds or fees. Nice! They have incredible astronomy shows during the summer with friendly/knowledgeable Rangers and high end telescopes for viewing, a feature of the local "dark skies" initiative in the region. The gateway town is Baker Nevada (year round population <100) which has accommodations at the Border Inn and Casino (775-234-7300) and the Stargazer Inn (775) 234-7323).
Special event attraction: Ely plans to host its first ever F-1 class air race this summer on June 13-16. Looks like it is coming together. If it does, more web and press info in the coming month. Nice thing is that the airport is getting an injection of paint and improvements by the County and the Tourism Board.
Hope this helps.
