The Friends of Cerro Gordo

For Valentines Day.. my collection of heart shaped rocks found up at Cerro Gordo.

To familiarize you more with the town of Darwin that was featured in Brent's latest video: The History of Darwin by Cecile Page Vargo Somewhere between Lone Pine and Death Valley, in a hot dusty, remote and desolate area, lies the mere shadow of a town called Darwin. The first white travelers to pass through the area were the Death Valley 49'ers coming from Salt Lake City to the California goldfields. In 1850, Dr. Erasmus Darwin French came through on a search for the...Continue reading

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Even after the invention of automobiles and steam engines the mules were predominantly used for freight during the early 1900's as is shown in this photo. The building to the right behind the mules is the barn, the rock foundation remnants still stand today. L.D. Gordon archives

Poem by Bob Likes author of From this Mountain Cerro Gordo

We are so thankful for all of the donations that have come in so far! We still have a long way to go to reach our goal...so please consider donating towards the rebuild of Cerro Gordo's iconic building. Even small amounts of $5 and $10 add up quickly and are greatly appreciated!

Road update: All roads to Bodie are open! As of noon today, CalTrans reopened the Bodie Road (Hwy 270). There is very little snow or mud on the road and it shou...ld be passable to all vehicles. Cottonwood Canyon Road is open and only the last 1/2 mile has any significant snow on it. The Bodie Masonic Road and the continuation of the Bodie Road into Nevada are still high-clearance 4WD only.

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Postcard from the Louis D. Gordon zinc era archives...

Another song I wrote for Mike Patterson several years ago: Christmas On The Mountain by Cecile Page Vargo (written for Mike Patterson)... It’s Christmas on the mountain, It’s getting very cold I often wonder what it was like, In the days of old The jingle bells that were heard Belonged to the mules Gee haw, was the loud cry The crack of the whip, the muleskinners controlling tool Up and down the Yellow Grade The dust would most oft fly The wagons left with silver and lead ore Back with rum and rye Produce from the farms down south Also brought to town Miners happy and full Smelter fires kept burning, blue skies turning smoky brown Belshaw, Beaudry, Nadeau too Took in the most wealth Hard working the miner made enough Barely kept his health The money that was not lost In the old saloon Squandered on Lola’s girls Short moments of pleasure, dingy cribs lit by the moon The hotels had beds to rent Twelve hours at a time No wonder the newspapers oft said It’s Man for breakfast crime Violence ruled the old Fat Hill Bold headlines out cried Tired lone miner men Playing hard after their mine shift, tempers flared some of them died From this desert mountain town A quiet pueblo grew Metropolis got bigger than life Few men from then knew Big city Christmas glistens To spill over with excess Cerro Gordo mountaintop Spirits blowing with the wind, a ghost town in distress. I long for this mountain top Its quiet solitude To linger with the spirits Please don’t think me rude Christmas on the mountaintop Miner’s ghosts from days of yore I hear their voices singing Peace on earth, good will, Merry Christmas and so much more See more

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During the L.D. Gordon zinc era in the early 1900's mules pulling water wagons delivered to work camps outside of the main town site , as well as the town itself. Photo Courtesy L.D. Gordon archives

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With a little photo shop magic we were able to turn this snowy photo from the Louis D. Gordon archives into a Christmas scene and use as our Christmas card a few years back.

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