Subject: Our Investigation Adventures At Coaldale Junction, Tonopah & Columbus Nevada....
Date: 2/4/2016 10:15:10 AM Pacific Standard Time
From: LordOfThyNight@aol.com
To: ParanormalBuffalo@yahoogroups.com, ParanormalGhostSociety@googlegroups.com, paranormalghostsociety@yahoogroups.com, ParanormalGhostSocietyConnections@yahoogroups.com, TheParanormalGhostSociety@yahoogroups.com, SupernaturalFlorida@yahoogroups.com, ParanormalCalifornia@yahoogroups.com, ParanormalNevada@yahoogroups.com, Paranormalflorida@yahoogroups.com, sierraparanormal@yahoogroups.com, PGSPhantoms@yahoogroups.com

Being an avid adventurer into the unknown but also the need to explore sometimes gets the better half of me. Even though I been sick recently I just cant stop chasing the paranormal and I cant stop exploring the Tonopah region. Ever since I was there adventuring a few weeks ago I found a few new locations in the region therefore I would plan a second expedition for the month of January.In this case we would finish off the end of the month on a really great note. With gas prices more affordable I also am able to travel more frequent and further.
 
It would be my two sons and there friend Devin as Tammy had to work this past weekend therefore she would not be able to travel out of town. Its such a good jaunt that normally I just have to get a hotel for the night that way I can split the driving time up a little and take my time investigating the different locations on the itinerary. I was looking forward to spending time with the boys hell I brought the football, frisbee and the guns why not! Before we headed out I put on Maze Runner 2 had to get us all pumped for the big adventure.
 
In this case I would be visiting a location called Coaldale Junction which is a small abandoned hamlet which contains a hotel, garage, restaurant and a few other sites. I would also be checking out some of the sites around Tonopah that I missed my first time adventuring and finish off the expedition in the ghost town of Columbus. All very awesome locations to urban explore but also investigate them for the ghosts which haunt these locations.
 
Personally myself I have no regrets relocating in the region in the last few years I have had the opportunity to chase ghosts with beautiful scenic backdrops. Its hard to believe such locations were the site of so many people and today very little remains. Most sites that I end up going to turn out to be haunted and many of these places are full of discoveries believe it or not.
 
Allot goes into planning these trips all the way from supplies to actual research. It also cost allot to do these expeditions I spent over a grand this month on PGS so if you get a chance to throw some funding back at us id appreciate it although its not a requirement as a member. No less I still have to throw it out there in case others want to be involved and help with what they can even from afar. Although I do wish some of my friends and members could come with me so they could learn about the paranormal more in depth as I mentor them.
 
Things were allot different the past few years of me ghost towning for example we did not have a very intense El Nino therefore Nevada was not under snow and temps were sometimes in the winter as high as 72 degrees. This year its different its 40 degrees cooler and we get snow at least once a week. However higher elevations get more snow in Nevada therefore many ghost towns are really inaccessible right now.
 
There is however a good feeling about packing up the gear in the jeep, cooler, beers, paranormal gadgets and just getting out on the road with a coffee in one hand and some good tunes. I try never to let anything interfere with the work that I do even if that is weather and trust me the weather was getting worst just hours before I had to head out. Most of my friends are surprised I still went ahead with this expedition what they do not know is that were an all weather group. Which means will go out even if their are asteroids raining down in the skies it wont chance my stance we always have to be pushing the limits if we want to find the stone cold truth!!
 
I know everyone expects it to be perfect outside each time we go out and that is a fairytale. The real reality to what we do is back in the day these pioneers had to endure the cold as well as the snow. They did not have a jeep or amenities if it snowed they were hunkered down in a one bedroom cabin made of native stone which did not heat very well. If you lived up in the mountains of Nevada you had to ride a wagon or go up the hill to the store to get food. Sometimes you had to wait till after a storm many days to receive imports.
 
Life was different in Nevada there were no major cities only small mining camps and towns with these grueling offbeat wagon roads through various ranges to get to each one. Today I try to take many of the old trails with my jeep to kind of experience what it is the pioneers would have seen as not much has changed. The mountains are still snow covered and the expanses are vast almost as if their is no end in site.
 
The last time I was up in Tonopah we braved the snow but I also found some new locations to check out for my next trip. Little did I know two weeks later id be returning here and once again would brave the snow but I do count my blessings for having the privilege to see such locations with my very eyes. Nevada is a strange place the biggest paranormal events here are aliens and UFOs as some of you know area 51 is not to far where I would be exploring.
 
I would leave at 3 am the sad thing is that it started to rain at 3pm earlier so by the time 3am came around it had been raining for a mere 12 hours nonstop heavily. Sure we need the rain but my concern was is that it might convert to snow and we would not be able to progress further to the ghost town of Silver Dyke in the morning which resides high up in the Excelsior Mountains.
 
When I left at 3am I got about 30 miles and bam was driving in an all out blizzard heading to Tonopah through the mountains. Not one soul was on the road but a few tractor trailers as the roads were now plowed and as a matter in fact the lane I was in not one set of tire tracks. The further south I headed the worst the snow was getting. Now keep in mind it rained hard so most of it was very wet snow coming down while the roads were full of ice under it.
 
I was doing okay but three times I had to get out on the highway and clear my headlights. A truck drove by throwing 6" of snow across them. If you ever wanted to know what its like to drive into the darkness that would be it. With heavy cloud cover, snow coming down hard and no headlights temporarily visibility was zero to none. Its a scary situation to have to park on a highway with no shoulder hurry and get out brush off the lamps then get in before a truck comes through the storm crashing into you.
 
Speaking of trucks I hit a patch of ice my jeep fishtailed right into the opposite lane a huge tractor trailer was speeding the other way. I barely got control of it and swung back in the other lane. I learned over the years to stay calm though and NOT panic. But I also realize my life flashed before my eyes and I consider myself a good pilot. I am the man you want taking you through a blizzard or alone cliffs or offroading to some ghost town. I grew up in Buffalo NY so were really use to major snow storms and having to drive through them.
 
I do not take my life for granted its to short for any of us and one day we might be here the next I may not be. I heard of a story about a guy who liked to hike in the mountains of southern NV who mysteriously vanished who was making videos like I do for our members. People all the time vanish or die in Nevada I seen a terrible car wreck you could tell the drivers probably ended up dying on the road. Therefore I consider myself very lucky to continue to explore but also live to tell about it.
 
We were on a lonely dark road heading south through the center of Nevada so dark you cannot even see the mountains at night. The storm was really bad I was plowing through snow as I drove the entire night. By the time the sun was starting to come on up I pulled over to check out this dirt road that traverses this massive expansive then begins to ascend in this narrow canyon leading to Silver Dyke. I ended up canceling our journey to Silver Dyke because even if we made it via jeep we would get stuck there and have to hike through a band of winter. The entire peak and canyon was surrounded by a wall of white.
 
It can be very scary to be in the Nevada mountains during these storms because that is all you see across an expanse is a wall of white fog and snow coming at you. I told the boys we would try to shoot for Sunday to get up to Silver Dyke. You see I have friends that go up here because its known for its large mines which you can explore therefore I was hoping to find evidence that the mining camp is haunted but it may now have to wait till it becomes more accessible. I knew one thing I did not want to get stuck in a storm that was so massive that it was a few hundred miles in every direction moving slowly across the range.
 
Just south of Silver Dyke is Coaldale its a ghost town not very extensive but it does date back to the 1860's. It was for sale you could by the entire town if you want to call it that. But in my opinion its more of a junction or old stage coach stop that was built along to major emigrant routes that the miners took to get to other boom towns like Tonopah for example or Mina all places I visited. Today these roads are paved and are highways but when you stand in Coaldale you will feel small as in the distance 360 degrees are massive mountains no matter where you stare off too.
 
We would arrive at the junction which consisted of an abandoned gas station, garage, two hotels, restaurant, water tanks and a few abandoned houses. As an explorer I cant get enough of this I been going into abandoned buildings for years probably more then most people who are into this thing truthfully. So I could not wait to explore and walk around if it was haunted id find out believe me.
 
Coaldale Station/Junction Nevada
 
When I arrived here the snow had stopped for about 10 minutes I thought to myself hey maybe it will clear up. Afterall here in NV we do get snow but generally not for hours at a time. I figured maybe it would clear on up and stop weather in the mountains alters one minute from the next. Sure enough big flakes begin to come on down it was all good though it just gets a bit annoying when your trying to film and you have to constantly wipe down the lens. The more it snows the more my gear gets wet and chances are it may break down then ill be screwed for the rest of the trip.
 
I seen this location during our first adventure up in Tonopah heading home. I thought what is this location and eventually went through the proper channels to unmask what this place truly was. In Nevada its a huge stopover for photographers who do black and whites. Its not like I was the first to find or explore it but no less its something I can share with my members who enjoy this kind of thing putting a Lord Rick spin on it all.
 
When I pulled up to the property you could clearly see in black spray paint no trespassing not that this has ever stopped me. I trespass because I explore but I also respect as to where others have not. What I mean by that is this place looks like hell. You can see that someone took hammers to the wall, vandalized, burned and littered everywhere. Sometimes I wonder how angry someone would have to be to put holes in the walls here. If this place was untouched by man it would be a much greater gem but the hotel has some holes so large you can see the mountains through them. I thought I seen someone in the motel I heard there are squatters here also heard about someone who chases people out so I had no idea what I would find or if someone was hiding somewhere just watching us.
 
I would start off at two hotels there was no upper floor when we went in we could clearly see smashed furniture and glass everywhere. The ceiling had cracks in it as well as holes walls were so badly damaged that you could see sometimes outside or the insulation. In one of the rooms I found what appeared to be a newer mattress willing to bet squatters lived here before. There was even a couple fire barrels or drums as if someone was up here burning the debris from the hotel just to keep warm.
 
I found attached to one of the hotel rooms this new addition made of cinder block were not sure what it was. Their were multiple hotel buildings each one containing a few rooms. This must had been quite the place back in the day to stay. I mean if you were on a road trip to visit some ghost towns Coaldale kind of resides in the middle of many of them. No doubt people came here to gas up, eat the restaurant then bed down for the night before heading up to Tahoe or down to Vegas.
 
There was twisted and mangled aluminum roofing everywhere and inside some rooms were torn up couches. If I also remember correctly one of the rooms had a massive pile of shit. Now I am not sure who or what made it but it had to be an animals not human waste. What animal that made a massive amount of waste I could not tell you but it somehow entered one of the rooms went to another one through the debris just to utilize it as a bathroom so that was a bit odd.
 
Adjacent from the hotels were a couple houses were not sure if the hotel and restaurant owners lived on the property but I did find signs somebody did. Both homes had a couple bedrooms, living room, kitchen, bathroom and storage area. They were spacious to a degree with big wide open rooms. The owners probably lived on site or maintenance as well that way the property at the time could be kept up. I read in 1993 the owners fled the property after they were shut down because their underground fuel tanks were leaking which was a hazard. Therefore it kind of looked like they just up and left leaving behind furniture they may have owned at the time. One of the rooms had some baseball billboard it was different that I will say.
 
The owners who lived on site did not live a life of luxury and it had to be lonely. Sure people would stop here it was an oasis at the time in the desert. But there are no stores or amenities for miles. The owners had rectangular small houses right next to the hotel and anyone else who was staff here probably had there own place to live on site. The area had a water tank as well and well since in the summer water was a commodity I am sure others were just happy to have some on a sizzling summer day. The entire property seems to have a little of everything and you would have to considering how desolate this place is.
 
I also found apartments I believe there were three all connected to eachother. Someone went a bit nuts making a hole in the wall so that you could just walk through each one rather then enter them through the outside. Its pretty bad when people create their own entrances and exits not sure I understand this at all other then people are being destructive. One of those buildings had a giant arch entry way while these buildings may not be that old the flooring throughout some was made of aged wood so you could tell they were at least from the 1950's minimum. We also had to be careful allot of rat droppings in some rooms you cant breath in the particles could be deadly so you try to tread carefully.
 
There was another building on site it looked like a giant wooden house which sat higher up above all the rest of the structures. Now I am not sure if this was the general store or the cafe or another residence. It appears that if you look off in the desert most of the foundations were made of concrete while this one just was a wood home sitting in the center of the junction surrounded by all the other structures. There was a burn barrel inside one of the walls was also gone giving off views of the mountains. We also found a house not to far from it. Apparently the junction was more then just a hotel or gas station then again Coaldale was a town that died a couple times so anything ever built eventually came down.
 
There also is a power house on site it has a fuse box, shelf's and perhaps at one time tools was stored here. Each fuse box controlled a different part of the junction perhaps one controlled the gas pumps another one the hotel and another one the restaurant. Everything had a purpose here even at the entrance they have a wall with native rock. The thing about Coaldale is if you search throughout the expanse you will find foundations and structures from different eras. This includes a giant billboard that probably said Coaldale Junction at the time.
 
It was looking very dismal in the mountains everything was draped in fog the strange thing about where we were at is that they hardly had any snow on the ground. I actually for a brief moment had gotten ahead of the storm so I did make a good decision by not turning back home. However, it would not last long the storm was coming in fierce winds picked up and it begin to snow. We were only about 40 miles west of Tonopah and a storm was brewing.
 
We would finish off the last part of the exploration up at the old Cafe/Restaurant which is basically a mere shell now. The restaurant was a bit strange it had a stand up shower right near where the patrons would eat. There also was a second story with stairs leading up to an area that overlooked the lower level pretty cool but very unsafe as it was collapsing. There also was lamps near by outside where the gas pumps were and a huge broken sign on a pole.
 
This must had been quite the place back in the day as for miles away you might see it lit up at night and think wow this is the only place to get food or water in the desert. It must had been a sight can you imagine? Now I cant say that Coaldale is haunted but the area has rich wild western frontier history and its one of the fewer places in Nevada that had coal deposits which were needed to heat home back in the days of the early pioneers who came to the area. More or less this is an urban explorers roadside attraction and dream. It has a bit of a Bates Motel type of feeling and to think I seen it early in the month just driving by little did I know id return so quickly to check it out. The storm was intensifying therefore we moved on to Tonoaph. So my cam was getting wet and at that point I had to go and hope that I had gotten enough pictures and video for our viewers which I believe I did but would have loved to have taken some more before leaving the junction.

Lord Rick

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