We had a drone photographer accompany us to Bagdad recently, so we could get some aerial views for the travelogue piece I’m creating about the location. We thought we’d get there early in the morning and avoid the heat, but nope! Early morning and the sun was still intense. Just no mercy.

Bagdad? Bagdad, California, that is. Located in the middle of the Mojave Desert. A ghost ‘town’ with not even the hint of a building anywhere.
How do you know when you’ve found it? Well. there’s a single salt cedar tree that stands as a marker, a tombstone, an “x marks the spot’ — a lone testament to a once bustling community that was home to a few hundred people in its heyday.

Here’s a few interesting tidbits about Bagdad, CA
–In the late 1800s thru the early 1900s it was an important watering stop for the railroad. There were homes, hotels, stores, a school, and even a Harvey House restaurant. By the 1940’s, population began to dwindle, and somewhere in the late 1960’s the town gave up the ghost.
–It holds the record for the longest period of drought in the history of the country… from July 1912 to November 1914- it had 767 consecutive days without precipitation.
In the 1940’s, people would come from all around the desert to the Bagdad Cafe, which was the only place for miles around that had a jukebox and dance floor.
–Mysteries are encased in the landscape… is it merely folklore or is there some truth to the story that 50 Chinese railroad workers, who died during a cholera epidemic, are buried in an unmarked grave at the location?
What other mysteries does this place hold? Aha! We’ll let you know what we discover!

We found it!

And we’ll share our good fortune with you! 🙂

We traveled to Pie Town, New Mexico, to celebrate the mathematical Pi (π)  Day, which is held on March 14 (because π =3.14159265359)  and March 14 is  my birthday! (So we went to Pie Town to celebrate my birthday, which is on Pi Day).

Pi Day is a big thing in Pie Town and we were there to film an episode for Silver Sage.  We met some wonderful people, heard interesting stories, and… ate pie!  Our new favorite pie is the New Mexican green chili apple pie with pine nuts!  Sweet and spicy (REAL spicy!)

We camped at the Pie Town Cafe where we interviewed the proprietor, Lori Elliott, met the awesome crew there, and learned some interesting history about Pie Town.  All of which we will share with you in a future episode!

The title is not totally accurate as Las Vegas was in the middle of my trip home– the stopover city after leaving San Antonio. But a title such as Leaving Las Vegas sounds more poetic ….like… a movie or something

I bid a fond adieu to San Antonio this afternoon as Imaging USA ended last night with the usual, great closing party.  I did have time this morning to visit the Alamo to do  some filming there to include in my San Antonio missions piece.
Did you know the Alamo was actually a mission? The Mission San Antonio de Valero.

Today, the Alamo is designated a shrine and sacred ground, and no photography of any kind is allowed inside. However you can photograph to your heart’s content the outside of the building and grounds.

Some tidbits of info about the Alamo:
Before  the Texas revolution,  the Alamo was home to missionaries and their Indian converts for nearly 70 years , beginning with the construction of the mission in 1724. –

In the early 1800s the Spanish military stationed a Cavalry unit there and soldiers referred to it as the Alamo in honor of their hometown of Alamo de Parras, Coahuila.
The  Alamo holds the distinction of housing the first recorded hospital in Spanish Texas. It was established in 1805 to care for soldiers stationed on the frontier. –

The  famous battle saw the 200 defenders  holed up in the Alamo besieged by an army of 1800-6000  soldiers led by general Antonio Lopez Santa Anna. The siege lasted 13 days ending March 6,1836 with all of  the defenders perishing. — The Republic of Texas joined the United States in 1845 and the army used the Alamo as a supply depot until 1878. The military presence helped create a safer climate in the dangerous frontier town of San Antonio.

The Alamo is remembered worldwide as a heroic struggle against overwhelming odds–a place where men made the ultimate sacrifice for freedom.

We’re taking on Route 66! How far will we get and how long will it take us?

We started with an interview with Route 66 expert Jim Conkle, who has traveled the iconic highway from one end to the other over 200 times.
Jim shared his knowledge and experience as a tour guide for Route 66.

Interviewing Jim Conkle at the historic Summit Inn on Route 66

 
And we will be sharing our exploration of Route 66 in our photo travelogues.

We started this week, taking a day to travel from Victorville to Needles. We decided we’d make stops at the Bagdad Café in Newberry Springs, and visit the GHOST TOWN OF Bagdad, searching for a tree and a sign that I read was there to mark the former location of the town (there was no sign to be found)

Inside the Bagdad Cafe

We’d always wanted to visit the Mojave Preserve, so we decided we would visit there since we’d be out that way.

At the Mojave Preserve

This did turn out to be an interesting trip, and it was rather ambitious of us to try to do it in one day, because there’s just too much to take in. We’re doing this stretch again– in smaller chunks. And then we’ll move on to the next..and then the next. We expect to have a lot to share in upcoming episodes.

So… come along for the ride!