Fun trip to a ghost town, Bodie, California
skier07
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Bodie is a ghost town in the Eastern Sierras 75 miles southeast of Lake Tahoe on the Nevada border at an elevation of 8400 feet. Gold was discovered in Bodie in 1859. It became a boom town in 1876 with a population of 7000 and by the 1930’s it was abandoned.
I’ve been coming to Mammoth Mountain, California for years and I’ve always wanted to visit Bodie. It’s a short 75 minute drive with panoramic views of Mono Lake. 
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The infamous Mark Twain (Samuel Clemens) was a miner in Bodie before he went to VC and became famous.
bob
Might want to check, I think Huell Howser did a program on Bodie.
California Gold
Awesome
Took the girls out there 15-20 years ago, also while on holiday up at Mammoth.
They had a dug Seated Half in their little museum, IIRC.
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Sweet !!!
I love the old ghost towns... interesting about the mine collapse that exposed the riches..... which would indicate to me, that there is likely another vein somewhere in the area yet to be found.... I am always the treasure hunter with big dreams....
Cheers, RickO
Cool pics - thanks!
I've been to Bodie --twice. Very cool, well worth a visit.
Complete Set of Chopmarked Trade Dollars
Carson City Silver Dollars Complete 1870-1893http://www.pcgs.com/setregistry/showcase.aspx?sc=2722"
I’ve been once— very cool! They had a gold button in their museum that had “Bodie” stamped into it.
Quite a road to get there, huh?
I mean AFTER you leave the highway.
Yes a very cool place and a lot to look at. Me and the wife go on road trips out there for a week at a time to get away from it all.
On are way there from June lake.
Hoard the keys.
Great info, thanks for sharing this history here
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OMG... awesome pictures and a great read.
What fun!
The Bodie Mutts?? I wonder what their record was (Not to mention the source of their name).
Here's a warning parable for coin collectors...
its nice to see some stuff like that. thanks for sharing
I almost feel like stepping up to the bar with my two bits, a Seated Liberty quarter, and ordering me a shot of their finest whiskey after a hard day of prospecting.
This is in Tonopah, NV
At the mining museum. Just East of Bodie.
"At one time there was reported to be 65 saloons in town. Among the saloons were numerous brothels and ‘houses of ill repute’, gambling halls and opium dens – an entertainment outlet for everyone."
Can you imagine what the nights were like back then in that town?!
What a cool place. Would love to visit sometime.
Been there a couple of times. Love the East side of the Sierra for so many reasons, including the history.
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Yes I’ve enjoyed traveling all over the sierras as it’s in my backyard. There’s a lot of history all around me and I love it. Aside from the BS politics in the state it is a nice place to live. Don’t get me going in the politics cause it will, for sure, get me in trouble here like it has before
Great post my coin brother.
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https://photos.app.goo.gl/veW1LpzcT6tDeEDb9
695 T oz of silver, not 928. Value at $17/oz = $11,800.
Simon Mine was sold for $900,000 a decade ago. Silver recovery in past workings was about 14 T oz/ton. Unclear where the three museum rocks originated.
Fun stuff. Prospecting or panning would be even more fun.
So is this still an "operating" historical site, with park rangers or the like leading tours & opening various buildings, or is the place "uninhabited"? Any admission fees or restrictions on where one can go/do while there? I'm assuming prospecting & metal detecting is off-limits?
Just east???? Really now, Tonopah is 155 miles south of Bodie. I doubt that silver ore was from Tonopah....something smells fishy here!
bob
It’s an hour and a half drive from Mammoth. The Tioga Pass, the northeast entry into Yosemite, is close by and opens after Memorial Day once the snow is cleared. Mono Lake is also nearby with its spectacular tufa formations. Reno/Carson City is around two hours away.
Bodie is a California state park. There is a small building for rangers to collect money, but it was closed. The admission fee of $8 was done via the honor system. All of the buildings were locked. In the summer there is a museum which is open and maybe even guided tours. No prospecting etc. is allowed.
They sell silver coins in the gift shop but I think it was a bit pricey so I pass.
Hoard the keys.
Great images and nice blue skies.
Great place to visit.
My Grandfather was born in Bodie. 1878-1880? His dad and mom went there to strike it rich. That didn't happen. Anyway, the last time I was there was in 1977. Took the future Mrs. Hydrant there to show her the families old stomping ground. Mrs. Hydrant also has a rich family history in the gold country around Hangtown. Her cousins are still working mines in the foot hills. Check out the blue sky. No more BEAUTIFUL place on Earth. Yea, California has it's problems now. But if you're a native, and the roots run deep.... It's home. The Golden State.
That's really a neat town and beautiful location.
I love how they keep stuff on display and how somebody maintains the place. The morons around here would have destroyed that long ago. It's nice to see it respected.
Nice post and great read. I have explored ghost towns here in Michigan that were mainly abandoned lumbering towns in the lower. When rail came to be and bypassed your town, it usually spelled the end of it.
@AUandAG why don't you put "Bodie to Tonopah" in Google and see the map?
Unless the map is "fishy" it shows almost due East.
Ghost towns are great!
Back when I was a youngster, we visited a couple in California (on our epic family road trip in 1972, from Toronto to California to Florida, back home to Toronto), but I can't recall which ones.
"“Those who sacrifice liberty for security/safety deserve neither.“(Benjamin Franklin)
"I only golf on days that end in 'Y'" (DE59)
That's a little hard with an opening and closing time and roving armed rangers.
Some of the REAL ghost towns in CA ...have... been looted to death.
Indian Diggins
Camanche
Not a lot left in Hornitos
Okay, but there are no roads that do that. . Can't do a crow flies route out here in the desert. From Bodie you would have to go North to Hawthorne then east to Luning and then south to Tonopah. Or, south to Bishop and then north to Tonopah. Not a way to just drive east but yes the direction is pretty due east if it could be done. Many people have been lost in our deserts only to be later found dead due to thinking that they really could just follow this dirt road and go east instead of taking the long way around. Nevada is very mountainous (86 separate mountain ranges) that all run north/south. Going east/west is not very easy in most places Believe it or not but only two roads go east/west in Nevada and those are I-80 out of Reno and Hwy 50 out of Carson City. Quickest way to get to Tonopah is to go Northeast from Bodie and then South to Tonopah. Try Mapquesting Bodie, Ca to Tonopah, NV.
bob
Prompted by having seen this thread I took these photos during my recent visit to Carson City.
To add to the experience of a visit to Bodie there are several books available. I photographed these earlier this week at the gift shop in the Nevada State Museum located in Carson City. (The same location where the Carson City Mint was situated and where one can see a fantastic collection of almost all of the coins by date and denomination minted there in addition to the original press that began minting cc coins in1870, which remains operational.)