Interesting Ghost Towns for 5-Year Old?

[Ghosttowns.com]

Originally posted by MunichMom


: Hi,



: I'm an American living in Munich, Germany. My husband

: (German), 5-year old daughter, & I will be traveling

: between Aspen, CO & Las Vegas in April for 3 weeks.

: On every trip to the U.S., I try to teach my daughter

: about American history, culture, & nature. What ghost

: towns between Aspen & Las Vegas would be most

: interesting to a 5-year old & most accessible in a

: rental car in April? Of course, any other tour

: recommendations are also very welcome!



: Many Thanks!

: Regina

[Ghosttowns.com]

Originally posted by Mike


: Kanab, UT - not a ghost town, but it has some historical significance in that

: over 100 western movies and several TV westerns were filmed in the area. Some

: of the movie sets are still there; a couple are listed on the main page at this

: site... click on Kane county (southern UT).



: You also have Bryce, Zion, and Grand Canyon (N Rim) Nat'l Parks within an hour or two.



: Going west through Zion (toward Vegas), highway 9 and I-15 provide phenomenal

: scenery in S UT and NW AZ. There are a couple ghosts listed along highway 9

: in Washington County that look to be readily accessible.



: Weather could be a problem getting to the Bryce or Grand Canyon areas, even in April.

: Both sit near or above 8,000 feet elevation. I'll defer to any locals for further

: details in that regard.

[Ghosttowns.com]

Originally posted by John Pinckney


: When my daughter was four years old, she enjoyed seeing both Bodie and Rhyolite. From Las Vegas, it's a nice trip up U.S. 95 to get to Rhyolite. And, you get to see Carrera (and go up to it, if you want (the road is OK for a passenger car)...



: Bodie is a bit far from Vegas, but is well worth the trip.



: -JFP



:

: : Hi,



: : I'm an American living in Munich, Germany. My husband

: : (German), 5-year old daughter, & I will be traveling

: : between Aspen, CO & Las Vegas in April for 3 weeks.

: : On every trip to the U.S., I try to teach my daughter

: : about American history, culture, & nature. What ghost

: : towns between Aspen & Las Vegas would be most

: : interesting to a 5-year old & most accessible in a

: : rental car in April? Of course, any other tour

: : recommendations are also very welcome!



: : Many Thanks!

: : Regina

[Ghosttowns.com]

Originally posted by MunichMom


: Thanks very much John and Mike! You both gave me

: some good ideas & I've already looked on the map

: for these places.



: We're very excited about our trip! My husband

: won a one-week ski trip to Aspen for us. After

: Aspen, we'll drive around for almost 3 weeks,

: making a loop from Aspen to Las Vegas & back.

: He's been planning our route for several months

: now. I know that 3 weeks is not enough time, but

: with the other 2 weeks, that makes 5 weeks away

: from home!



: It's very important to me that our daughter (who

: has dual-citizenship) learn about American

: history & culture as well as the German. So any

: other travel tips are very welcome! And if you

: ever need any information about Munich or

: Bavaria, I'll try to help :-)



: Thanks again!

: Regina

[Ghosttowns.com]

Originally posted by John Pinckney


: Regina,



: No problem. I hope the three of you have a wonderful trip.



: A couple of hints:



: In planning our trip with our then-four-year-old Rebecca, we used a book called <<Fodor's Where Should We Take The Kids? California>>. It was very helpful. And, predictably accurate in how Rebecca would react!



: For our trip to Bodie, we stayed in Bridgeport. If you want to show your daughter the "wide open West", I suggest the stretch of California on U.S. 395 from the state line and down past Lee Vining, and around towards Tonopah (Nevada) on a road whose number I can't remember right now! Anyway, it takes you past Mono Mills, Mono Lake, a couple of abandoned ranches, and other not-to-be-missed points! Getting back to Bridgeport, I cannot recommend a stay there highly enough. It was one of the best parts of our three weeks in California. One thing, since you're coming from Germany, the price of gas woun't be as much of a surprise for you as it was for us! In June 1999 when we went, we were paying about $1.25/gallon here in the Virginia suburbs of D.C. In Bridgport, it was $1.95/gallon and up!



: One other possibility, if you are able to get down to the Death Valley part of California, take in the Ghost Town of Ballarat. The official website is impressive. But, you have to see it. If you go to Death Valley, be sure your rental car is up to the climb out and over the Sierras. The Chevy Lumina we had gave me more than a few scares! Also, another lesson from experience: Make sure your rental car has current plates. My wife and I had one that not only had the plates expire while we were there, but we also found out we weren't supposed to take any farther from California than Las Vegas... We found that out when we took it from L.A. up to St. George, Utah! Be sure your rental contract allows for wanderlust. 4WD or no "paved highghway only" restrictions would also be nice. As long as you don't go beyond the capabilities of either vehicle or driver.



: One last thing about Bodie while I think about it: Allow a day for exploration. Perhaps more. Try to be there on a Saturday when the museum is open and tours are offered to the normally "off-limits" areas.





: Drop me an e-mail if I can be of further help.



: -John Pinckney

[Ghosttowns.com]

Originally posted by Stephen(Ghost Town Photographer)


: : Thanks very much John and Mike! You both gave me

: : some good ideas & I've already looked on the map

: : for these places.



: : We're very excited about our trip! My husband

: : won a one-week ski trip to Aspen for us. After

: : Aspen, we'll drive around for almost 3 weeks,

: : making a loop from Aspen to Las Vegas & back.

: : He's been planning our route for several months

: : now. I know that 3 weeks is not enough time, but

: : with the other 2 weeks, that makes 5 weeks away

: : from home!



: : It's very important to me that our daughter (who

: : has dual-citizenship) learn about American

: : history & culture as well as the German. So any

: : other travel tips are very welcome! And if you

: : ever need any information about Munich or

: : Bavaria, I'll try to help :-)



: : Thanks again!

: : Regina



: Howdy, You didn't say what loop route you would be taking...so, in SW Colorado the towns of Ouray, Silverton and Telluride are not "Ghost towns" but are awesome to see and have a great deal of Western Frontier History and flavor...Telluride is often referred to as "The Alps of North America". For the best representation of a real Ghost Town, Bodie California is the ticket as has already been mentioned. Hope you have lots of film! Enjoy your journey. Stephen

[Ghosttowns.com]

Originally posted by Mike


: I'll add a few comments, too. Firstly, I certainly second

: John's suggestion about Rhyolite! I haven't been to Bodie yet.

: If you can do the loop around "Area 51," there's Goldfield and

: Tonopah (not true ghost towns, but a lot of history). On the other

: side of Tonopah, there's Belmont and Manhattan - long, lonely

: miles to get to them, but worth it. I also liked Tybo, but it's

: about 7 miles on a gravel road.



: And of course, there's the ET Highway - 100 or so miles of total

: nothingness, except for Rachel and the famous Little A'le'Inn.

: (Your daughter might get a kick out of all the ET stuff!) Just

: don't wander too far off the ET Highway, at least not in the direction

: of the (nonexistant?) air base.



: Near Kanab, UT, you all might enjoy a visit to the nearby Best Friends

: animal sanctuary. Something like 1800 homeless pets are provided with TLC in

: this no-kill shelter, nestled in a beautiful canyon just north of Kanab.



: Also, note the comments further down on the b-board regarding Paria.

: That's one of the places near Kanab, but it looks like there's not

: much left there.



: Hope you have a wonderful trip. Like John, please feel free to e-mail me direct

: with any other questions or comments.