Exploring the Beauty of Abandonment: Photographing an Abandoned Trailer in the Nevada Desert
"Walking up to the carnage reminded me of the movie Kill Bill 2 and the fight scene in Bud's trailer."
In late October 2021, I set out on a road trip to meet some old friends in Laughlin, Nevada, for a concert. Rather than fly, I decided that a photography adventure was definitely long overdue. I packed up my film cameras and camping gear and headed out the door.
After spending a gorgeous October day meandering through Yosemite National Park, the afternoon light started falling upon Tuolumne Meadows as I headed out on the Tioga Road pass towards HWY 395. At that point, I grabbed some gas station coffee and decided to make a midnight run and see how far I could get into the night on my journey through Nevada.
After driving for several hours, my eyes started to get bleary, and it was time to find a place to put up for the night. I originally planned on camping and sleeping in the back of my Tacoma for most of the trip, but the night air was a little bit too chilly, and with it being so late, I decided to spring for a cheap hotel in Tonopah, Nevada. By the looks of the parking lot, it was a mix of long-haul truck drivers, cowboys, derelicts, and midnight riders.Â
After paying for my room at the front counter, I packed all my camera gear up two flights of stairs, and I turned in for the night. From the upper-level view, the hotel parking lot looked even more seedy and unruly than it did from the ground level. Looking back now, it's slightly ridiculous that I slept with my pistol on the nightstand, which is something I can honestly say I've never done before in my entire life.
7:50Â a.m. Friday, October 15, 2021. I woke up early the following day looking for coffee, bacon, and eggs and found all three at a smokey hotel casino down the street. About 35 minutes outside of town, I spied what appeared to be an abandoned mobile home park on the righthand side of the freeway, accessible by a single-frontage service road.
The Abandoned Trailer: Amidst the wreckage of the trailer park, I stumbled upon a solitary trailer, its weathered exterior bearing witness to years of neglect and decay. Stepping inside, I was struck by a sense of melancholy as I surveyed the remnants of a life left behind. Walking up to the carnage reminded me of the movie Kill Bill 2 and the fight scene in Bud's trailer, adding a surreal element to the experience.
Documenting the Scene: IÂ spent the next hour or so burning through a few rolls of film with my Mamiya RZ67 Pro II and my Leica M2; I began photographing the Abandoned Trailer in the Nevada Desert as the warm desert sun fought against the cold morning air. I set out to capture the essence of this forgotten relic, focusing on the small details that spoke volumes about the passage of time. From the peeling paint & busted-out windows to the rusted remnants of furniture, each image tells a story of the passing of time in the face of abandonment and the harsh desert terrain.
Conclusion: As I bid farewell to the abandoned trailer park and made my way back to the highway, I couldn't help but reflect on how quickly the hours flew by during a brief encounter with this time capsule in the middle of the Nevada desert. In a world that often seems consumed by progress and development, there is something deeply humbling about exploring places untouched by time.
Over & Out
Benjamin Fargen
Gear used on location:
Cameras: 1961 Leica M2 + Mamiya RZ67 Pro II
Film: Ilford Black and White FP4 Plus
Benjamin- I really like the one with the abandoned trailer and dessert tree. Something about it compositionally is very striking. Perhaps the aliveness of the tree v the dead trailer—and the spikes on the tree v the open welcome of the trailer?