Ghost Towns, Dust Devils, and Mirages
Friday, May 10, 2013 - We Leave California
We got up early, finished the necessary chores to close down the house...and drove the truck down with the last haul of last minute stuff to load aboard R Trailblazer. By the time everything was stowed, the truck hooked to the fifth wheel, and we were rolling out of town it was 11:30 a.m. on Friday morning.
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| Captain Russ at the Helm |
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| 35 miles an hour up hill...are you kidding? |
We passed over Donner Summit and dropped down into Nevada through Carson City and a short visit to see my Aunt Irene and her new home in South Carson, Nevada. She has a lovely place which her daughters worked tirelessly to paint and fix up. I hope she has many wonderful years in this home. We enjoyed a nice visit then continued on our way back across into California to the outskirts of Bodie.
Bodie is a Ghost Town and a California state park. My cousin Denise, Aunt Irene's middle daughter, works in the museum there.
Russ and I can't count the number of times we have headed down 395 on our way to either Vegas or Mammoth Ski Area and never stopped here before. Of course we were always traveling in the winter and the area is closed during that time of the year. Nevertheless, a visit to Bodie has long been on our list of places to visit, and this is the perfect time of year. Everything is still green, skies are blue, snow still caps the mountains, and the clouds are amazing.
With R Trailblazer following closely behind us, we turned off the main road and started the climb up to Bodie. Denise told us that the first 10 miles were paved and that we could find a nice pull out to park for the night on BLM land, 6 or 7 miles up the road. From there we needed to disconnect as the last 8 miles was unpaved and really not suitable for a trailer.
We dropped anchor (forward feet) on the high plateau and proceeded to enjoy a peaceful night in the high desert.....no anchor alarm or rolling seas. But was there a squall coming?
Looked like it, but it didn't come our way. We drifted off to sleep and woke to a fabulous morning.
Saturday, May 11, 2013
The view from our galley window was breathtaking as we looked at the backside of the Sierra Mountains of South Lake Tahoe.
After breakfast, we disconnected R Trailblazer from the truck, and climbed the last 4 miles of paved road then headed the last segment on a bumpy dirt road to Bodie.
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| Up |
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| R Trailblazer - So Many Places to See. This is a Great First Stop |
Bodie is nestled in a little valley.
Once a booming gold mining town in 1880, the town took a hit during a stock market crash in 1881. Major investors in Bodie pulled their funds, and the town dwindled. It limped along until World War II when gold mining was not a high priority and was banned. The mines closed and without this source of income, the people just up and left.
Walking through Bodie and peeking in the windows is eerie.
The sudden disappearance of the people leaving their possessions behind gives the town its ghostly appearance. It's vacant, but intact enough to let the imagination visualize how it might have once been.
We enjoyed our morning with a little visit to the museum and visit with Denise before we headed back down the hill and continued on our way south out of California and into Nevada toward Las Vegas.
We reconnected R Trailblazer and continued down the mountain toward Las Vegas. As we descended the mountain, our views of Mono Lake were surreal. This inland lake is drying and is a beautiful blue against the snow capped mountains.
Russ and I traveled all day through the Nevada desert marveling at the sage brush, dust devils, and mirages.
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| Mirage...Looks like water on the roadway...Nope dry as a bone. |
We bypassed hot and dry RV parks in Tonapah and continued to a town called Goldfield. The RV park had basically closed, blown away, but there was a town park (big dirt lot) with toilets that permitted overnight parking.....and so we did. Turned out to be a good choice.
Sunday, May 12, 2013 - Mother's Day
Today is both a sad and happy day for me. This is the first Mother's Day where I will not be seeing or talking with my own Mom. I miss her and my morning is misty. On the other hand, I am excited that we are on our way to see our daughter and I will get to spend Mother's Day with one of my children. Just as we pull up to Abby and Neal's home in Las Vegas, our son Garyn calls so we have a three way conversation with both of our children wishing me Mother's Day at the same time. Joy. We will be in Las Vegas for a week, before moving on....where? Not sure yet. But we have a week to figure it out.
I've been following your blog quite a while. In fact, I often was working Colfax library when I saw you and Russ first come in there. I'm really looking forward to your RV travels as that is what my husband and I want to do .
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