The ground shook and emergency vehicle windows rattled as a pipe bomb discovered Monday evening near Clear Creek Road was exploded by the Tahoe Douglas Bomb Squad.
Both lanes of Highway 50 were closed about 6:30 p.m. while technicians detonated the device.
The bomb was described as approximately a foot long and two inches in diameter. A motorcyclist found it while riding a trail between Highway 50 West and Clear Creek Road 1.7 miles from the valley floor.
Using "counter-explosives" and a remote triggering device the bomb squad detonated the pipe in a turnout at 6:45 p.m. from around a ridge. Clear Creek Road was closed to traffic during the operation.
Little is known about where the bomb came from, according to an officer on the scene. It was found below a Highway 50 West turnout.
A report was taken by the Carson City Sheriff's Department, and the Carson City Fire Department stood by to back up other personnel in case the explosive set fire to the area.
No fire was reported.