Vanderbilt
Vanderbilt is a mining ghost town located in Eureka County, in the western state of Nevada, in USA. The rough road to the town, also known as Geddes, is gravel and sandy. Visiting Vanderbilt today is a unique experience. One day the road can be ‘smooth and easy to drive’, the next, it can be full of washboards.
Road conditions are always changing. The ride is rather remote, so you need to be prepared. In case of a breakdown, there is very little in the way of passing traffic or inhabitants around, and no cell phone service in parts. The road is very treacherous. To those driving by on the dirt road, the only sign of the mine is an ore bin perched high on the side of the mountain, seemingly unreachable. The road to the town is is actually the remains of the Eastern California Railway.
The road is very bumpy and not meant for average cars. A high clearance two-wheel drive vehicle can get you there. However, the last part is only accessible to four-wheel drive. It can be a reasonably easy drive in favourable dry conditions, but also has the potential to be a very difficult muddy and slippery track -and at times impassable- after wet weather.
Vanderbilt, formed in 1870, was a town of 150 residents, a two-story hotel , four stores, three restaurants, two doctor’s offices, a butcher, a drugstore, and four saloons. Both gold and silver were mined here. More than 300 miners were employed in the district at that time.Located throughout the Secret Canyon area, today, only scant mill ruins mark the site. Today, there are more than 600 ghost towns throughout Nevada, which is more than the number of inhabited cities in the state.