Abandoned Places – Hwy 58 to Route 66

[jjmaccrimmon]

So many roads less traveled exist out there. This isn’t one of them. The California Hwy 58 corridor between Barstow and Bakersfield is one of the busiest, non-interstate highways in the US. Because of its level of use, CalTrans (California Dept of Transportation) has been steadily working at the road by expanding many of the two lane sections and eliminating chokepoints. In layman’s terms, this means removing homes, bypassing communities and sterilizing the area of any roadside character. That being said, we took a trip out along the 58 heading east towards Barstow with the intention of mainly driving along Route 66 beyond what we’d seen already. Instead, we found things along CA Hwy 58 that we’d not anticipated. Angie badgerphone, my daughter Brenna persephone1313, my son Chris and I went a wandering in May and here’s what we found.



EDIT:
Before cruising down the 58 we made one stop at the Revere Extrusion Plant (ruins) to show the site to Angie. She posted photos on her LJ much closer to the visit than these, but while scouting the site for safety, I found a 5 to 6 foot long Great Basin Gopher Snake. If you’re phobic of snakes do not look behind the first cut, proceed to the second one.
































After a bit of driving down the 58 and some further off-roading, we also revisited the Hawes Bunker again briefly.


Blast vents in the decontamination area.


Blast points in the ceiling


Some folks have recently asked me where this is and how to get there...


While I encourage explorations, I am loath to tell folks where this site is


This is a good example of just how dark it normally is inside at best.


Hawes is a very, very dangerous site for the unwary or unprepared. There are deadfalls and other hazards that await visitors


Our little group is very experienced at stalking these dark hallways, but I won’t send someone out there to potentially get hurt

From the dark, cold halls of the Hawes Communication bunker, we struck out towards Barstow. The last stretch of Hwy 58 leading into town is two lanes. It was lined by the houses and businesses of folks who elected to live on the fringe of the community. Not for much longer though..


As we approached the city, we found this wreck. We found it odd that the roof and wood parts were all sitting to the side of the building.


Viewpoints






Unhinged #2


Ghost towns aren’t always old.. rolling eastward next

Comments

[gynocide.livejournal.com]

Awesome post JJ!

[jj-maccrimmon.livejournal.com]

Thank you! :D It was one of many really fun trips recently.

old buildings

[mesd66.livejournal.com]

i first found you when reading about the california in san diego.. i do ghost hunting and have a tour in old town san diego . i am always looking for places to do my work . nice old buildings. cmemb@yahoo.com

Re: old buildings

[jj-maccrimmon.livejournal.com]

I've been trying to get permission to photograph the California from the owners without success for months now. Unfortunately they have ignored all my mail. Much of what I've been exploring and photographing though is in Los Angeles, San Bernadino and Kern Counties.

More than a few of thes abandoned places I've found contain more than their share of ghosts (literal and figurative).