The Silent Town You've Never Heard of

When it comes to choosing a town to visit, most people want to go where it's hustling and bustling with life. That is acceptable in most cases, however, it's not the story here. Let me introduce you to the ghost town of Bodie. This old mining community was once home to thousands and had around 2000 buildings. Now, it's vacant and a mere shadow of its former self with roughly 170 structures still standing. What is significant about Bodie is it's one of the largest and most preserved ghost towns in the United States.

How to Get There

Bodie State Historical Park is located a little over 2 hours south of South Lake Tahoe and just east of one of the most beautiful highways I've ever driven on, Highway 395. Due to the high elevation of the road the park is on, Highway 270, and the fact the final 3 miles is a gravel/dirt road, it's only accessible by snowshoeing, skiing, or snowmobile during the winter months. Late spring through early fall is certainly an ideal time to visit, however, wild weather can change the road status so it would be wise to check the park’s website before making the trek.

The address to the park is:

Highway 270

Bridgeport, CA 93517

The entrance fees are per person here and they are $8 for anyone over 18 and $5 for ages 4-17. For an additional $3, you can get a self guided tour book. This provides information on the surrounding buildings you'll see.

A Little History

Bodie is named in honor of prospector W.S Bodey, one of the original men onsite at the beginning of the settlement and who later died during a blizzard in the mid 1800s. The reason for the spelling change is apparently someone misspelled the name on a sign and everyone in the town preferred the misspelled version.

While the town initially consisted of only a handful of men for several years, the discovery of "gold in them hills" lured people far and wide from around the world to take advantage of the shiny bounty. The town's population combusted and in its heyday in the late 1870s, the population grew to somewhere in the 8,000 to 10,000 range. Because Bodie grew significantly in such short order, the result was widespread crime. It was notorious for being a true, stereotypical wild west town and the memory of that reputation holds true today.

While the major gold boom dried up almost as quickly as it came, mining operations continued until 1942 in which case the dwindling population finally rode off for better hills.

20 Years later, in 1962, the site was designated as a state historical park and it still holds this status today despite pressure from the state to close it down in recent years.

Your Visit

After cruising down scenic Highway 395 with views of the Sierra Nevada Mountains (and other ranges depending on where you're coming from), you'll turn onto Highway 270 and start winding your way up through the high desert mountains. Your destination lies atop a plateau filled with high desert brush and you'll be greeted by a gravel parking lot after the pay station. Because you are nearly 8,500 feet in elevation, don't forget your jackets as temperatures can be considerably cooler up here as well as windy. While I wouldn't say walking around the town is strenuous per say, the altitude can make breathing difficult especially for those coming from around sea level.

Nothing is paved up here. Rocks and dirt are the typical walking surface so Bodie is less than ideal for handicapped persons. Rusty nails, metal, broken glass, and many hazardous objects may be strewn about so watch where you step and maybe leave the flip flops in the car.

Lastly, be mindful of afternoon pop up thunderstorms that sometimes occur out of nowhere during the warmer months. Lightning is a severe threat up here so don't take chances if a storm is nearby. Visits earlier in the day usually avoid this potential hazard.

Bodie is a photographer's dream. The stark contrast of the weathered buildings against the landscape coupled with the oftentimes bright blue sky will help aid in capturing that perfect shot. The park is only open during daylight hours so sunrise, sunset, and night time visits are prohibited unfortunately.

Services

There are no options for food or fuel in or around the park so bring what you need with you. The 2 closest options will be the town of Bridgeport to the north, and the town of Lee Vining to the south. Both have some gas stations and restaurants, but expect to pay a premium for goods anywhere along Highway 395. Out of curiosity at the time of writing this, I decided to check gas prices in the area and between these 2 towns prices ranged from $5.99 to $6.59 per gallon! If you're coming from the north in Nevada, you may be able to save $2-3 per gallon around Minden and Carson City. California in general is significantly higher, but those towns in the middle of the Sierras really price gouge. There was that one time, years ago, a small store further south along Highway 395 wanted $20 for a pack of hotdogs… Moral of the story is fuel up, feed up, and rest up before hitting the eastern Sierras and you’ll enjoy a much cheaper experience.

Leave No Trace

This is just a reminder to leave things as they are for others to enjoy for many years to come. Collecting or damaging artifacts is not only illegal, but takes away from what others can discover. Visiting Bodie is a very unique experience and is already battling low funding issues which could put the park in jeopardy in the future. Please respect the area during your visit!

Added Feature - Mono Lake

While you’re in the area, just a short drive south will net you another adventure: Mono Lake.

Mono Lake as seen from the summit of 13er, Mt. Dana in Yosemite National Park

How to Get There

Mono Lake is located just east of the town of Lee Vining, California. As the crow flies, it’s roughly 10 miles south of Bodie. Unfortunately, if you’re ready this, you likely are not a crow so it requires a 45 minute trip down scenic Highway 395.

The address to the visitor center is:

1 Visitor Center Dr.

Lee Vining, CA 93541

There is an entrance fee as well of $3 per person for 16 and older.

It’s All About The Tufas!

Ok, Mono Lake is not just about the tufas, but to start, what the heck is a tufa? A tufa is a limestone tower built up when freshwater springs, high in calcium content, come up from the bottom of the lake and mix with the lake water that has carbonates in it. Over time, these limestone towers, or tufas, are formed. Mono Lake has heavy concentrations of these to view. The South Tufa area has a very easy “hike” to see some of the largest formations on the lake. The notable Paoha and Negit Islands within the lake are volcanic and further add to the mysterious beauty of the landscape.

Outside of tufa viewing, Mono Lake has world class photography and birding due to the alien landscape and millions of migratory birds that stop over here. If that’s not quite your speed you can boat or swim in the lake too. The lake is incredibly saline. Much more so than the ocean so you’ll float easily. We did not try this on our visit so don’t take my word for it. But why is this lake so salty? Mono Lake is highly saline because there is no outlet for the water outside of evaporation. Because of this, the high mineral content keeps adding to the lake and the water evaporates off, but leaves the minerals behind thus making it salty. The extreme salinity also means no fish can survive here. Rather, brine shrimp are the only aquatic animals able to thrive here. The brine shrimp together with alkali flies provide an ample food source for migrating birds.