Finding Beauty in Boron, CA

I never thought I'd enjoy visiting Boron, CA. After all, the first time I was there was in the hottest summer on record when the one main street sizzled and the air seemed coated with beige dust.
But all that changed when we went for the 50th anniversary of the 20 Mule Team Days on October 6, 2007. It was a cool autum day. The mules were hitched to a wagon that dated back to the 1880s.
More than a century ago, 20-mule teams labored across Death Valley hauling borax over the steep Panamint Mountains to Mojave, the nearest railroad terminal, 165 miles away. Most older Americans remember Death Valley Days a weekly television show that ran from 1952 to 1970 with hosts such as Ronald Reagan, who went on to be Governor of California and then President of the United States, and entertainers Robert Taylor, Dale Robertson and Merle Haggart.
Bobby Tanner of Bishop trained the mules to pull one of the original wagons built in 1882 to carry ten tons of borax. When not in parades, the Mojave-built wagon is on display behind the plexiglass replicas of the team across the road at the Borax Visitor Center for Rio Tinto Minerals. www.borax.com
The parade, which began at 10 a.m., was definitely small town. It was a delight to see the home-made floats, vintage cars and high school band. It only lasted about an hour. About the time it got warm, members of the local Baptist Church showed up handing out bottles of water.
Randy Smith, event chairman, told us to get there early to find a place to park. Instead we went to view the hitching of the mules and then backtracked into town. There was no problem finding a place to park. The parade started at Boron High School and then traveled down Twenty Mule Team Road.
While we were in Boron, we visited two rather quaint museums. The Twenty Mule Team Museum, at 26962 Twenty Mule Team Road, displays a collection of historic items from the hey-day of mining. Do not expect a museum like the Getty. This is a small house that holds relics from the past. www.20muleteammuseum.org
Next door is the Colonel Vernon P. Saxon jr. Aerospace Museum. www.saxonaerospacemuseum.org We found displays on the history of flight at Edwards AF Base, Pancho Barnes photos, and Boeing and Lockheed Martin displays. Both museums have gift shops.
After the parade, there was a fair at Boron Park located at the corner of Boron Avenue and John Street where we were treated to a wild west show, bands, food booths, vendors, rides and poker runs for cars and motorcycles.
We stopped for a tasty lunch -- all right, to be honest, for the frosty margaritas -- at Domingos. www.domingos.com Marvelous Mexican food at a great price. It took me a few sips to realize that we were sitting in what had been a garage!
Before we left the area, we made time to see the Borax Visitor Center for Rio Tinto Minerals. www.borax.com The view into the largest open pit mine in California is awesome. There’s a short film on history, global mining and extensive uses of borax.
Directions: From Los Angeles take the 14 north to Mojave, then 58 east (Barstow). Drive east about 31 miles to exit 193 or Twenty Mule Team Road. Continue east six miles on 20 Mule Team Road to downtown Boron. For a complete list of motels and restaurants in Boron go to www.bonniedstone.com
Bonnie D. Stone is the author of San Andreas Ain’t No Fault of Mine, a fun and fact-filled guide to the Antelope Valley.