Crashing Rachel - An Area 51 Oasis

Dear Henry,

I have been totally enthralled by the news surrounding the "Storm Area 51" fiasco that is supposed to take place this Friday.  But only because I have been to Area 51 and Rachel Nevada and only because I can't imagine this turning out in a way other than comical.

If you haven't heard about this yet, let me fill you in. Back in June, a college student created an event on Facebook called "Storm Area 51: They Can't Stop All of Us" as a joke.  Only everyone decided to attend....right now, there are currently 2 million or so people who plan on attending.  Fearing the worst, Matty Roberts (the student) began coordinating with Connie West, the owner of the Lil A'le'inn in Rachel, Nevada, to host a festival.

But that partnership has come to a close, with Matty Roberts now calling the party off and throwing a party in Las Vegas.  Connie West, however, is still planning on a potential party, however, just in case.

If you do decide to go to Rachel, Nevada, and drive the Extraterrestrial Highway, you should probably know what to expect.  I can help you with that because my son and I drove it a few years ago.

It is important to note there are no gas stations.  Zero. Get gas in Crystal Springs or Tonopah.  You will not get another shot, and it is a very long walk of shame and an incredibly expensive tow bill.

Be prepared for a rather boring drive.  The reason that there is a military base in the middle of nowhere Nevada is that there is nothing there. It is the perfect place to test and perfect aircraft, it is a dry, rocky, barren desert full of sagebrush, and there are few people to disturb.  The Nevada desert is harsh and hot and doesn't have a lot in the way of scenery. Of course, if you actually saw an alien spacecraft, the trip would be far from boring.

We didn't see any spacecraft, but we did make the drive on a Wednesday

When you get to Rachel, Nevada (it's a logical turnaround spot unless you are continuing all the way to Reno), you will be utterly shocked by the size of the town.

When we were there in 2015, the town was a restaurant with a few rooms, motel style in the back, and a space for camping.  There were a few farmhouses in the distance.  From what I understand, not much has changed.

You do remember what I said about no gas station, right?

If you decide to make the drive, I do recommend stopping for a bite to eat at the Lil A'le'inn. They put together a pretty good burger, have quite a bit of memorabilia, and manage to make a trek into the middle of nowhere Nevada rather fun.

I don't know if I recommend going this Friday, though; that seems like quite the crowd.

xoxo a.d.


a.d. elliott is a wanderer, writer, and photographer currently living in Roanoke, Virginia. 

In addition to the travel writings at www.takethebackroads.com, you can also read her book reviews at www.riteoffancy.com and US military biographies at www.everydaypatriot.com

Her online gallery can be found at shop.takethebackroads.com

#TaketheBackRoads






Location: Bella Vista, AR, USA

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Bucket List Book Adventure: Book 15 - Histories

Image
Dear Henry, It's been a while, but I've finally gotten back to the bucket list book adventure  and have finished "Histories" by Herodotus. Hair- odd- uh-tus.....hair-odd-uh-tus.....It's taken me a month to learn how to pronounce his name, and I still say it wrong half of the time. Anyway, let me tell you all about the Histories. Herodotus, the "Father Of History," is somewhat of a mystery. He was believed to be born around 484 BC in the vicinity of the ancient Greek city of Halicarnassus, today known as Bodrum, Turkey. Maybe. There are a lot of question marks.  His life has a lot more question marks. Herodotus traveled extensively throughout the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and North Africa and was believed to be in Athens at the beginning of the Peloponnesian War. And, of course, his death is also big of a mystery. It is estimated to have occurred between 430 and 420 BC, and he probably rests in Thurii, Italy, having left Athens around 430 BC for the...
Read more

Basilicas, Books, & Bringing Home the Bacon

Image
Dear Henry, Wow, it's been a while. Let's catch up. I've been so busy! Several months ago, I took a part-time job at a local bookstore to get out of the house and out of my head (plus, you know, the discount). I had just begun adjusting to the physical demands of retail work when the Christmas shopping season (and working hours) began. I'm not quite sure if it's because of "the accident" or because I'm a pudgy middle-aged woman, but wow, I've been exhausted. So, I put everything on hold and dedicated myself to reading the entire 14-book Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan ( read his Everyday Patriot biography here ). I've been keeping my feet up when I wasn't at work, and I'm just now getting used to the job. This season of holiday hours has helped me feel better about my Camino plans. I've always worried that it would be too challenging, but I now know I can spend six to eight hours a day on my feet, multiple days in a row.  Now,...
Read more

The Resurrection of the Old Lick Cemetery In Roanoke Virginia

Image
Dear Henry, I have always felt a strong call to "pray for the dead," even as a child.  My grandmother was an avid genealogist (I inherited this love from her), and I used to accompany her to various old graveyards, where she transcribed and photographed old headstones. I would spend my time trying to scrape overgrown grass and weeds from the headstones, having developed the strange belief that they couldn't go to heaven if you couldn't read the name on a tombstone. It always made me so sad to see unkept headstones. While I've (somewhat) grown out of the belief that an unmarked grave condemns people to walk the earth as ghosts, the image of Patroclus, in Madeline Miller's book The Song of Achilles ( review here ), wandering the world as a shadow because no one would write his name down made me cry. I was also very sad to see this poor, unkept little cemetery right as I pulled off Interstate 581. One of my first thoughts entering the city of Roanoke for the firs...
Read more