8/8/13 - Inyo National Forest, Oh! Ridge Campground, CA

The low last night was 35 degrees.  Today we drove to Bodie State Historic Park.  We walked around the whole town and then took a tour of the mine.  We also walked up the hill to the cemetery.  The town of Bodie was started as a mining town following the discovery of gold in 1859.  In 1876 the Standard Company discovered a profitable lode of gold bearing ore that transformed Bodie from a camp with a few prospectors to a wild west booming town.  Within a year the population of  Bodie went from 20 to 10,000.  A fraction of the buildings are still standing and many of them have original items in them.  At one time there were 65 saloons lining Main Street that was one mile long.  The Standard mine yielded nearly $15 million over 25 years.  The Bodie mining district yielded $100 million. At one time there were 30 different mining companies in the Bodie Mining District.  One of the buildings was the residence of Theodore Hoover, brother of Herbert Hoover  He was the general manager of the Standard Consolidated Mining Company.  We plan on leaving here tomorrow and going to Lone Pine.  Lone Pine is on the west side of Death Valley.  We probably won't have internet or cell service.