Rain Damaged Groom Lake Road, Trip Report 9-05-09We decided to take a little trip to Eastern Nevada to get out of the heat. Our first stop was Alamo to check out what was parked at the Sheriff's Annex. It
After leaving the Little A Le Inn, we headed to the back gate. Absolutely nothing going on there. The cheap motion detector was still attached to the fence and the security camera didn't even follow me when I go out to look around the area. Since there was nothing going on there we left after a few minutes.
The next stop was Pinoche. It was nice to get out of the heat of the Las Vegas Valley and spend some time in Eastern Nevada. Pinoche is a very old mining town and is the Lincoln County Government seat. It is where the Lincoln County Court House is located. This is the place you get to go if you really screw up at Area 51. They have a wonderful Labor Day Celebration. The kids enjoyed the games, rides and the cool night time parade down mainstreet.
"As the speed topped out at Mach 1.05, Yeager had the sensation of shooting straight through the top of the sky. The sky turned a deep purple and all at once the stars and the moon came out - the sun shone at the same time. ... He was simply looking out into space. ... He was master of the sky. His was a king's solitude, unique and inviolate, above the dome of the world."
Bob Lazar's S4 and Papoose Dry Lake
Here is an interesting story from the Las Vegas Sun. I never get tired reading this story. A hiker planned a trip into the Papoose Dry Lake area of the restricted area near Groom Lake looking for signs left by some of the early 49ers that eventually died in Death Valley. This is a real interesting read!
Sat, Jul 19, 1997 (2:04 a.m.)
As the full moon rose on an April night, Jerry Freeman picked up his backpack and headed into a desolate and forbidding landscape. Driven by an obsession about an episode in American pioneer history -- and the stubbornness of the Air Force -- the 55-year-old archaeologist and adventurer began an unauthorized seven-day, hundred-mile trek through the Nevada Test Site, into highly restricted Air Force property, and near, if not in, the top-secret Area 51. His objective: To find an inscription made in 1849 by a member of a lost and desperate wagon train that eventually gave Death Valley its name. Also, Freeman wanted to see Papoose Dry Lake, the last place where the group of would-be gold-diggers camped together before splintering in search of water. His problem: The dry lake and the canyon that is thought to contain the inscription are deep within one of the nation's most restricted military bases. Freeman's subsequent adventure, described in his own words in a five-part serial that begins today in the SUN, took him through a surreal landscape that included eerie installations, ominous warning signs, a large ship stranded in the desert, and seemingly endless miles of rock and scrub brush. The trek also put him through several heart-stopping close encounters with security, a nerve-wracking moonlight tiptoe across a Test Site "potential crater area," an interview with a surly rattlesnake, and a desperate, dry-mouthed, all-night forced march in search of water. For his troubles, Freeman got a good sunburn, a good look at Papoose Dry Lake and Nye Canyon, and the discovery of an ox shoe likely left behind by the wagon train. But he never found the inscription. By the time Freeman got to Nye Canyon, where the etching is believed to be located, he was almost out of water. He had only a day to search. Freeman knew before he started that the odds were against success and that he stood a good chance of being arrested, but the lure of finding that inscription and seeing the route was too strong. "The siren song is deafening," he said in an interview with the SUN on the afternoon before he set out. "I would be the only individual to see all seven inscriptions. I've seen so much of the trail. I've seen everywhere they went except for that stretch there.
"I am smitten by the forbidden fruit."
* Late last year, Freeman led a group of five on a 32-day, 330-mile trek that followed the route taken by the so-called Lost 49ers. Those impatient pioneers, in November 1849, turned off the well-traveled Spanish Trail near what is now Enterprise, Utah, and headed southwest in hopes of finding a shortcut to the California gold fields. Instead, their unfortunate decision brought them seven weeks of misery, four deaths and the dubious honor of naming Death Valley. Freeman's group had the advantage of modern equipment, knowledge of water sources and a supply truck. But unlike the Lost 49ers, Freeman had to deal with the Air Force. The proposed trek was well-received by the National Park Service and the Bureau of Land Management. In addition, Freeman got the Department of Energy to agree to supervised visits to areas of the Test Site that could have been on the Lost 49ers route. The Air Force, however, ignored or sternly rebuffed all efforts by Freeman and his supporters to gain even limited access to the military base. Freeman, an Antelope Valley, Calif., resident, enlisted the help of his congressman, Buck McKeon, who wrote a letter to the Air Force. To no avail. The reply, Freeman said, was that the Air Force "will not allow nor will they ever allow anyone access to the area." There are seven inscriptions mentioned in the journals of the Lost 49ers, and early in last November's trek, Freeman discovered the previously unknown location of one of them. The team also found an encampment containing artifacts that were likely left by the unfortunate pioneers. Freeman and his group eventually would see all but one of the inscriptions. They had a photograph of the seventh one, taken from a history book. But there is no documentation for the photo, other than it was taken in Nye Canyon near a place called Triple Tanks. After the group trek ended in December, that last inscription -- and the Air Force's obstinacy -- kept eating at Freeman. "When you start a project ... you hope to bring it to a conclusion," Freeman said. "If you leave gaps in it, you don't have a sense of fulfillment." Besides, he said, the Air Force "treated me and my entire crew with disdain." "This is part of our American heritage. I believe I have a right to see it."
* Freeman came to the SUN because he wanted a neutral party he trusted to know when and why he was going in. "I'm no Rambo," he said before he began his clandestine journey. "I have no death wish here. I'm a middle-of-the-road American guy. I'm not a guy who protests. I pay my taxes. I've never been arrested. "I want the Air Force to know there's nothing sinister about what I'm doing. I'm not interested in the military or technology. I'm interested purely in the history and culture of that site and this artifact. "I'm an archaeologist, that's all I am." Freeman was apprehensive about tales of people venturing into Area 51 never to be seen again. He would take a cellular telephone with him and call in to leave coded messages of his condition and whereabouts. And if he saw he was about to be arrested, he would call in immediately to make sure someone on the outside knew. As he left the office, Freeman still wasn't sure he would attempt the trek. "My wife is totally against this thing," he said. "Any prudent individual would tell me not to do it." But, he admitted, his "sense of adventure" was pulling him. "Nobody's probably been in that canyon and looked around for 50 years. "I may be able to find that inscription."
* An experienced backwoodsman, Freeman traveled light. He carried no tent or sleeping bag, relying solely on his clothes and an emergency blanket for shelter. Although he had planned to call every day, Freeman left only two phone messages, one at 3 a.m. April 23 and another at 10:27 p.m. April 25. There was nothing after that. On Monday, April 28, Freeman's wife, Donna, said her husband wasn't home yet and his brother, Doyle Freeman, had said Jerry was running a day behind. I finally made contact with Jerry Freeman again the following day. Freeman related highlights of his trek, many of which he called "heart-stopping." "It was high adventure," he said. "I'm lucky. I'm just really lucky." Because he hadn't found the inscription, Freeman wasn't sure he wanted to go public with the story. He wasn't sure it was worth the legal risk. It was agreed to hold any story until he decided he was ready. Two months later, after consultations with friends, family and lawyers, Freeman was ready. He wanted to go public, he said, to bring recognition to the Lost 49ers -- particularly the four pioneer women, "the unsung heroines," who were on that wagon train.Since his group trek last year, Freeman said he has sent story proposals about the Lost 49ers to dozens of magazines and historical journals, but sparked no interest. "I feel we have shortchanged historically that particular group of pioneers," he said. "They suffered through the Great Basin as no one had before. Now it's occupied by government agencies that don't care. They don't care about that inscription or those pioneers." Freeman recognized there would be more interest in his story now that it involves the "Area 51-UFO thing." "If that works," he said, "that's a good thing."
* Whether Freeman crossed into the Air Force's fabled Area 51 is questionable.Although the Air Force recently acknowledged it has a facility in Groom Dry Lake, it refuses to comment any further on the base, much less define its boundaries. But Area 51 buffs, from studying government maps, have a clear idea where it is located. According to Glenn Campbell, the reigning civilian expert on the secret base and related UFO phenomena, Area 51 is a 60-square-mile tract that encompasses most of Groom Dry Lake. The base, he said, is snuggled up against the northeast edge of a mountain, which stands between Groom and Papoose dry lakes. In his account and in subsequent interviews, Freeman talked of climbing a ridge above Nye Canyon and looking down on Papoose Dry Lake, which is just south of the mountain. Many UFO buffs -- Freeman is not one of them -- believe a secret hangar containing captured alien spacecraft lies beneath the Papoose lakebed. "During the day I couldn't see anything," Freeman said of his view of the Papoose area. "But at night, it was a different story." Freeman saw several lights. One appeared to be a security vehicle that moved around. Another, however, was stationary and appeared to get larger and smaller -- as would a hangar door as it opened and closed. "But that's purely conjecture on my part," Freeman said. "From that distance, I couldn't tell what it was." Freeman thought he was looking into Area 51, but Campbell, who has written a book about the base, said the archaeologist was still about 10 to 15 miles south of the base, which was hidden from his line of sight by the mountain. Freeman, however, counters that Campbell is working from old maps and doesn't necessarily know what the Air Force considers to be the exact boundaries of its super-secret base. In any case, Freeman said, he wasn't there to see Groom Lake or Area 51. "The 49ers were never at Groom Lake," he said. "They were at Papoose."
* Freeman still hopes the Air Force will allow some historian -- he realizes he'll likely be blackballed -- to go into Nye Canyon and document the last inscription. "I don't think the general public should be allowed to go in there when they want to," Freeman said. "But for a legitimate educational purpose, I think we should be allowed to document it. I don't see how it would endanger national security to do that. "We do live in a time of relative peace. We're not at war. I think the Air Force needs to lighten up." Freeman also hopes to rekindle interest in pioneer history. "So much of our history has lost its relevance to our young people," he said. "They have no conception what the pioneers went through.
"Perhaps my going in there will spark their interest."
Today we decided to go visit Area 51 for the second time this month. We enjoy heading out there as a family and seeing what is going on. Today there was a little something for everybody. I can't remember the last time we went out in this area and didn't have a great time. We started out the trip a little later than normal. It was 12:30pm when we left. With the time change, it wasn't a problem. After visiting Alamo, Area 51, and Rachel, we head to Caliente to eat dinner. It makes for a long day, but with the time change it works out perfectly. Once arriving in Alamo, we took the road to check out the Lincoln County Sheriff's Annex to see which "White Bus" will be parked out in front. They must be cutting money 
everywhere because the same small old Blue Bird bus was parked out in front. That has been the same bus for the past few months. I wonder what happened to the nice big new one! I am happy to say that Alamo now has a nice new pizza place to eat at. I am happy for the people that live in Alamo. The Chevron must have been getting old. This trip we decided not to go down Groom Lake Road and visit the "cammo dudes" at the warning signs. It has been a few months since I went to the back gate in Rachel during the day light, so we headed for the back gate. We arrived at the gate and found we were the only ones there. It appeared to be empty in the guard shack. If it wasn't for the camera, I would have felt completely alone there and capable of doing anything. I quickly came to my senses and realized we are never truly alone near any of the border points. The back gate looked pretty much the same. There were a few nice pieces of radar equipment behind the shack and to the left. I didn't really get a chance to take pictures of the equipment because the wind 
was blowing like crazy and the three females in the car with me had to use the restroom (wife, and two daughters!). We raced back to the Little A Le Inn for a restroom break and a few sodas. It was real quiet in there. After a rest at the Inn, we headed back down the ET HWY toward Caliente. A few miles from the "black mailbox" we noticed some of the Area 51 Alien cows in the road. The family loved it because there was a little calf with his mama. The family loved the cows and especially the calf. I bet those cows see and hear some pretty neat stuff! Dinner was great in Caliente and the trip back to Vegas was peaceful and relaxing. Everybody but me was sound asleep. No sighting of secret military projects, UFO's or any aliens, but the trip was still FUN!
going on, and most importantly to spend quality time together for the entire day. This past Saturday (3/7/09) we headed out to Area 51. We leave around 11am and our first stop is always Alamo. We check the Sheriff sub station to see which bus is parked there and take a few pictures of it. The Area 51 worker's bus was parked there along with one white workers truck. After checking out the white bus, we headed directly for the Chevron Station for a much needed bathroom break. My eleven year old daughter loves the mini burritos at the Chevron, so we had to purchase a plate for her and a corn dog for my youngest daughter. Once we filled up on snacks it was serious time. We were going to go the warning signs on Groom Lake Road. It was important that we did this before my parents come next weekend for a visit. We wanted to take a picture of me standing at the warning sign wearing a tin foil hat giving the international peace sign. Now, I 
normal don't make fun of anything down in this area, but we thought it would be a fun birthday present for my dad. I take the restricted area very serious and don't mess with the "Cammo Dudes". On a typical stop at the signs, I step out of my vehicle quickly and take a few shots. I never spend any length of time there. I know the "Cammo Dudes" want me out of there so I usually make it a quick stop. This time I had to wear the tin foil hat. I think the pictures actually turned out well. As we turned the last corner of Groom Lake Road, I noticed there were two cars at the signs. One car belonged to two English guys who took a few photos and then left. The other car belonged to two interesting individuals. One of the men was a retired Air Force veteran who had a few papers worth of material he was going to read on camera. The man running the camera was "Cosmo". He introduced himself as Cosmo and said he has an internet TV show dealing with UFO's. Once I put the tin foil on my head and went to the sign for a picture, Cosmo wanted to join me. I was not surprised. He and his friend seemed like really nice guys. I wanted to stick around to hear what they were going to read on film, but I never like to spend a lot of time
at the border of the restricted area. We left and headed down Groom Lake Road towards HWY 375. We made many stops on Groom Lake Road for my wife to take pictures of the Joshua Trees. She has a real eye for capturing beautiful photos of nature. Our next stop was Rachel Nevada. We always stop for an Alien Burger. There were a few people in there and the burger was outstanding. Just before we left, Cosmo and his Air Force friend came into the Inn for a little snack. I wanted to stop and talk to them but we had one more stop to make. We headed up to Caliente next. Some day, my wife and I plan on retiring there. We at Pioneer Pizza. The pizza was very good. The small town was nice and quiet. We can't wait to end up there some day. After pizza, we headed back to Las Vegas. We arrived at our door at about 10pm. It was another great day at Area 51. The entire way driving back to Alamo from Caliente, I looked for those lights that I saw Tuesday, but saw nothing. I guess you don't really need to see anything in the sky to have a great time!
What if Area 51 was opened to the public for all to see? I have thought about this possibility many times and continue to come to the same conclusion. I don’t want to see Area 51 with my own eyes! You might be wondering why. To be completely honest, I am sure that I would be disappointed with what I find.
The more research one does into Area 51, the more obvious it is that there is no reliable proof that anything extraterrestrial ever existed at Area 51. In fact, I have not found a single piece of non refutable evidence that could be considered a “smoking gun”. I wouldn’t be completely surprised if someday that piece of evidence does surface. I can definitely see a scenario where a crashed saucer was sent to be back engineered at Groom Lake. It is remote and away from spying eyes, but the evidence show that it was CIA and Skunkworks that settled on Groom Lake as their Top Secret testing facility. Some of the projects that were developed and tested there have been declassified, so it is natural to think that the next generation of crafts are being developed and tested there. I imagine that there are some types of UAV’s that are currently being tested. I am extremely interested to see what is being housed in the new hanger that has been recently finished. It is now the largest on the base. I am thinking it is some type of unmanned fighter or bomber that is going to be housed in that hanger. How awesome would it be to have an unmanned bomber capable of delivering it’s payload to a target without the risk of the pilot being shot down? In my mind that is the logical next step in the advancement of unmanned drones.
I have to admit that any new technology is fascinating, but the majority of our population is more interested in the prospect that our scientist are working side by side with there alien counter parts, or the New World Order (Illuminati) are secretly meeting at Area 51 to planning on how to take over the world. It is a sure bet that while those may be fun to discuss, there is absolutely no proof, anything like that is actually going on. For must people, including me, the actually day to day workings of Area 51 would probably be somewhat boring. Since I can’t get near the actual base, I am free to imagine the possibilities. For that reason, Area 51 will continue to be a fascinating place. I have read many individuals who looked at Area 51 in the beginning of there research trying to prove the Alien or UFO connection only to become completely dejected and leave the journey after a few years of searching with no results. I went into this journey knowing full well what was behind those mountains, but searching and experiencing all perspectives of Area 51 with no grand illusions of what I might find. I enjoy Groom Lake Road, the signs, the mailbox, an Alien Burger from the Little A Le Inn, watching the sky above Groom Lake at night, and the unknown! If we ever found the answer to “what if” I am afraid all of the above would have less meaning and interest, therefore my journey would abruptly stop. I would be left unfulfilled, dejected and searching for a new journey. Until the gates are opened, I will continue my journey with a great deal of enthusiasm. –Desert Shadow
51. Would this person be stupid enough to take their 65 pound pitbull to be in the photo. Yes, again you are correct. I guess that is me. We hustled out of the house around 10am and headed for Alamo. Once in Alamo we walked the dog and got a few drinks of our own. I always stop by the Lincoln County Annex in Alamo to see the which white bus is parked in front. The older bus was there with plenty of dust on it. That bus always looks like it has had a tough week of taking people down Groom Lake Road. After Alamo, we stopped at Groom Lake Road for our Christmas card photo. It took a few attempts. It seemed like our dog wanted to take off and explore for herself. I wonder what the "cammo dudes" would have done
if she crossed the restricted side and I was standing on the other side. If she made it to the base, I wish she would have been able to tell me what she saw. Once the photo was done, we went to Rachel for an Alien Burger. So of the locals were talking about the increased amount of sonic booms they have been hearing in the middle of the night. They said the increase has been for about a week and usually they hear 3 right in a row. This may occur as many as 3 times a night. They seem to think they are testing something new at Area 51. I wonder if anybody else can confirm this story I heard? After Rachel, we headed up to Caliente to look around. We do hope to retire there some day. On the way to Caliente we were lucky enough to see some wild horses. The horses were so
beautiful. It makes me sick to see the way the BLM is managing their herds. So many seem to be dying on the Nellis Range.
approximately 2hrs from Las Vegas. Without a doubt, a stop at Groom Lake Road, the "black mailbox", and an alien burger are a must. We left Las Vegas around 10am and headed for Alamo. Once in Alamo, we drove to the Sheriff's substation to see what vehicles were parked there. The government "White Bus" was there along with two government pickups. All three vehicles were covered with that wonderful Groom Lake Road dust! We stopped at the Chevron for a few snacks and a restroom break before heading out to Groom Lake Road. We stopped at the entrance of Groom Lake Road to take a few pictures. We wanted a few shots to use for our Christmas card this year, but they did not turn out very good. The lighting and setting
were not correct, so we will have to go out again before Christmas. After the photos, we went to Rachel for an Alien Burger. The burgers were great! The owners are always so nice. They invited us for Thanksgiving dinner. If we weren't going to see our family in California, I would love to go to the Little A Le Inn for dinner. The next stop was beautiful Caliente. We drove past Caliente to visit Panaca, and then Pinoche. Both towns are so beautiful. The mining history in Pinoche is incredible. We took a photo of the Lincoln County Court House. I hope I never miss a border marker and end up in that place! On the way home we drove back to Caliente and looked at houses that were for sale. There really looked like a few good deals in Caliente. We at Pioneer Pizza and then headed back to Las Vegas. It was a full day, but it was fun and the gas prices are finally low enough to make it worth while.
