If you’re looking for a beautiful beach, you’ve come to the right place. The town’s beaches are stunning. The upper section features craggy cliffs and mountain bike trails. The large waves crash against the impressive volcanic rock formations, and green succulents grow along the jagged edges. The cliffs keep the waves from being too violent.
Cerro Gordo Beach Park
Cerro Gordo Beach, also known as Javier Calderon Public Beach, is a popular San Juan destination for a variety of reasons. It’s a beautiful, well-kept beach with ample parking, restrooms, and lifeguards. Visitors can enjoy the light tan sand and nearly nonexistent surf at this beautiful beach. Cerro Gordo Beach is also a great place to camp. It also offers a recreational area with picnic tables, Barbeque grills, and occasional electric outlets.
Cerro Gordo Beach is open Wednesday through Sunday and holidays from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. Visitors can also enjoy other activities like snorkeling and family camping. The beach is located on PR-690, approximately six miles north of San Juan and four miles west of Dorado.
Pioneertown
Pioneertown was founded in 1946 by film producer Dick Curtis as a live-in Old West motion picture set. Filming of dozens of Westerns took place here, including Edgar Buchanan’s Judge Roy Bean. Today, the town offers a great place to watch Westerns and catch live music.
The town was home to 1,500 people at its height, but it soon developed a reputation for lawlessness. By 1920, production had slowed and there were only ten miners left. Today, this abandoned town is privately owned, reminiscent of a Wild West playground. Visitors can take a walking tour through the town and get a feel for how it used to be.
Many of the buildings in Cerro Gordo have ghost stories. A resident named Underwood claims to have witnessed lights going off in a building he was not in. He has also seen lights go out and come on again the next morning. In addition, there is the case of a blood stain in a building. This area also has a mine that trapped thirty Chinese miners in the early 1870s. While it’s unclear whether the mines were haunted or not, there are several ghost stories associated with this area.
A visit to Pioneertown in Cerro Gordo, California is a great way to explore the beautiful area. The town is situated in the Morongo Basin. It was originally incorporated in 1946 but fell under the control of San Bernardino County in the late 1960s. The drive to Pioneertown is designated as a California Scenic Drive, and there are a number of privately owned and federally protected lands surrounding it.
The town has a rich history. It played a significant role in the growth of Los Angeles. Visitors may enjoy the museum in the Old General Store, which has a haunted history.
Mortimer Belshaw’s private residence
Mortimer Belshaw’s private residence stands across the street from the Cerro Gordo museum. The home still has a working kitchen and plumbing, as well as a quiet front porch. It’s close to a blacksmith shop and the town’s famous dance hall, Lola’s.
In the 1870s, Cerro Gordo was a bustling silver mining town dominated by the French Canadian merchant Victor Beaudry and Irish emigrant Mortimer Belshaw. The town has a long, bloody history, and some of the structures from that time are still in existence. The town is now a museum of restorative reuse and is billed as the only bed and cook ghost town in the world.
The oldest building in Cerro Gordo is Mortimer Belshaw’s private residence. The area is also home to mining relics and other remnants from the town’s past. While it is forbidden to take anything from the property, visitors are allowed to view and study the relics.
In 1868, Mortimer Belshaw and his business partner Abner B. Elder moved to the area. Belshaw bought a one-third interest in the largest galena lode in the area. This deposit was rich in silver-bearing lead ore. After mining for silver, the two built a toll road and the Belshaw House. The house still stands today, and it has 156 bullet holes in the walls.
The house was constructed for Mr. Gordon, who brought zinc to Cerro Gordo. It has four bedrooms and two bathrooms. There are even some secret rooms. The home is also known as “The Mansion” and is the largest residential property in Cerro Gordo. The property was reconstructed in the 1990s to look authentic.
The COVID crisis
The COVID crisis has forced the town to close its doors for a period of time. In the past, there was one murder on average every week. Last month, however, the town was buried under five feet of snow. While many residents were forced to stay home, Underwood hopes to open Cerro Gordo to the public.
The town is not without its share of mysterious happenings, too. Some residents, including Underwood, have reported lights turning on in buildings that were empty. They’ve tried to turn them off and relocked them, only to find the lights turned on again the next day. The ghost-hunting crew of Ghost Adventures visited Cerro Gordo in 2019 and concluded that two child spirits were trapped in Belshaw House.
Cerro Gordo is a small community of around 500 families. It is located near two converging streams that overflow the main road and neighborhood. Hurricane Maria was the tipping point for these people. However, a federal award of approximately $2.2 million has given the community new hope.
Cerro Gordo’s mining industry has produced more than $17 million worth of silver and lead ore. This ore was transported to Los Angeles by mules’ wagons. In 1907, the Union Mine discovered high-grade zinc ore. It was located at a thousand to 1,000-foot level and was accessible by cable tramway.
The ghost town of Cerro Gordo
In June 2018, a Texas businessman purchased a piece of property in the ghost town for $1.4 million. He plans to re-invigorate Cerro Gordo as a tourist destination and historic site. Brent Underwood, who lives in Austin, drove to Cerro Gordo after a snowstorm stranded him there. He plans to live in the town for the next two years and will dedicate himself to its restoration.
During its glory days, the ghost town was home to thousands of people. Despite the eerie atmosphere, the town’s residents tended to disregard law and order. Consequently, law enforcement was scarce. The town’s remoteness served as a safe haven for lawless prospectors and miners. Some of them committed gruesome crimes. Bullet holes can be seen on the walls of many buildings. One building even had a blood stain left by a murder. During the early days of the bonanza, the town was the site of a tragic accident. In the 1870s, 30 Chinese miners were trapped underground. There are still some remains of these men below the ground.
There are trails around Cerro Gordo that allow visitors to get a close look at the ghost town. One such trail is the 34-mile Cerro Gordo OHV loop trail. It begins near Lone Pine, California, and is used by off-highway vehicles. Visitors can also enjoy a chance to spot wildlife. A shorter trail is the Mobius Arch Loop Trail, which is 0.6 miles long and offers a different perspective on the ghost town.
Visitors can visit Cerro Gordo during the summer and fall. It’s not recommended that you stay overnight. The area has no cell service and no facilities, but you can bring your dog on a leash. Admission costs $10 for adults and is free for children. The town is owned and operated by Brent Underwood and Jon Bier. The town was purchased by the pair for $1.4 million.
