Brian Clune - Legends & Lore Along Californias Highway 395

Published by The History Press

Charleston, SC

www.historypress.com

Copyright 2022 by Brian Clune

All rights reserved

Front cover, top left: Courtesy of Colonel Vernon P. Saxon Jr. Aerospace Museum; top right: Courtesy of Mono Basin Historical Society.

Unless otherwise noted, all photos are courtesy of Terri Clune.

First published 2022

E-Book edition 2022

ISBN 978.1.43967.428.4

Library of Congress Control Number: 2021949174

Print Edition ISBN 978.1.46715.106.1

Notice: The information in this book is true and complete to the best of our knowledge. It is offered without guarantee on the part of the author or The History Press. The author and The History Press disclaim all liability in connection with the use of this book.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form whatsoever without prior written permission from the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

A trip down Highway 395 takes you from desert scrub

to lush Sierra Alpine forest vistas.

Writing this book was as challenging, if not more so, than it was for Haunted Heart of San Diego. The reason is the COVID-19 pandemic and the difficulties in talking with people and being able to access locations. With this in mind, I want to again thank all of the selfless individuals who daily put themselves in harms way, both physically and medically, to keep the rest of us safe. Also, with the world again becoming a more dangerous place, I want to thank all of the men and women in the armed forces of the United States for their dedication and the sacrifices they endure to keep America, and the world, safe and free.

From pine-scented forests, past boulders and streams, to clear lakes encircled by murals and dreams.

Where bright clouds emblazon a warm azure sky, a trail through mountains is one I must try.

excerpt from the poem The Mountains Are Calling by Edward A. Morris as a tribute to John Muir

CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

There are so many people I have met and spoken with on the journey of writing this book that it would take more pages than I can spare to mention them all. I want to thank all of those who took the time to give me the stories, histories and legends of this amazing roadway. You will never know how much it means to me. The people of the Owens Valley and Eastern Sierra are truly wonderful, and I highly recommend getting to know them when you are road-tripping the El Camino Sierra. Special thanks go out to author Danielle Nadler, who took the time out of her busy life so I could interview her and sent me her wonderful book Without a Trace so I could get to know a man who is truly a legend of the area, the Sierra Phantom. I need to thank my nephew Curren Clune, who hiked with me in the Sierra to get photos for the book. Some of the hikes were, shall we say, grueling. Thanks also go out to Rob and Candy Weil of Sierra Strange in Bridgeport, California, for allowing me to monopolize their time (and their shop) while asking for more and more stories of high strangeness. Again, thanks to Laurie Krill, my acquisitions editor, along with all of those at Arcadia/The History Press who make me look much better than I am. Of course, I would be remiss if I left out my wife, Terri, who accompanies me on these adventures, edits my sloppy words, took all of the photos and is the best friend a man could ask for.

INTRODUCTION

Tell people from California that you will be driving the Pacific Coast Highway, the 5 freeway or the 15, and they will say, Oh I love the coast route, or, Oh, going up to San Francisco? or, Heading to Vegas? Tell them you are driving Highway 395, and most will look at you with a blank stare and ask, Where does that go? There are those who know this road well, such as skiers, fishermen and gamblers heading to Reno or avid ghost towners. But those unfamiliar with this stretch of highway are truly missing out on one of the great road trips California has to offer.

US 395 used to run from San Diego to the Nevada border, but when Interstate 15 was completed, the southern section was absorbed by the new freeway. Now, 395 runs from the City of Victorville, north through Kern County and the Owens Valley, then on into Carson City, Nevada, and north from there. The parts of this roadway in California have some of the most spectacular views one could hope for on a road trip. Majestic mountains, lonely deserts, historic monuments and ghost towns dot the highway in an unending cascade of beauty and lost dreams. US 395 also has its fair share of kitsch.

From toilet seats to size 14 shoes, tunnels to nowhere and strange cryptids, even a ghost or two, Highway 395 has it all. From the small town of Lone Pine, one can travel to the highest point in the contiguous United States just a few minutes out of town or to the lowest point only an hour or so away in Death Valley. You can travel to the now dry Owens Lake, the victim of a thirsty Los Angeles population, past alpine waters teeming with life, or to the dead, sulfur-infused waters and tufas of Mono Lake. The highway becomes a fishermans dream during the spring and summer, while in the winter, Mammoth Mountain becomes a playground for skiers, snowboarders and those who love to sip toddies in the hot tub.

The road has small towns and small cities, ghost towns and semighost towns. There are historical monuments and vestiges from a time we wish we could forget but know we cannot, for fear they may happen again. Relics hearken back to a simpler time we wish we could revisit.

All of this awaits you on the road sometimes called Death Alley for its many long, straight drives that lull one to sleep. There is even more to see for those who look around and view the wonders this stretch of highway has to offer. So, sit back and enjoy all of the legends and lore this amazing drive also known as the El Camino Sierrahas in store for you!

PART I

FASCINATING CHARACTERS ALONG THE HIGHWAY

GEORGE WALKING MAN SWAIN

The tiny mining town of Boron, just off of the 395 in Kern County, is a town easily missed. The town is home to the largest borax mine in the world. Borax has so many uses that it would be hard to mention them all, but most people will recognize it from the many cleaning products that include borax. Other people, especially older generations, may also remember the Twenty Mule Team Borax company and logo. With a population of just over two thousand people, and located in the middle of a desert landscape, Boron is not the type of place one sets out for. Rather, one ends up there. This may not be such a bad thing, however.

Boron has plenty to offer the traveler for a whole day exploring its historic and sometimes odd sights. There is the Twenty Mule Team Museum, with its animatronic twenty-mule team pulling a wagon train of borax. The wheels turn, the driver pumps his arms to get the team moving and the mules bounce; their heads bob and their ears flop. Its truly a sight worthy of any roadside attraction.