Wild Nevadacast

From August 2025 - Rockhounding can be a lot of fun for many people, but where are the good places to hunt?  Hilary Loupee, President of the Reno Gem & Mineral Society tells us about the Society’s field trips to great rockhounding spots and explains how the Society has an impressive array of tools to turn your discoveries into works of art. 

https://renogemandmineralsociety.org/

We revisit our February conversation with Rafael Villanueva, the CEO of Travel Nevada, which recently launched a new statewide travel show on Outside TV.  Villanueva tells us about this exciting series, Get A Little Out There with Alex Honnold.  

You can see it at watch.outsideonline.com and travelnevada.com.

Merrisa Petersen is the founder of the Dirt Road Society and the organizer of the Backcountry Offroad Expo, happening August 8-9th at the Livestock Events Center in Reno. She previews the event for us and teases the equipment, vehicles, and activities available for all to enjoy. 

More at backcountryoffroadexpo.com

Actor and Playwright Doug Sellers has added “author” to his resume with The Road to Belmont, his debut novel featuring the mostly historical, partly fictional story of his family’s fascinating story.

YouTuber Steve Ellison talks about his series, The Reno You Know.  Ellison brings history to life for his viewers as old Reno returns to tell its stories, including historic locations, people and restoration projects that protect local landmarks 

You can watch The Reno You Know at https://www.youtube.com/@SteveTRYK

With his latest book now available, we revisit the episode with Jack Kelly, Creator of Wild Nevada.  25 years after he created Wild Nevada, Jack celebrates the anniversary with a visit and shares his memories and favorite moments from his Wild Nevada experiences.  You can find Jack’s latest book, Death Treads Lightly, at books.by/jack-kelly. 

We revisit a favorite from April 2025 as Sutro Tunnel Caretaker Spencer Davidson joins Executive Director Chris Pattison to give an update on the progress of the ambitious project at Sutro, which Wild Nevada last visited in 2022.  

For more go to thesutrotunnel.org/

Dillon Osleger explains how our trails are our throughline across centuries.  They do more than just guide us along natural pathways, they tell us stories and connect us with those who came before.  His book Trail Work: Restoring the Paths and Stories of America's Public Lands is available beginning May 12.

We're revisiting some favorite podcasts from the series. Last year Helena Guglielmino told us she was writing a book.  Now she’s back to share the fruits of her labor - Urban Trails: Reno, a guide to 42 of the best hiking paths around the Reno area. 

We're revisiting some favorite podcasts from the series. Journalists like John Glionna are not common, so it’s fun to hear from such an adventurous writer who commits to finding his stories wherever they may be, across the world or in our backyard.  His latest book is Rebels & Outliers: Real Stories of the American West, and some of those stories come from right here in Nevada.   

We reconnect with Larry Neel, who took us on a wildlife photography journey in the 2014 Wild Nevada special and who now has a newly published book of his own wildlife photos entitled Shadows in the Sagebrush.  

Rafael Villanueva is the CEO of Travel Nevada, which is part of a team premiering a new statewide travel show on Outside TV.  Villanueva tells us about this exciting series, Get A Little Out There with Alex Honnold.  

25 years after he created Wild Nevada, Jack Kelly celebrates the anniversary with a visit via Zoom and shares his memories and favorite moments from his Wild Nevada experiences. We also tease Jack's current passion, writing, and continue the conversation on the PBS Reno Arts podcast.

We're starting the year with some favorite podcasts from the series. Chris DeFranco is the man behind the production of Outdoor Nevada, Vegas PBS' statewide recreation show hosted by Connor Fields.  DeFranco has a lot of compelling stories about the production and his passion is evident as he shares some of his memorable experiences.  Recorded in June, 2025.

We're starting the year with some favorite podcasts from the series. Harmony Heywood combined her love of history and good old fashioned paper maps into a YouTube channel called Map Adventures, where she teaches us everything from the dramatic and lesser-known stories of our region to how to properly read and fold a map.