Ghost Towns
So as we’re waiting (and waiting…and waiting…) for Sarah’s UK visa to be approved (her paperwork was sent to the UK Immigration Office last week), we are trying to find ways to occupy our time. We decided that we should do something “All-American” before leaving the country, and what’s more American than Ghost-Towning! Yes, I made up the word “Ghost-Towning”! So now, prepare yourself for a whirlwind tour of the ghost towns of Southeastern Washington (pictures in the Gallery)!
Packard was a little out of our way and, even better, not at all worth it! North of Packard stands a neat old church in the middle of a field, but it was also right next to someone’s house, so we didn’t poke around too much. But it was cool to think that 100 years ago, families in the area traveled potentially for hours every Sunday to attend services.
On the way to Paha, we stumbled upon Paha Cemetery. It was barren, overgrown with weeds, century old tombstones, surrounded by miles of fields, and pretty spooky. In other words, awesome.
There wasn’t too much in Paha either…oh, except for the scariest house on the planet! The outside of the house was in decent shape, but there was no front door, so I thought it would be a good idea to stroll on in while Sarah and Simone watched from the car. The front room was in squalor with garbage piled up everywhere, but next to it was a completely clean room with a bed and mattress. So, I wasn’t necessarily scared of ghosts in the house, but of what might be living in the house. I took a couple of pictures inside the house, but you can tell by looking at them that I was freaked out. In fact, there was a black plastic bag (now known as the scariest black plastic bag on the planet!) full of something in the middle of the front room that I took a picture of that I didn’t even know was there. I was so freaked out that I was just taking pictures and now even looking at what I was taking pictures of! Check out the video of my spooked butt going inside:
For a description of Salem Cemetery, please see the description of Paha Cemetery. This one, however, has been kept up better. It’s surrounded by a newer fence, and the tombstones are in better shape. Still lots of spooky goodness, though! Something that stood out while exploring these old cemeteries is that the early-1900s were tough times for rural farm kids.
Not much interesting in Ralston, but Sarah took some cool pictures of an empty farmhouse and barn between there and Benge. And, if I were to describe Winona Cemetery it would sound like my descriptions of the last 2 cemeteries, except this one was on a hill which Simone took great delight in running down.
Elberton has a couple of derelict houses, an empty bank and hardware store, and an abandoned mill. The area around Cashup has been turned into a park and has a cool old empty church and old train trestle. Finally, up the perilous road to Steptoe Butte for breathtaking views!
November 6th, 2008 at 7:44 pm
That video was awesome.. It looks like a great trip. You should do GPS tracks of your trips so I can go on them. It would sure make my road trips easier LOL