Ghost town visiting in Eastern WA

[contrarian]

Possibly the wrong category to post in; please advise...looking to go to Eastern WA and visit some of the remaining ghost towns in the area. Planning on carrying my .357 as an insurance policy.


Ghost Towns of Washington is the most comprehensive site covering ghost towns in Washington State.


Any thoughts or potential problems?
This will probably happen next spring as the wildfires preclude a visit now.

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[Solomon]

I don't think that a 357 will do much good on ghosts.

 

[knuckle Head]

LOL, they probably will not help against the ghosts, but I would i would carry just in case you come across a turd brain who wants to make you a ghost. Also you never knowif shtf we all may be living in those old ghost towns, I would scout it out for water, mineral, vegetation and game resources.

 

[Sun195]

Good link - I've been to a few of those places. They're not any more-or-less dangerous than anyplace else (in terms of crime).

If you're interested in mining history, the Discovering Washington's Historic Mines series is pretty good.

Ghost Towns of the Pacific Northwest is another one to check out.

 

[DoubleTapDrew]

Might want to bring some snake-shot (and a snake bite kit).

 

[raindog]

I have not been to the ones in Eastern WA. Eastern Oregon's are completely dead. Shaniko looks more like a trashy little town than a ghost town. There's really nothing that looks "ghosty" in that area - just little towns with some buildings that haven't fallen down yet.

Best ghost town I've ever been to was Garnet in Montana. Really awesome. Fun drive - you're in the middle of nowhere - and very well maintained/preserved, rangers on site, etc. Saw lots of bears and other animals on the way up. Been there twice and loved it both times.

 

[AMProducts]

Ghost towns are usually ghost towns for a reason: the reasons the town was created went away, and so did the people.

Ghost towns are high on my list of places to visit when I was back in california, I went to salton sea (bombay beach, salton city, north shore etc), the gold mining towns around death valley, and even some of them in the sierras.

In an actual ghost town, they usually get enough traffic (tourists coming by to see what's going on) that you don't usually have the "want to be left alone" criminal elements like meth manufacturers or marijuana growers, they usually move further into the hills away from places that draw people there.

I wouldn't worry excessively about getting into some kind of running gun battle in one of these places. Even so, coming armed is never a bad idea, but don't go pulling guns on everyone you see. Usually the people you run into in these areas are pretty friendly not a pack of meth zombies.

 

[contrarian]

Thanks for all of he responses...I've been on my own in some 'interesting' places and have met some really good people..
and some not-so-nice ones as well.
It's just about time to hit the road again and fill up on some quiet and peaceful, ya know?