37 Frames : Avoiding the big one & The ET Highway (USA – The Roadtrip 9)

“Remember – you can’t beam through a force field. So, don’t try it.” ~ William Shatner

We may never make it to the end of this trip, as today’s post has us back on the road. Somewhere in America. But isn’t that just the point? To take this life all in, bit by bit. The destination will eventually materialize. And if it doesn’t then an alternate reality will be fine. Totally. And getting lost or finding your self in alien territory is always a preferable back-story. In hindsight. And that’s where we firmly are today. In all things alien. Heading along the infamous ET highway, somewhere in Nevada by Area 51. While simultaneously heading into a new decade for me. We are smack bang in the middle of our peak Spring season this week so I had to schedule my mini breakdown for yesterday. Check. I’m all good now. For a while. So as we blissfully ignore today and all things Four-OH, we reflect back down the road, on what was a journey tempered with absolutely no photographic value at all. Just unadulterated, pure, plain road-trip fun. Yes, we believe. Here we go.

Leaving Twin Falls it was a bientot to Evel and we looked ahead to another massive 800km drive. We were now heading south, deep into the nothingness of Nevada. And it was utterly beautiful. Passing  fields and fields of gold in the Idaho early morning. Dangling out of the car, life speeding by, warming up with the first of countless “drive-by shootings”. All hand-held, out the window, truckin’ down the road, wind in the hair.

This is the definition of a road-trip. Open roads, blue sky and freedom. Bad soft-rock on the radio.

We hurtle through small towns and wonder how life plays out there. Signs welcome us, then are just as quickly a glimmer in the rear-view. Tidbits of roadside America taunt us. But we move on and as we enter Nevada we pass by Great Basin National Park and we are lost briefly in it’s charm. Well, that and Shooters and some good old fashioned muralling-appreciation.

Fueled up and back on the road with some mystery purchases from the gas station. Always an adventure. We are soon back in snow country and the those icy patches tease us again. And are avoided at all costs. The scenery extreme and breathtaking.

We know we’re heading even if it looks nothing at all like the first trip many years back. The UFO shaped clouds lead the way. We know they’re masking the real thing…We know.

And then when we made it to the junction of middleofnowhere and Hwy 375 – it was totally unrecognizable from the last time we were here. It should be the desert. Red rocks and infinite emptiness. Instead it was lightly snow-capped and foreign all the same.

And here we were. Finally. On the Extraterrestrial Highway. And just where is the promote controller when you need a few group shots? Oh, here it is. With me. All. The. Time. Many apologies for this photographic travesty of roadworthy proportions. But we really had no choice. It was the Force. The Force.

And after that hilarity it was on to Rachel – about 100m further south. Where, naturally we stayed the night. Oh, how we stayed the night.

One could while away the hours just photographing the signage of Rachel, but before we got too carried away it was time to check in at the Little A’Le’Inn (pronounced Little Alien)… Really.

We walked in to the cafe/bar. We’ve been there before. Looking the same hilarious kitsch as always, aging with a maturity that out-of-this-world fame and UFOness will bring. And that’s when we made contact, with clearly, the Ambassador to Rachel behind the counter. And the interaction when something like this:

Me & Em: Hi! We’re here to check-in. How are you doing?

Response: I’m tired and can’t wait for this day to end. Hate it here.

Us: Oh. Ok. Hope your day gets better (big smiles etc…) Can we check in?

Response: (in possibly the most unenthusiastic tone. evah.) Oh, great. (followed by lots of eye-rolling)

And that was pretty much that. Keys to our trailers thrown at us. We would break him down eventually. Just give us a bit and a few beers.

We went and checked out our trailer. Who wouldn’t their fridge and microwave next to the toilet? In the bathroom. I mean, really? The room smelt like dog and we saw a caretaker and his mangy old hound out back so were not at all justabitfreakedout. But we had numbers on our side, still, alien abductions notwithstanding. Grainy UFO photographs adorned the walls as trailer art. And this is when it hit us like a meteor. That most radiant, blinding of ALL realizations… Sometimes, actually most times, Roadside America is best viewed from the Roadside. Hello. It’s in the title. And NOT FROM THE INSIDE. Which was where we would all firmly be for the next 24 hours. Way less if it were up to me.

In fairness there was a lot of laughter in equal measure to the incredulousness of our current situation. And so at this point we chose the lesser of two evils and went back to the bar for a few drinks and catching up. Tales from the road and all that. And some classic Facebook status updates. We had a good chance to connect with the locals, hear their life stories (in full), and then ponder our own over bad Smirnoffs and alien brews. We ate an eclectic meal (after Erin unsuccessfully tried to convert the entire town of Rachel to vegetarianism) and after a quick photo tour of the town – beer in hand – the sun went down.

Alas, our classy double-trailer did not beckon but it was now part of the story… And the sun would rise…or would it? Before then we were drawn to the night. To the sky. And what was beyond. The mind ablaze with possibilities. All was quiet in Rachel. An inky abyss closing in from all sides. Stars everywhere – hundreds of thousands of twinkles, infinitely more unseen. We walked outside. We waited, searching the sky. But nothing moved, nothing came, and we started to freeze. It was black and cold. And we are so hard core and all that. Clearly the Aliens off for the night. On the lonely Extraterrestrial Highway. The trailer was a refuge…of sorts. And an alternate reality we could hopefully wormhole our way out of by morning. If it came.

And surprisingly it did. Even after a restless night. And it had snowed. Just a little but enough to leave a white dusting over the Nevada desert. Over breakfast and checking email (randomly fast internet…Rachel is so wired…) the tale of how we survived the night, in the trailer at the A’Le’Inn took an extraordinary leap into the twilight zone. And it would have to be documented again. With of course some more time lapse fun. When you see the video, (if it ever sees the light of day) you’ll understand. We hope. Again more apologies. But possibly after this series (& the 5th photo down) you will believe too… Bird?…we think not.

And then to say goodbye to trailer 51 (oooooh, spooky) and 52…

And it’s goodbye to Rachel… Not sure when we’ll be back. But we’d gladly beam in again if we could.

And on we go.

One of the many popular stops along the Extraterrestrial Highway is the so-called Groom Lake “Park ‘n’ Ride”, near the turn-off from Crystal Springs. The site is a popular photo spot for the now-famous “Extraterrestrial Highway” sign, which has since been further decorated with stickers and graffiti from visitors (presumably human-form) over the years. The spot gets its name since the adjoining lot reportedly is the location where workers of the infamous Area 51 park their cars in the comfy shade of a giant tree and are shuttled in to the facility. Love a good sign.

Then it’s off for us to find Area 51. Route 375 nears the border of the Nellis Air Force Range. As we keep heading south towards the Tikaboo Valley, it meets Mail Box Road. Marked by a single postal drop known as the “black mailbox”, the dirt access road leads to the restricted lands surrounding Area 51. The mailbox, which is no longer black, is commonly used as a gathering place for UFO seekers, and two to three UFO sightings per week allegedly occur in the area. The mailbox is often mistaken for the mailbox of Area 51. In reality it belongs to a local rancher, who owns the only ranch in Tikaboo Valley. Since it is the most prominent landmark along that part of the ET Highway it has become a popular place for sky watchers, searching the night skies over Area 51 for mysterious lights. The original Black Mailbox was a regular black country mailbox. After the owner found his mail frequently searched for letters to Area 51, and supposedly even with bullet holes in it, he replaced the mailbox with a more solid white mailbox with a padlock. But Area 51 folklore still refers to it as the “Black Mailbox”. The original box was auctioned off to a UFO fan in 1996 for $1000. Without further ado…The Black Mailbox…

And of course we had to add our names before the next whitewash…

But then something even more exciting than spotting a UFO happened. We finally found, wait for it, wait for it… A GEOCACHE!!!! Yes! At Area 51. Who knew? And this is how it was documented…

There was a lot of celebrating and we are certain that all the hidden-cameras in the cacti had a good view. There may have been some Party Rock Shuffling at this point. And it wasn’t me…just sayin’.

If you carry on down this road you’ll soon be met with signs warning against trespassing. The stated various penalties of passing that barrier include six months in prison, a $600 fine, and if those aren’t enough to convince someone, there is always the ominous “Use of Deadly Force Authorized.” Nice and welcoming. That and the black SUV’s on the overlooking hilltop.

Back to the main road now and we find ourselves heading to Valley of Fire. Our alien trip almost done. Almost but not quite…

We carried on and in the distance we found a shiny quonset hut with a gigantic shiny new alien figure beckoning us. This is the new home of the “Alien Research Center.” More evidence. And yet it was closed. The signage slightly misleading. But intriguing all the same and we certainly couldn’t help wonder what mysteries were waiting to be revealed and the research at work within the sheds.

So while we were unable to further prove we are indeed not alone we could find solace in one last stop. A duo of awesomeness. As the sign says – Area 51’s cleanest bathrooms… and to pick up a little Alien Jerky.

And then it was time to hit the desert again. Pistachios, check. Valley of Fire was beckoning and those Vegas lights not too far beyond that. A town built on all things out-of-this-world. For now the desert awaits our return and we dream of what lays ahead, above and light-years away.

 

Part 1 – USA the Roadtrip : On the same Page

Part 2 – USA the Roadtrip : The Wave and All things Epic

Part 3 – USA the Roadtrip : Moab & Canyonlands… magic & more milestones

Part 4 – USA the Roadtrip : On the Salt Road

Part 5 – USA the Roadtrip : Life, ain’t it Grand

 Part 6 – USA the Roadtrip : Yellowstone, on the Northern Road

Part 7 – USA the Roadtrip : The Mother Park – Hello again, Ms Yellowstone

Part 8 – USA the Roadtrip : Twin Falls & The Evel Knievel Way