Bodie is a spectacular ghost town, one of the best you will ever find. People from all over the world visit Bodie State Historic Park, yet very few venture beyond park boundaries. My friend and Aurora and Bodie area expert Rick and his brother Bryan led me on a twenty-four-hour tour of locations rarely visited.
Blanchard Toll Station
Monday night, I made my first night run from Hawthorne to Blanchard Station, just outside Bodie. The station was run by Hank Blanchard in the 1880s and 1890s on the Aurora to Bodie toll road. I have been to Blanchard’s Sunshine Station, never Blanchard Station.
After a late dinner, we aired down and headed over Lucky Boy pass and through Del Monte Canyon. It was almost midnight before we arrived at the station stop. It was a calm but cold evening, 22 degrees with a full moon. We photographed Blanchards but soon fled to the warmth of the Jeeps. Driving out through the canyon was surreal, almost zen-like. Moonlight did not reach the confines of the canyon; our drive was lit only by the Jeep. We arrived back at the hotel at 1 a.m., and I didn’t sleep until after 2. I woke at 5:30, my usual time, darn it.
Airing down on Lucky Boy
Tuesday, we drove a massive loop from Hawthrone to Bodie and back, taking the lesser-traveled roads. We started with Lucky Boy, Summit Station stage stop, passed Elbow Jake’s, and a small mining camp, my favorite of the day. Only a handful of people know the location; it doesn’t even have a name. The structures were in fantastic condition, and the skies were beautiful.
Summit Station: Aurora to Walker Lake Toll Road
Mono Miner’s Cabins
Next, we headed for a quick stop at Masonic, followed by a more extended visit at Chemung to fly the drones. We passed beautiful aspens coming into Masonic, but Chemung had lost most of its color earlier in the week.
Masonic
Bodie
We backtracked a little and took an incredible backroad into Bodie. Views from the route were stunning; you could see Mt. Patterson, Sweetwater, and the Sierras. In addition, I saw Bodie from above, an angle I had never experienced before.
Time was limited, so we bypassed the ghost town and headed east back to Blanchards Station. My second favorite stop of the day was a mill outside of Bodie. The seven-stamp mill was the most intact I have visited. After a lesson on stamp mills, we headed back to Blanchards for a few pictures in the daytime, then onto Aurora.
Seven-Stamp Mill
Blanchard Toll Station
Del Monte Canyon
Camp Noble & Mill
Our destination in Aurora was a mine overlooking the townsite. More so than any town, the nothingness of a city that once had over 7,000 residents is startling.
My “fun” at the end of the day was working on my off-roading skills. Rick knows I don’t have a balance nerve on one side of my brain and dislike camber, a road where you must tilt. He told me no one likes it; you do it, let’s go.
Trust is the key; I know Rick would never put me in a situation beyond my ability. He spotted me, and the first part wasn’t bad. Transitioning to tilting the other direction was not a pleasant feeling, but I did it. He gave me a choice on the way home to go through the camber again or take an alternative route; I chose the camber a second time.
Thanks, Rick, for the great days, spotting, and video.
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