Ten miles south of Reno, on U.S. 395 near the junction of the road to historic Virginia City, is Steamboat Hot Springs, a popular stop for travelers since the mid-1800s. Legend has it that Mark Twain named the geothermal area because it looked and sounded like a chugging Mississippi River paddle-wheeler. It is said when he first saw the steam rising from the ground he exclaimed, "Behold! A Steamboat in the desert." Over the years, the area has been used for its relaxing and curative qualities by Indians, settlers, and geothermal experts. Since the mid-1980s five geothermal power plants have been built at Steamboat Springs and in December 1996 it was announced that the proposed largest geothermal district heating system in the U.S. would supply an industrial park in the area