Welcome to D.C.

The new big beautiful flag pole in front of the White House

Washington D.C. is a big place with a small town feel. The seat of power in the United States revolves around certain buildings along the National Mall and blocks on either side. It may seem large but the locals don’t view the capital as such.

“We’re really a city of small neighborhoods,” Tony, a bartender at the Dubliner, told us. “The capital seems large and bustling to many tourists, but to us locals, it’s just home.”

Laureen and I had walked about a hundred miles during the first four hours on the day of our arrival in our nation's capital and I was parched - from the walking and the two hundred percent humidity.

Since this was only the second time I’d traveled to Washington, D.C., I asked myself why I had come during the summer again. Wasn’t the first time enough to warn me off future summer trips where a shower in the morning wouldn’t last for the first three minutes when exiting the hotel?

“I need a shower and a towel,” I said. “And not sure in that order.”

We had stopped by the Dubliner, located on ‘F’ Street, not far from Columbus Circle, for a bite of lunch and a respite from Mother Nature.

The Dubliner - a fine Irish pub in the heart of Washington D.C.

“Tony,” I said. “How do you folks deal with the humidity?”

He simply smiled at me while passing over a pint of Smithwick’s. Did I mention Tony was a saint?

“We think cool,” he responded, and then went to wait on other patrons.

I looked at Laureen, “Does that work?”

Even my lovely bride had shiny beads of sweat upon her brow. Women don’t perspire, she once told me. They glisten. “No. It does not.”

Washington, D.C., is a city laid out by the founding fathers in a rather neat mathematical way. Four quadrants - northwest, northeast, southwest, and southeast. Rather mundane but easy to understand, compared to many places I have encountered in my travels.

“Well,” someone would say to me with a piece of straw hanging out of their mouth. “You go down until you see a red-spotted cow and then turn right, but not before waving at old widow Wilson. Then you move on for a stretch until …”

The point is made.

Each of the supposedly 130 various neighborhoods in D.C. revolve around their own culture and vibes.

“Do you want to visit all the neighborhoods?” Laureen asked me as our lunch arrived. A light pub salad for Laureen and a heavy dose of Shepherd’s pie for me - I had to gain my strength back to continue walking the streets of D.C. later.

 “Nope,” I said. “That’s why there is Uber, Lyft, the Metro, or Flip.”

“Flip?”                                                                                                                                                             

I nodded. “Flip a coin to see if we head back to the hotel after lunch and take a nap.”

We ended up, after a wonderful time at the Dubliner Restaurant, heading out into the steamy afternoon. It got even steamier when a sudden thunder storm eased over the east and blanketed the capital with what seemed like ten inches of rain in two minutes.

I knew it was coming, since I had insisted that we would not need an umbrella - my albatross.

“Why an umbrella?” I once posed to Laureen in the hinterlands of Northern Ireland. Fifteen minutes later the Irish Coast Guard showed up.  

As we walked back toward the National Mall to take in the sights, Laureen said, “I wish we had brought an umbrella.”

Which in her world actually meant, you should have listened to me and taken the umbrella from the Watergate Hotel like I suggested.

There really should be two dictionaries - one for smart women and one for the rest of us.

With soaking shoes and smiles, we meandered our way to the White House to see the two new big beautiful flag poles that were recently erected.

It is awe inspiring to stand across the street from where the President and First Lady reside, no matter what political party, and contemplate the importance of such a building.

The current residence has housed every president since John Adams. But George Washington chose the spot and supervised its construction - so his spirit is still there. It is a venue where world leaders come and discuss worldly issues on a constant basis.

But, being tourists, we could only gawk through the tall black wrought iron fencing and ponder what goes on inside those special walls.

“Do I really need to meet with him this afternoon?” a president may ask his Chief of Staff.

“Sir, he’s the Prime Minister of England.”

“But he sounds so Scottish.”

The White House is located in an area known as Foggy Bottom. And yes, Laureen asked me not to write immature statements about the name. So, in bygone days the area was often covered by a blinding low-lying fog along the marshy area of the Potomac River, and with the smoke from and soot from nearby industrial complexes, the  name stuck.

This is also where the Kennedy Center is located, along with the Department of State and other high-affluence entities. D.C. is full of such places.

Standing across from the White House was special and allowed us to see America at its best. There were lots of tourists snapping selfies, asking for others to take their photos, selfies taking selfies, and others trying to steal their cameras. There were also a bunch of protesters waving posters and flags, wearing masks, and singing songs out-of-tune.

John R Beyer right before asking protestors what they were upset about

“What are you protesting?” I asked, being a journalist and all.

“Not sure,” a lime green-haired woman told me. “But it’s probably something about the government.”

“That is an awesome answer,” I replied.

Laureen shook her head, “She has green hair and a nose ring that hangs to her belly-button.”

“The First Amendment covers poor fashion choices, I believe,” I said. 

Our first day back in the nation’s capital after two years was interesting, sweaty, and overall great. This D.C. is a place to visit time and again. The week we had planned was not nearly long enough to see everything. We knew that but also realized we would pack as much into this adventure as possible.

I have always said to our children - if you are not exhausted by the time you return from a vacation, then you haven’t been on vacation.

Our Founding Fathers wondered if this great American dream would work out in the long run -  at this point, for nearly 250 years it’s done okay. A few bumps and hiccups but overall, not a bad experiment in the concept of a nation being self-governing.

For further information:

https://washington.org/visitors-guide

https://www.dublinerdc.com/

Washington D.C. is getting ready to Party

White House with brand new big beautiful flag

Big doings are on the way to prepare for our Nation’s Capital Semiquincentennial in 2026. It seems like only yesterday when Franklin turned to me and whispered that he hoped we could hold onto our republic.

“Ben,” I said. “Of course it will last.”

And I was correct. On July 4th, 2026, this great experiment that is our country will turn 250, and prove the old naysayers wrong.

As stated in the previous blog, we were contacted by Kyle Deckelbaum, Senior Manager for Domestic Media Relations from the non-profit group Destination D.C. He had complimented a story I had written about spending the 4th of July in our nation’s capital in 2023 for USA Today Network.

I like it when people compliment my writing - it does not happen often.

“John,” Kyle wrote to me. “D.C. is pulling out all the stops for the fourth in 2026. You’ve got to come and see what is planned.”

Don’t ask me twice to visit Washington, D.C. It is a wonderful destination for history buffs, library buffs, food buffs, pub buffs, and just buffs. And there is a chance to catch a sight of one of our hard-working representatives languishing on the steps of Congress, trying to figure out what more they can do to make life better for their constituents.

There's even a Route 66 display at the Smithsonian

That last comment may have been a bit of tongue-in-cheek. My part-time job is writing fictional novels and short stories.

I asked Laureen, my lovely wife, if she was interested in visiting . . . Actually, I never got the full question out.

“Of course, we should visit Washington D.C. this Fourth of July,” she replied to my not-quite-asked question.

How do wives do that? 

Turns out that the city is already gearing up for the spectacular extravaganza for the nation’s 250th anniversary. 

Even astronauts and flamingos are excited about the 250th

I was being invited to preview these exciting things that are going to take place within the streets of Washington, D.C., for the semiquincentennial. One year out, no problem, takes a bit of time to get articles in the queue for publishing, and I considered this as simply a scouting mission to inform my readers what will be in store if they plan on visiting D.C. to honor our wonderful country.

And what a history this nation has had over the past 250 years. Sure, not a perfect country, but one that I believe learns from its mistakes and moves forward for a better tomorrow for all of its citizens.

George Washington, the reluctant 1st President of the United States, said; The name of American, which belongs to you, in your national capacity, must always exalt the just pride of patriotism more than any appellation derived from local discriminations.

President Washington was pointing out that to be an American was not just a moniker to hang around one’s neck, but to truly honor the fact that America was not a dream but a reality to be held on to tightly. He knew firsthand the sacrifices during those war years from the beginning in 1775 until the signing of the Treaty of Paris in 1783 with the British Empire.

George Washington's farm - Mount Vernon 

Our nation was a concept that had never truly been experimented on in such a manner and at such a great cost for those sailing into uncertain waters.

To take up arms against the strongest military force on Earth at that time, Great Britain, was not for the faint of heart.

John Adams, a founding Father and the 2nd President of the newly formed United States, once said; Posterity! You will never know how much it costs the present generation to preserve your Freedom! I hope you will make good use of it. If you do not, I shall repent in Heaven that I ever took half the pains to preserve it.

This route to freedom that our founding fathers and mothers fought for should never be underestimated. 

Freedom comes at a great emotional and physical cost - just ask a Vet.

So, without wasting a moment, I booked flights, hotels, and a cruise along the Potomac to visit Mount Vernon (I wanted to see if it had changed much since the last time George and I had talked), and I was quite proud of myself.

Cruising along the Potomac River

“I think the last night we’re there, you should take me to the VUE Restaurant on top of the Washington Hotel. As a celebration.”

“Celebration?”

Laureen nodded. “We won’t be there for the two hundred and fiftieth year's birthday, but we’ll be looking forward to it next year.”

I looked up the establishment. I would be celebrating if my American Express held out that evening. 

So, we hit the ground running at the Ontario International Airport on June 30th, for our latest adventure back to Washington D.C. to learn what all the hubbub Kyle had been discussing concerning the fanfare for our country's monumental birthday on July 4th, 2026.

Knowing Kyle, I’m sure the city built on a swamp had plenty up its sleeves to ensure no one would forget this special birthday party.

And it was my job to investigate, interview, visit, and report back.

Tour of the capital back in July of 2023

John can be contacted at: beyersbyways@gmail.com

For further information:

https://washington.org/DC-information/about-destination-dc

https://washington.org/

Happy 4th of July

 This year we are celebrating the 249th celebration of our Nation's Founding in the heart of government - Washington D.C. Yes, we were there in 2023 for the firework displays, but we wanted to get a peak at what is planned for the semiquincentennial in 2026.

We were contacted by Destination D.C. informing us that all stops have been pulled out for the 250th anniversary of the United States.

Imagine that - 1776 to 2026. How time flies.

So, we packed our bags and off we flew to Washington D.C. to learn what we could about the myriad of events planned for next year.

If personal agendas have not been planned for the summer of 2026, especially on July 4th, what better place to enjoy the national holiday than right there where all the action is going to take place.

Of course, we will report back what we learned - that's our job as researchers and writers.

But, in the meantime - 

                    Have a safe and Happy 4th of July!!!!

For more information: https://washington.org/DC-information/about-destination-dc 

Ludlow, a great respite along Interstate 40

Old mining cars on display in Ludlow, California

I spend a lot of time driving along that black ribbon of Interstate 40. Do I enjoy it? Sometimes. And it is the path from here to there I need quite often for expediency. Though, Route 66 is my preferable stretch of road. It’s slower, more scenic, and allows me to just ponder.

Pondering is important. .

No one likes things weighing on my mind. But I do like to think about, or reflect every now and then. To consider things soberly, quietly, or with some good old rock and roll playing in the background. I’d even say I contemplate some things deeply, as if I were a great deep thinker of soul searching meanings, but honestly, I’m often more of a surface kind of guy.

But I do like the term ponder. It rhymes with wander. So, wandering as I do gives me time for pondering.

‘He’s just a wandering and pondering sort of fella.’

So recently, while wandering along Interstate 40 and passing the exit for Ludlow, I began pondering about the history of this small berg fifty-one miles east of Barstow and ninety-two miles west of Needles. Passing it so many times during my eons on this planet, I never gave the history of the town much thought. No offense to those who reside in Ludlow - a lovely group of folks - but when I’d stop in Ludlow, there was a specific reason for said stop: pump some gas, grab a meal, or a big delicious and calorie filled DQ desert, and hit the road again.

The town deserves better. 

Time for some research. 

I discovered that Ludlow was once a booming town. But, as with many such towns that hugged Route 66 like a belt on a pair of pants after Thanksgiving dinner, a diet was in the near future. And that diet was the completion of Interstate 40.

That darn Interstate 40! But, I digress.

Ludlow was once such a happening place that it once hosted an automobile race in 1914 from Los Angeles to Phoenix along National Trails Highway, later known as Route 66, with the famous race car driver, Barney Oldfield as the main attraction.

It was reported that people as far away as Death Valley, descended on Ludlow to view the Cactus Derby, with the hopes of catching a glance of one of this country’s racing legends.

But there is so much more to Ludlow. And I’m not just writing about the reopening of the DQ there – though, that is pretty big news.

Hmmm, banana splits on a hot summer afternoon. Oops, digressing again. 

Turns out that this small community began in the 1870’s. In 1882, the actual town of Ludlow was founded as a water stop for the Atlantic and Pacific Railroad, and named after William Ludlow, a train car repairman who did such a good job repairing things, that clearly, the railroad needed to name a town after him.

The small railway stop started to really build into something grand when gold was discovered in the nearby hills. Where there is gold, there is a boom. And a boom was a-booming.

As miners flocked to the region, entrepreneurs also moved in offering all sorts of distractions for those tired and grubby guys with pockets full of gold to spend on lonely weekends. 

One such person was Mother Preston, who built or purchased buildings to convert into a general store, hotel, boarding house, a saloon, café, pool hall, and even a few homes. She was one smart business woman. 

According to an article in the San Bernardino County Sentinel, Mother Preston became so wealthy, she sold her holdings to the Murphy Brothers, who already owned the rest of the town, and promptly retired to France.

It is reported that Mother Preston stated, “Ooh, la la!” after the sale of her holdings. A rough translation is – “Wow, is Versailles for sale?”

In 1900, gold was discovered in the Bagdad-Chase Mine, and became the largest gold-producing mine in San Bernardino County. In fact, the mine produced half of all the gold mined in the county.

Ludlow was also utilized as the southern railhead for the Tonopah and Tidewater Railroad, which was owned by the Pacific Coast Borax Company.

Borax, the answer to those nasty stains in clothes. A little here and a little there, and whammy, just like brand new.

“Johnny, your clothes are filthy!”

“Don’t worry, ma,” Johnny replied. “A little Borax, and they are good as store bought.”

“You are a smart young man, Johnny. You may end up writing for a newspaper someday.”

“My dream of dreams, ma.”

Anyway - with all that gold, and the Borax pouring in from Death Valley, Ludlow began to truly prosper.

For the next few decades, the town continued to grow, as new mines were established, trainloads of Borax along with other minerals coming through, and the advent of the automobile, there didn’t seem an end to the expansion of this town in the Mojave Desert.

But by the 1940’s there wasn’t much use for all the rail activity with the ore playing out and other avenues being found for the delivery of the minerals. The railroads became more efficient and water stops no longer played much of a roll in their daily lives. 

The love of the American automobile came to the rescue to Ludlow. Vehicles roared by on Route 66, right through the town where visitors could grab a night’s sleep at a motor court, grab a meal at the Ludlow Café, fill up at the gas station, or just relax under the branches of a shady tamarisk tree.

But then in the late 1960’s, Interstate 40 was completed, and even though it was merely inches from Ludlow, travelers didn’t need to stop any longer.

“Can’t we stop? I’m hungry,” a child was heard to whine, through the open window of a passing Chevrolet.

“Can’t stop, we’re on a mission to get east of here,” the father replied. “There’s boating fun to be had on the Colorado River.”

So, the people sped by and Ludlow dwindled in population and importance.

Though, it is still an important stop in my mind. Here I go with pondering again.

History is alive here in this little highway town. Strong and independent people took a shot at life in a very hostile environment - threw the dice and survived.

No, not only survived, but prospered. 

Sure, now there isn’t much to the town. Deserted buildings, empty lots, ruined structures, and an old cemetery – but the town truly lives.

There’s a hotel, café, gas station, and the planned re-opening of the revamped DQ attached to a gas station on the north side of Interstate 40.

A great place to stop and eat in Ludlow, California

Most of my sources agree that Ludlow is a ghost town. I say nope, this town is alive, and all the times I’ve stopped there – not one ghost have I seen.

Recently, I stopped at the Ludlow Café and had a great and healthy breakfast (that was for Laureen’s benefit, she worries about me). I pondered on how much grit the early settlers had in settling in such hostile and questionable surroundings. They had it, no matter the obstructions thrown in their path.

And their legacy lives on.

Ludlow might be thought of as a little community, but one with a large part of the history of the Mojave Desert. There is so much to explore in the area, if you have the time. 

And a place to rest your head for the night in Ludlow, California

Albert Einstein once wrote; ‘People like us who believe in physics know that the distinction between past, present and future is only a stubbornly persistent illusion. Time, in other words, is an illusion.’

Can’t argue with a guy rumored to have an IQ of ten thousand, but I know that time, in this world is not an illusion.

Watching your children grow up, a person realizes that time is real and it’s precious. Time for us mere humans is finite.

That’s why I travel and look for new things. New doesn’t mean new construction, but things I didn’t know were there. The history of Ludlow is just one more example. 

The quirky ghost town of Nelson, Nevada

 

Years ago, Laureen and I sat down to watch the 2001 film, 3,000 miles to Graceland one evening. Not sure why, but we are fans of Kevin Costner and Kurt Russell and decided to give it a shot.

We like doing that - watching a film on a shot.

Most end up as a 22 caliber plink but some end up as a full blown 44 caliber full-metal-jacket blast. While on the subject, may I mention Top Gun Maverick? That was, in my opinion, a macho-side-winder-missile of a film. But I digress.

The Graceland film was probably, in my ‘Beyer what round would this film rate’ opinion, would be a solid 40 caliber. Enough to do damage but not enough to awaken neighbors three doors down.

I am not sure why I am using such terms to determine the strength of a film but perhaps since I recently went to a legal shooting range with a few friends, the aroma of gunpowder is still circulating through my senses.

Anyway, Laureen and I drove to the film location for one of the scenes in the film - the ghost town of Nelson in Nevada.

This is where Costner, as nasty as his character is, flicks his lit cigarette out of the car and blows up the place, sending a couple of full sized planes right into the air.

Sections of the planes are still there, with one sticking right out of the ground as though it crashed nose first.

Destroyed aircraft from film 3,000 Miles to Graceland in Nelson, Nevada

Really cool.

Unlike most ghost towns I visit, Nelson is a bit different. Not the average ghost town where buildings are there but mostly not. Rumors of past lives are envisioned across desert landscapes or remote mountain valleys. No, Nelson is unique in that aspect.

As we drove through the eleven miles of desert toward Nelson off the 95 and on the 165, there were a lot of Joshua trees, creosote bushes, cacti, and other plants which I cannot possibly name.

“Beautiful area,” Laureen mentioned.

“Some folks think the desert is boring,” I replied. I had actually heard someone say that once, but then again they also did not believe Sasquatches existed.

“Then they have not traveled much,” Laureen said.

Besides being one of the settings for a movie about a bunch of Elvis impersonators about to rob a casino in Las Vegas, the town of Nelson has a fascinating history.

A long detailed history of exploration, riches, murder, and all the other ingredients that make visiting such a place a must.

We suddenly came into view a collection of modular homes, stick built homes and lots with no homes at all. In fact, some of the homes were large and beautiful. 

“Are we there?” I asked.

“We just passed a sign that indicated we had arrived in Nelson,” Laureen replied.

This was not a ghost town at all. Folks walking around, doggies prancing in front yards, people driving modern cars instead of horse and buggies, and not a ruin in sight.

“I think we’ve been bamboozled,” I uttered.

Nope, the ghost town was about another mile or so past the present and very much alive village of Nelson.

In 1775, a group of Spaniards were walking here and there about this locale when they discovered pockets of rich ore containing large amounts of gold.

Immediately they called the area, El Dorado, which in Spanish meant any place where riches, opportunity, or abundance of things can be found. And this, El Dorado, was such a place just west of the rushing Colorado River.

After the Spaniards left, the area was searched now and then, but in 1859 large lodes of both gold and silver were discovered and El Dorado came into full force, creating one of the largest mining booms in Nevada state history.

It seems that every time I conduct research about a mineral strike, it happens to be one of the largest in that particular state.

“We got us another boom,” one old miner may have said to another.

The other miner may have nodded his unkempt bearded head. “Yes, and last week I was at another boom over yonder.”  

Two years later the rush for riches was truly on and a steamboat landing was created at the mouth of Eldorado Canyon at the shore of the Colorado River to transport goods to the quickly forming town and to take the rich ore south along the river.

The ore would be transported nearby on the Colorado River

The first name for this mining bonanza along the Colorado River was Colorado City. Must have taken moments to come up with that name. Then it was changed to simply Eldorado.

It should be noted that this was before any man made dams were along the length of the Colorado River and thus supplies and riches could be transported nearly 350 miles from this location all the way to the Gulf of California.

Try that today. In fact don’t…unless you feel like dragging your boat out of the water in front of Hoover Dam, Davis Dam, and the Dam Dam.

With money rolling in from the various mines in the area, the town of Eldorado continued to grow and one of the richest was the Techatticup Mine which produced millions of dollars from gold, silver, copper, and lead.

One of the canyons leading to riches in Nelson, Nevada

And with all such boom towns, another element came to town - hooligans.

Yes, Tom Hooligan moved to Eldorado in 1897. Okay, I may have made that name up, but bad hombres and bad hombres showed up, making the mining camp a very dangerous place to reside.

Since Eldorado Canyon was so narrow and yet so rich in mineral deposits routine, arguments arose between miners, and murder became a way of life. And, add to that fact that the Civil War hadn’t ended that long ago, deserters from both the Union and Confederate armies migrated there believing the location in Nevada was so isolated they would not be hunted down by the authorities.

Of course, there were no animus feelings between those two factions at all. Did I mention that murder became a fact of life?

A town was eventually built further up the canyon away from the rushing river since that area had seen the building of a stamp mill and docks for the steamships that would visit Eldorado on a routine manner and had become too crowded. 

In 1897, a prospector and camp leader by the name of Charles Nelson was found murdered in his home, along with four other people. The killings were blamed on a Native American by the name of Avote. The town’s name was then changed to Nelson in his honor.

Nelson was a different sort of mining camp, in which the majority see their boom last a few years at most and then dry up. No, this locale produced rich minerals from its founding all the way until 1945.

Around 1901 to 1905, railroads were becoming more and more accessible for the citizens of Nelson to move products and soon there was no longer the need for the steamboats along the Colorado River. It was faster and cheaper to bring goods in or ship out the needs of the mining boomtown by rail.

In 1907, the post office closed in Eldorado and was moved to Nelson.

As we walked around the now eclectic ghost town of Nelson, we marveled at the displays of vintage automobiles and trucks scattered everywhere. Some were parked along the only paved road through town. Some were parked in dirt parking lots in front of original buildings from the heyday of Nelson. Some were just parked as though the owner had just exited the vehicle to carry on some business in a nearby structure.

Some strange looking vehicles in Nelson, Nevada

There are signs indicating that this isn’t just a ghost town but a town where people live. The wording on the signs are clear - ‘Leave before Dark.’ The residents do not want tourists trampling all over private property looking at this or that artifact.

John R Beyer standing in the doorway in Nelson, Nevada

It was a wonderful couple of hours we spent trampling around - it was early in the morning. The gift shop/visitor center was open and we chit-chatted with a woman running the place. She mentioned that mine tours are available and reservations can easily be made by visiting the Eldorado Canyon Mine Tours website. Not only can the guests visit the actual mines in the area which produced the boom, but the tour also incorporates visiting film sites, wedding venues, great photo opportunities, and overall explains the entire history of Nelson.

The main street in Nelson, Nevada

In fact, we watched as three or four small tour buses entered the small town and deposited tourists for their day of adventure.

It was windy, so we decided to pack it in and head west, knowing we would be back to explore much more of this Eldorado Canyon.

For more information: https://www.eldoradocanyonminetours.com/index.html

John can be contacted at: beyersbyways@gmail.com

Amboy Crater

*Editorial note - this blog first appeared in 2018, but this is one of the best times of year to visit Amboy Crater. John traveled there during the middle of summer - don't do that! It is dangerously hot, as is stated in the article. That written, Go Out and Explore this Marvel of Nature.

Amboy Crater, as seen from above

Roughly ten thousand years ago, according to all the scientific types, there was a huge volcanic eruption not far from the city of Barstow. So close, in miles as those crows fly, which anyone living there would have looked up into the eastern sky and scratched their heads in wonder.

What was that? What could that have been? Is there something we should be doing at this time with all that smoke and fire in the sky? I wish we had finished that living trust before all this, don’t you?

Of course, there is no evidence that anyone lived in the Mojave Desert during that time. Then again, this is still up to debate. 

Anyway, that volcanic explosion would have been something to witness - from a distance. Bring out the popcorn and suitable drink for the show of a lifetime. Probably should also have a fire retardant umbrella, just in case of floating fire cinders or something else hot enough to ruin your day or life. 

John R Beyer pointing to the distant Amboy Crater

Actually, according to several scientific resources, the first suspected volcanic activity in the area near the present small town of Amboy, was about 80,000 years ago and it kept burping up magma for thousands of years.

Anyone who has traveled Route 66 eastbound from Barstow knows something catastrophic happened here. Miles and miles of magma fields, giving the landscape an almost out of this world appearance. Driving that lonely stretch of highway, away from the hustle and bustle of Highway 40, gives a person a chance to slow down and take a look around at the gorgeous desert.

And in that middle of the desert is a 250 foot tall and nearly 1500 foot wide ancient volcano named appropriately, the Amboy Crater. 

Amboy Caldera

But what is a volcano? 

Come on, we all know after watching, Dante’s Peak. It was a big Hollywood hit in 1997, and made us all experts in what is really happening down in the bowels of the earth. Who can forget, unless you never watched the film, Harry Dalton – played by Pierce Bronson (enough to go to Netflix now?) stating, after finding two people boiled to death in a seemingly cool pool of mountain water.

It’s really hot down in the earth. Dalton said, as he scratched his two day growth of beard on his handsome face. So hot, that sometimes yucky stuff comes to the surface and really makes a mess of things – including my hair and make-up.

I made those script lines up – literary license provoked.

According to NASA, a pretty decent resource in itself, a volcano is an opening on the surface of a planet or moon that allows material warmer than its surroundings to escape from its interior.

I had a thought about a spicy burrito being the cause of a volcano, but that would be childish.

So, a road trip to the Amboy Crater was in store.

Being summer, Laureen had a comment about that idea of mine.

“You know it is summer.”

“Yes, I looked on my phone – you are correct.”

“It’s not really a great idea to hike in the desert during the summer.”

“When have I ever done anything stupid?”

For the next three hours, Laureen went through an entire litany of the things I have done in my travels which be questionable, as either being stupid or supremely adventurous.  

I went for adventurous.

When hiking in the high desert during the summer, one has to be prepared. A backpack full of yummy snacks, bottles of water, a first aid kit, and a bit of smarts.

It does get hot in the summer months, and it was early

So, I arrived at the Amboy Crater trail around seven in the morning – it was warm but not the melting type of warm. Laureen, being smarter than me, had only shook her hear head as I left our abode for my morning hike to the Amboy Crater.

“Stupid idea.”

“Adventurous.”

The crater is only about two and half miles west of the small town of Amboy along Route 66. Being a national natural landmark, it is well marked with an easy drive across black asphalt to the parking area just at the beginning of the trail.

After a hike, stop by Amboy for a cool drink

There are restrooms, picnic tables, and kiosks telling the visitor what they are viewing in the near distance. The volcano looms up from the desert floor like an impregnable castle from the days when knights controlled the countryside. Well, that would be knights like in ancient Europe and not the United States, but the sight is pretty awesome.

Walkways, tables, and kiosks for the visitor at Amboy Crater

Hardened black flows of ancient volcanic rock covers the entire area, comprising of nearly 24 square miles. When this thing erupted the last time, it sent volcanic debris flying in every direction and also rivers of molten lava covering the desert floor like bugs on road kill. That was gross, sorry. 

That was deep and shallow at the same time.

The trail to the top of the Amboy Crater is an easy stretch of a little over a mile with signs indicating which way to go. The climb to the top of the craters rim is a bit steep, but nothing that sturdy shoes cannot handle.

I was the only one there for the nearly two hours of hiking, and it was a wonderful experience. To look at this crater and realize I was standing on the top of something so powerful was intense. Though I have never been to the moon or any other planet besides the one I currently reside on, I wondered if this is what future explorers will witness. 

Just some of the hiking trails within Amboy Crater

Well actually, I hope if we visit another planet there may be people or beings we can talk with. I don’t want wind up in a cook book. Twilight Zone, get Netflix.  Just a thought.

On a serious note, and I hate those, hiking during the summer in the desert must be well thought out beforehand. If there are signs warning of excessive heat precautions, those I ignored, stating that hiking is not recommended, then heed the signs. I’m a professional – okay, that doesn’t cut it for moving around in the desert when it is four hundred degrees. Take ample precautions, start very early in the morning and be done well before the sun is directly overhead. Otherwise, then any other time of the year is a wonderful time to explore the beautiful Amboy Crater area.

Heed the warnings, may save your life

A Bit of Nostalgia at Peggy's Sue's

An awesome place to stop and visit

As most travelers realize, there are three essential items needed for an adventure: a mode of transportation, fuel for that mode of transportation, and fuel for the travelers themselves.

Transportation comes in many forms but all need fuel - not many folks feel confident if an airline pilot states rather joyfully over the intercom, “Welcome folks to We May Make It Airlines. On today's flight, we may have just enough fuel to make our final destination. My co-pilot already has his rosary beads out, just in case.”

Nope, not booking that airline.

According to the American Automobile Association, most traveling is conducted by driving the highways and byways in personal vehicles - of course, a pair of open eyes when driving anywhere in Southern California will prove that also.

“Doesn’t anyone work?” one driver may ask while sipping on his Mango Dragonfruit Refresher - of course with added coconut milk. “It’s two in the afternoon and we’re at a standstill in the Cajon Pass.”

All conveyances that transport folks from here and there need fuel, no matter which type of energy-producing fuel that may be.

Pull up to a gas station and within minutes the traveling group is back on the road, or pull your EV into one of those plug-in thingies and then take a long lunch and a nap and then you are back on the road again, eventually.

But the inner fuel for the travelers is one of the best parts of getting from point A to point B. There are so many choices along the roadways of America. Small diners, chain restaurants, fast food joints, curbside entrepreneurs, and places that have not seen an ‘A’ in their window since opening day.

There are also those favorite spots that we find ourselves drawn to time and again while traveling familiar territory, and one of those for me and my beautiful wife, Laureen, is Peggy Sue’s along Interstate 15 in the small town of Yermo.

A lot of 'nice' rides show up at Peggy Sue's

Not only is the eclectic eatery a great place to fill up the old stomach, but it is a fun destination to stretch one’s bones while wandering the interior and exterior of the establishment.

My personal history with the iconic restaurant goes back decades. In another life, I taught at the small but academically strong Silver Valley High School. A great place where staff really worked with their students to ensure a good quality education.

One of the programs I was involved with, Peer Counseling, had students interacting with fellow students to resolve various negative issues that may be causing personal angst. And nobody likes angst. It dealt with students talking with their peers on a one-on-one basis which is often more beneficial than an adult trying to make sense out of a teenager's life.

“My parents don’t understand me,” one teenager may say to a Peer Counselor.

“That’s because parents are dolts who often wear mismatched socks,” may have been the reply from my well-trained Peer Counselor. I always thought humor was a great way to get to the root of any issue.

I also used to say, ‘If you have issues, we have tissues.’ The point was, that my students believed in their heart of hearts that they could be the ears and voice for teenagers to listen to without giving advice, unlike adults who always had concrete solid answers for every problem that a fourteen-year-old was dealing with.

Really?

We raised four daughters - I still don’t know half of what the girls said for the entirety of their teenage years. I just nodded or told them to ask Mom.

Besides being a legitimate school class, we also operated a school club so we could hold various fund-raisers in which we could put on events schoolwide for the students at Silver Valley High School. And, that is where I came into contact with Peggy Sue Gabler, the owner, who along with her husband Champ, purchased the establishment in 1987.

Our Peer Counseling Club held its first car wash at the famed restaurant and Peggy Sue herself assisted, so naturally, it was a great success. She was charming and affable and even gave my students a good tip for washing her car in addition to free pizza and soft drinks.

It’s a good memory, and so Peggy Sue’s has been a favorite stopping place whenever we travel north or south along Interstate 15.

But, even without those personal recollections on my part, the joint is a cacophony of sights and sounds - and just a downright fun place to wander, even if putting on the feedbag isn’t the traveler's number one priority.

However, who could turn down anything on a menu that features such sandwiches as the Patti Page Patty Melt, the Mickey Mouse Club Sandwich, the Fabian French Dip, or the Big Bopper BLT?

If it sounds as though the customer may have stepped into a time warp when entering the double doors of Peggy Sue’s, they would be correct.

In fact, the front doors are ensconced below a huge facade of a 1950s jukebox. Don’t ever say Rock and Roll is dead in Yermo!

When Champ and Peggy Sue bought the restaurant, it was small and in need of a major facelift. They did not hesitate to sink hard-earned money from the time Champ spent working at Knott’s Berry Farm and the Hollywood acting career of Peggy Sue. In fact, she was so well-known in those Hollywood circles that as a person wandered through the restaurant, they would spy dozens upon dozens of movie posters and personal photographs showing Peggy Sue sidling up to some of the most notable actors from the silver screen.

On our last stop, there was a photo of Whoopi Goldberg telling the owners what a wonderful place they had going on the wall by our booth.

As posted on their website, Peggy Sue wrote; ‘We wanted good homemade food and great 50s music.’

And that they accomplished. But as the business grew, and more and more customers came in from the bustling Interstate just to the north, the restaurant had to expand to make room for the deluge of customers they were having every day.

The place reminds me of the Winchester House, without the hauntings, just keep adding on until there’s no more room to add onto.

The couple also realized they had a hit on their hands and decided year after year to not only expand in size but to make stopping at the restaurant not only a food fanfare but a true destination all by itself.

‘We opened a 50s style Five & Dime store with curios and memorabilia, soda fountain, ice cream parlor, and a pizza parlor,’ as stated on the website. "We even created our own Dinosaur park.’

Giant gorillas and dinosaurs await the visitor

As Laureen and I toured the exterior, after refueling our innards for the journey northward, we marveled at what had been created at Peggy Sue’s.

There are tall broad trees that give ample shade during the hot summer months with cooling blue water ponds surrounded by large swaths of green grass giving the entire experience a feeling of entering an oasis within the Mojave Desert.

As oasis for pirates, dinosaurs, and visitors

There is a bandstand that is used regularly for the enjoyment of locals and visitors alike - with bands that no one has heard of and those that may be just shy of getting that record label contract to shoot them into the stratosphere.

Get ready to Rock and Roll

As we wandered the park-like grounds, families were marveling at the life-sized metal sculptures of dinosaurs that show the differences between carnivores and herbivores. A paleontologist's dream for their own backyard.

Of course, my favorite is the giant sculpture of King Kong looking down upon us rather hauntingly - as any oversized ultra-intelligent simian would.

But before leaving this rather fanciful world that Champ and Peggy Sue created, a must-see is the gift shop where every piece of the 50s and 60s reside. There are full-sized posters of Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley, and not far off, there are a couple of hardened plastic sculptures of the Blues Brothers.

The Blues Brothers as Peggy Sue's, Yermo, California

The King, Elvis, not Kong, is ever present - in fact, as a person enters the establishment Elvis is offering to tell the future of anyone brave enough to drop a coin into the slot of the fortune-telling machine.

The King awaits

I dropped one in. 

“Viva Las Vegas,” the mechanical Elvis sang to me while nodding his Elvis face with a turban attached to the dark and perfect hair. “I see in your future not a thing worthwhile. Now the pretty lady beside you, yowie!”

It was time to leave. 

Peggy Sue’s is a must-stop for a quick bite or a lingering to take it all in. No traveler will be disappointed. 

For further information; https://www.peggysuesdiner.com/

John can be contacted at; beyersbyways@gmail.com

 

Vidal Junction

John R Beyer at Vidal Junction, California

As I have in written in past articles, there are places we are destined to travel to without even meaning to travel there. 

If I haven’t written that, I should have, sounds almost brilliant. One of those memorable quotes. 

Anyway, when we travel, there are times we are moving toward a final destination, but sometimes on the way to that objective, another stopping-place shows up in front of us that is just as intriguing. 

That is truly adventure.

As a travel writer, I find myself in that realm quite often, and I find it reassuring. Just because I want to end up at one place, doesn’t mean I don’t want to find myself in a totally different locale. That is what makes life so exciting.

Okay, enough philosophy – on with what this article is about.

Growing up in Southern California, I spent a lot of time at the Colorado River. The main route I used was Interstate 10, to Blythe and then north on Highway 95 to the Parker Strip. A friend of mine, Bob, had a place along the river, and we’d spend countless hours boating on that stretch of water and then relaxing after a tiring, but fun filled day with our families.

Good times.

Well, during those trips, I must have driven past Vidal dozens of time, and never gave it a second thought.

A bent sign, along Highway 95, letting the passerby know there may have been something worthwhile there once, but apparently that something was long ago. Slow down, take the railroad tracks carefully at Vidal, especially if towing anything, and then drive on to Parker.

That was the extent of my knowledge of Vidal.

On a recent trip, Laureen and I, again were buzzing south on Highway 95 and passed that bent sign indicating the town of Vidal.

“Wonder what’s there?” Laureen asked.

“Nothing, would be my guess,” I replied.

“Let’s check it out. You never know,” she said.

And we did. I made a legal U-turn and headed back to that tall crooked sign. Getting out of our vehicle, we snapped a few photographs and started walking east on the dirt road, known as the Old Parker Road – not to be confused with the New Parker Road.

Laureen Beyer at the end to the tracks in Vidal Junction, California

Train tracks ran right next to the roadway. They were empty, straight, as if they hadn’t been used in a long time - lonely. I doubted that, since trains seemed to run through this part of the country all the time. None did while we were there, but that didn’t mean they didn’t use these tracks – just not for the thirty minutes we wandered here and there.

“That’s a nice looking little house,” Laureen mentioned, as she pointed to a very well-kept white and blue cottage.

She was correct. The house stood out in the brown desert like an unforgotten jewel. Perhaps a ruby, that has been neglected by a heart broken lover – what?

Man, this is starting to sound like a cheap dime novel.

Turns out, that the nice looking little house was the only permanent abode for Wyatt Earp and his wife, Josephine – who went by Sadie.

John R Beyer in front of the Earp's house, Vidal Junction, California

Yes, probably one of the most famous western lawmen – among other things, who rode a horse through the southwest.

The Wyatt Earp, who became even more famous, or infamous, after that thirty second street battle at the OK Corral in Tombstone, Arizona. Two factions of westerners had had enough with one another, and temperatures boiled over in the afternoon of October 26th, 1881. In a matter of a half a minute, three were dead and three wounded. Tombstone would soon become a household word.

The violence would also go down as the most famous gunfight in the American Wild West. Sorry, Wild Bill Hickok.

There is a cement slab with a plaque, in front of the small house, explaining – ‘The legendary lawman, gun-fighter, gambler, businessman, and miner along with his wife Josephine inhabited this “Dream-Come-True” cottage from 1925 – 1928. During the fall, winter and spring months while he worked his “Happy Days” mines in the Whipple Mountains a few miles north of this site. This is the only permanent residence they owned in their long lives together.’

Long life together, meant forty-seven years. They married – common-law – in 1882, and stayed with each other until Wyatt’s death on January 13, 1929.

That is a long time in anyone’s book, especially for a guy who had been mixed up in more gunplay then I’ve had IRS audits. Did I just write that?

It should be noted, that during Wyatt’s life, he moved around a lot – gambling here and there, looking for minerals in the mountains of Arizona and California, sitting for interviews, and the like. The Earp’s never really settled down, but instead rented hotels and small homes during their married life.

It wasn’t until they purchased the small cottage in Vidal in 1925 that they had true roots. They’d summer in Los Angeles and the rest of the year mainly in Vidal.

An interesting point, that the Earp’s were actually living in Calzona – not far from Vidal – in 1922, when a huge fire destroyed the town, but miraculously the little house didn’t burn.

The house was moved to Vidal, where the Earp’s eventually bought it.

According to a couple of sources online, Morgan Earp (Wyatt’s younger brother) was the original owner of the house in Calzona, but he was murdered in 1882 in Tombstone – revenge killing for the OK Corral gunfight, and I couldn’t find material backing up those suggestions.

The way with history, one person writes this and the other person writes that. It is romantic, in a literary way though, to believe Wyatt and Sadie actually lived in the house that Wyatt’s younger brother had built.

Let’s allow that bit of history go without much further investigation.

So, now that we knew this little burg had a lot more going for it, we decided to explore a bit more.

Over on Main Street, all these towns have a main street, stands a beautiful rock and mortar two story building. On the top, like castles of old, are jagged rocks as though they expected Vikings to storm the building.

Original store in Vidal Junction, California

No Vikings, and really not much on the history of the building. It must have cost a pretty penny – or a lot of pretty pennies – to build such a place.

In a statement on the website, flickeriver.com, the building had various businesses which occupied the building through the years. A barbershop, an assayers office – make sense if Wyatt and others were mining for gold – and other commercial endeavors. There were supposed showers behind the building for cowboys to rinse off the dust of the desert.

In full disclosure, the research on this building did not yield much information. Actually, very little about both Vidal and the surrounding area is very limited online. That is a shame, since this was once the home of an iconic member of the ‘old west’ legend.

Mainly ruins in Vidal Junction

As mentioned earlier, Wyatt and Sadie resided in Vidal during the fall, winter, and spring times, moving back to Los Angeles during the summer. A little bit warm in Vidal during that scorching time of year. Besides, Wyatt did work as a consultant for some film companies assisting in making western movies as accurate as possible.

As mentioned in truewestmagazin.com, the early cowboy star, Tom Mix, and Wyatt became very close friends, so close that Mix served as a pallbearer at Earp’s funeral. 

Rumor has it, Tom Mix cried.

According to justwestofmyheart.blogspot.com, the town of Vidal kept growing with ranchers, miners, traders, and the building of the Los Angeles Aqueduct in the 1930’s. ‘By 1935, the area had no less than 28 liquor establishments, the paper describing them as “hangouts for river toughs and equally tough women.”

But, the great depression played havoc everywhere, and one place hit especially hard was Vidal. Soon people left and the desert began to encroach back on the emptiness left behind by the vanishing citizens. 

A relatively newer structure in Vidal Junction, California

Not much is left to Vidal today. A few deserted houses, Wyatt’s cottage, the remains of the JM Heacock building, and a cemetery across the railroad tracks.

Is it worth a stop along Highway 95? Yes, it is.

“I bet this place has a very intriguing past, I bet,” Laureen stated, as we headed to our vehicle.

“And I’d take that bet,” I replied. I knew that would be a sure wager.