DAY 1: North from the Border

The Review-Journal recently spent six days following U.S. Highway 95, from the southern tip of the state to the Oregon border, passing through Las Vegas, where it widens to a 10-lane urban freeway, and continuing on as it narrows to a two-lane rural ribbon stretching straight to the horizon.

Along the way, reporter Paul Harasim and photographer Jeff Scheid spoke with Nevadans about the issues on their minds as the Silver State prepares to play an unprecedented role in electing the next president of the United States.

The opinions they chronicled -- the basis for stories that begin today and run through Friday -- were as varied, unvarnished and unexpected as the terrain crossed by Nevada's longest highway.