![calico ghost town calico ghost town](https://i2.wp.com/drivinvibin.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/02/desert-antique-mining-blue-sky-calico-old-west-ghost-town-desert-scene_t20_ynbba6.jpg)
Standing in the middle of the eerily silent Main Street here, it’s impossible not to imagine what Bodie must have been like in its heyday: a noisy, thriving, hardscrabble town of almost 10,000 souls that boasted over 60 saloons.
![calico ghost town calico ghost town](https://image.shutterstock.com/image-photo/calico-ghost-town-san-bernardino-260nw-464847812.jpg)
(Courtesy of California State Parks, Image 090-14535) Downtown Bodie, including the Occidental Hotel, circa 1905. Bodey - who died in a blizzard before ever seeing the town that took (but misspelled) his name - drew people from across the nation. The gold and silver found in these hills by New York prospector W.S. In the late 19th century, Bodie was the archetypal Gold Rush boomtown. (Courtesy of California State Parks, Image 090-9021) When the winter snows come, this place often becomes impassable. It’s over 15 miles from the nearest town, connected by a narrow winding highway that turns into an unpaved dirt road. Please take my warning and do not remove even a speck of dust."īodie - established in 1859, claimed by the state parks service in 1962 - lies hidden in the hills east of Yosemite, south of Lake Tahoe and north of Mono Lake. "Fair warning for anyone that thinks this is just folklore - my life has never seen such turmoil. It was started by the California Department of Parks and Recreation itself - and it's had an effect the state parks service didn't expect. This myth did not originate with superstitious Gold Rush prospectors, or credulous ghost hunters.