Nellie E. Saloon
There is an old ghost town not far from the town of Parker. The only thing left standing in this old
ghost town is the Nellie E. Saloon.
We heard about the Nellie E when we were at the friendly bar at our RV campground. A man sitting next to me, born in Sweden (even if he didn’t tell me, I could tell by his accent!), told me that Jeff and I really should check out the Nellie E. Saloon while we were in the area. His directions were a bit fuzzy, not due to drink, but just due to the fact that they were! There is a sign shortly after you turn on a dirt road, and then you just follow the road…or another car who knows where to go, if you’re lucky!! Although the saloon gets very, very crowded, according to my friend, the Swede, since the day we visited was perhaps the 2nd day it was open this season, we didn’t have a problem getting in!
After a bit of a drive, you see some ghost town “décor” that tells you the saloon is just ahead. An iron sculpture of an old miner, his horse and wagon are overhead. Off to the side is another iron sculpture of a big horn sheep and once you get out of your vehicle, there’s an old stove – not a sculpture. Perhaps it’s the old original stove? Who knows?
There is a church façade that you can walk through or around. Do they have weddings there? We never did find out, but it certainly would make for an interesting venue!!
Inside the Nellie E. Saloon, there are tables and chairs so you can enjoy the band (pretty good rock and roll!), get a drink at the separate bar building (lower image) and at the grill, they had some interesting décor matching the underpass we drove under. All of the power is supplied by many solar panels, which also serve as the roof and protect everyone from the sun!
On the way out, we passed an old truck. It wasn’t clear if he was drunk when leaving the saloon and accidentally drove into a river caused by a flash flood, or he just left the truck when it stopped running and it is being buried slowly by flash flood debris. In any event, it added a perfect final touch to our visit to this very lively ghost town!
Enjoy!
