The Hunger Games.

For those of you unfamiliar with author Suzanne Collins’ widely popular fictional trilogy, they tell a story of a post-apocalyptic North America. In short, an oppressive government forces teenagers to battle one another to the death in a nationally broadcast ritual known as the Hunger Games (now a film playing at your local theatre). Katniss Everdeen, the protagonist and narrator, describes the arena (battlefield) environment for the Hunger Games as primarily scrub terrain, laden with boulders, scruffy bushes and hidden caves. She mentions that most tributes died from bites from venomous snakes, eating poisonous plants/berries or going insane from thirst.

Rhyolite, an historical townsite located in Nevada’s Silver Trails Territory

The Four-Seasons Hotel, perhaps, in Rhyolite, early-1900s

This past week-end I visited an area that could have been the film’s movie set. Desolate territory.  Yes, rhyolite is a mineral.  Rhyolite is also a ghost haunt hidden in Nevada’s Amargosa Desert. Having just finished reading these books, visiting Rhyolite was a snapshot into North America gone awry. An eerie Dora-the-Explorer Moment, perhaps, but one worth taking.

The Last Supper by Belgium artist Albert Szukalski, 1984

I’d been in Bishop, California,  observing a young lady’s ninth birthday as well as Mother’s Day. The lack of spring snow cover combined with sunny temps permitted celebratory hikes and picnics in the Sierra Nevada Mountains with the ever present family festivities and gifts. Driving home on Sunday, having wound my way through Death Valley, I decided to detour to Rhyolite. Although I was aware of this little-known community, Rhyolite’s Goldwell Open Air Museum has just been selected as a Nevada “Natural Treasure.”  Say, what???

Ghost Rider by Albert Szukalski

Lady Desert: The Venus of Nevada by Hugo Heyrman

Rhyolite is located about 120 miles northwest of Las Vegas near the eastern edge of Death Valley. The town sprang to life in early 1905 as one of several mining camps hobbled together after precious ore was discovered in the region. According to government statistics, by 1907 the camp had “electric lights, water mains, telephones, newspapers, a hospital, a school, an opera house, and a stock exchange.” Add to that,“fifty saloons, thirty-five gambling tables, cribs for prostitution, nineteen lodging houses, sixteen restaurants, six barber shops, a public bath, weekly newspaper and stage coach transportation.” At its peak the town’s population varied between 3,500 and 5,000.

Sit Here!  by Sofie Siegmann, 2000

Tribute to Prospector Shorty Harris by Fred Bervoets

Easy come. Easy go. The Montgomery Shoshone Mine, the region’s largest producer, closed in 1911. The population took a nosedive, falling below 1,000. By 1920, almost zero. That’s when the town turned into a genuine ghost town, little noticed tourist attraction, and occasional motion picture set. It was a group of well-respected Belgian artists led by Albert Szukaslski who invigorated this beleaguered area. In 1984, the artists began creating large scale, on-site sculptures which still exist today. That the “on-site” was the Mojave desert, making that vast and challenging wasteland integral to their work, is what makes this outdoor museum both spectacular and profound.

Icara by  Dre Peters

Saloon Owner Tom Kelly’s Bottle House, made of beer and liquor bottles he collected from local saloons

Rhyolite may not be a destination of choice for the American tourist but artists from all over the world know of and visit this place. The Red Barn Art Center, located nearby, offers artist residency and workspace programs.

Rhyolite, early 1900s

Business as Usual, Downtown Rhyolite, early 1900s

Ghost town. Open air sculpture museum. Artist colony.

Worth a Visit.