Bodie: America’s Best Ghost Town

Let me start off by saying this – Bodie State Historic Park is the coolest park I’ve ever been to! This is one of, if not the most, authentic ghost town in all of the U.S. Bodie feels like you’re on the set of a Western movie, but instead of props, you’re actually standing in a town as it was left over a 100 years ago.

History of Bodie

Bodie, California is a small city located in Mono County just a few miles from Nevada. Bodie began as a mining camp following the discovery of gold in 1859. By 1880, the town grew to an estimated 10,000, producing more than $35 million (today’s value) in gold and silver. Unfortunately, the rise of promising mining booms lured Bodie residents away, especially as it became increasingly more difficult to find gold in Bodie. By 1900, Bodie’s population decreased to 800, and in the years to come, Bodie had officially become a ghost town. 

Residents left whatever they couldn’t carry behind, leaving old shelves in general stores and bars stocked, as well as furniture.

How to get to Bodie

To keep it simple – just type in “Bodie” on Google maps. It will take you directly there. And now the long version:

From U.S. 395 seven miles south of Bridgeport, take State Route 270. Go east 10 miles to the end of the pavement and continue 3 miles on a dirt road to Bodie. 

From Los Angeles, the drive is 7.5 hours. Sounds crazy, but I actually did a day trip here! 

From San Francisco, the drive is about 6.5 hours. 

Regardless of how far it is, Bodie is a MUST-SEE, and you should work your schedule around it. For a foreigner (non-American), this trip will definitely give you extra cool points, as you’ll be able to brag to all your friends back in your home country that you saw the classic America. 

When to visit Bodie

Technically speaking, Bodie is open all year round but during the winter season, you might as well say it’s closed. As stated above, when you go to Bodie, you have to drive the last 3 miles on a dirt road; however, this road is closed during the winter season.  

Sub-zero temperatures, strong winds and white-out conditions are common, which would cause most vehicles to get stuck. Even when it warms up in the beginning of the spring, the road is still muddy. If you wanted to access Bodie during the winter you would need to either walk, ski, or take a snowmobile. But truthfully speaking, Bodie just isn’t worth visiting in the winter time. In my opinion, the site doesn’t look as nice as it does during the other seasons. If you’re visiting during the shoulder season, like I did, and aren’t sure whether the road is open or not, you can check online here. Type in “270” next to “highway number” for the latest report. 

What to see in Bodie

Once you’re here, you can’t really miss anything. Just walk around the site clockwise or counter clockwise, and work your way to the middle. This will ensure you see every last house/monument/bar, etc. I really enjoyed looking inside the houses through the window. These homes were really left in the same condition as when the people departed. 

Tips for Bodie

• Bring exact change. The fee is $8 for adults. $5 for children. It’s an honor system thing; you don’t actually pay anybody but rather drop your money in a little box.
• Bring food and water. There is literally nothing here. 
• Spare camera batteries!
• Multiple layers (depending on the season) 

Bodie is truly one of a kind and hands down the best ghost town in America. 100% worth the journey. Many travelers (mainly those coming from Southern California) don’t want to make the long drive to Bodie and opt for ghost towns such as Calico, which is only 2 hours away. Calico is a huge tourist trap and resembles a ghost town turned amusement park, trust me.

Have you all visited any other ghost towns? If so, drop a comment below and let me know how your experience was!