Special device gives unique views of Nevada’s remote areas
RENO — It’s now possible to trek through some of Nevada’s remote countryside without leaving the couch, thanks to the Google Trekker and about a dozen volunteers who carried the high-tech contraption around the state.
State tourism officials on Tuesday unveiled the footage captured over a three-week project last fall, posting the images on the TravelNevada website. They are also accessible through Google Maps.
“This is an exciting, new way to show our state to potential travelers and be among the first to use Google’s newest technology,” Claudia Vecchio, director of the Nevada Department of Tourism and Cultural Affairs, said at a news conference at the University of Nevada, Reno.
“We embrace new technology and allow room for dreamers to dream. That’s why Google Trekker made sense for TravelNevada,” she said.
Sydney Martinez, the tourism agency’s content manager, coordinated the effort, enlisting adventurous volunteers around the state to help carry the Google Trekker and capture 360-degree views of some of Nevada’s paths less traveled.
A petite woman and outdoor enthusiast, Martinez — who described herself as “tiny but mighty” — estimates she carried the 42-pound, 4-foot tall Google Trekker nearly 100 miles herself. For other stretches, she enlisted locals to pick a favorite spot to share.
Rhyolite, Lamoille Canyon, Pyramid Lake, ghost towns and mining sites, the International Car Forest of the Last Church, Lake Tahoe — all are now featured in stunning fashion.
Steve Silverman, a lead engineer at Google Maps, said the Trekker is operated by an Android device and has 15 lenses on a globelike top, each pointed in a different direction to create a panoramic view. Each camera takes a photo every two seconds.
“The beauty of this is it gets to show the stunning imagery,” Silverman said.
About two dozen locations in Nevada were photographed. The Trekker has documented some of the most stunning wonders around the globe, including the Grand Canyon, the Taj Mahal, Angkor Wat and the Galapagos Islands.
While the Nevada footage allows people to explore the state online, the bigger goal is to entice them to venture out and experience the state firsthand.
“If you get out and explore … this state has an incredible amount to offer,” Vecchio said.