There has been much written about Route 66, songs, books, movies, poems, and if you've traveled all or even part of it, it's not hard to understand why. One of the remarkable things about this legendary road is the wide variety of landscapes which is traverses. Plains, mountains, deserts, it truly provides a snapshot into America.
Recently we took a day trip up a piece of historic route 66 towards the desert community of Barstow via Victorville and Oro Grande.
These photographs were made using my 1981 Minolta X-700 SLR, using 125asa Ilford B/W 35mm film.
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| Mohawk gas station, Oro Grande, CA. ©Mike Vega 2015 When "mini-marts" were mini... |
Once you get beyond the suburban sprawl and out into the rarefied air of the high desert, you can feel a change come over you. The tight streets and traffic corridors give way to wide open space, open roads that disappear into the horizon and limitless skies...
And then as your mind relaxes, you come upon wonderful treasures forgotten by time and discarded by progress.
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| Pumps. ©Mike Vega 2015 Oro Grande, CA. |
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| Mohawk gas station. ©Mike Vega 2015 Oro Grande, CA. |
Remnants of houses, businesses, roads, all become food for your imagination. Who lived there? When was this place "new"? Where did everyone go?
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| Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch. ©Mike Vega 2015 Oro Grande, CA. |
When we set out on the road, we only had a sketch of where we were headed but, Elmer Long's Bottle Tree Ranch, was a "must see" on this outing. I did shoot some color this day as well, but am posting the black and white photos in an effort to entice you to make your own pilgrimage, while preserving some of the mystery of the place.
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| Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch. ©Mike Vega 2015 Oro Grande, CA. |
Elmer's is one of those places that when you see it, it makes perfect sense yet you could've never imagined its existence before you actually laid eyes upon it.
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| I don't always shoot directly into the sun... Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch. ©Mike Vega 2015 Oro Grande, CA. |
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| Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch. ©Mike Vega 2015 Oro Grande, CA. |
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| Target practice. Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch. ©Mike Vega 2015 Oro Grande, CA. |
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| The Pop Shoppe. Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch. ©Mike Vega 2015 Oro Grande, CA. |
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| Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch. ©Mike Vega 2015 Oro Grande, CA. |
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| Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch. ©Mike Vega 2015 Oro Grande, CA. |
Elmer's is a creation of imagination and love. It is welcoming and inspiring. It is waiting, under the bright desert sun for you.
Stay tuned for part 2...
-Mike
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