I read Josh's blog about the Armpit of America and I was intrigued. I couldn't believe that so foul a place existed. The Washington Post article really slams Battle Mountain, Nevada. Being the intrepid traveller I swung through Battle Mountain, Nevada to get some pictures as the article is lacking in that respect. This is what I found.

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<slide><p align="center"><img src="/images/bmnice.jpg"/><br style="clear: full"/>When I first arrived I wanted to find something nice. I was really rooting for Battle Mountain. A town's parks are typically the best place to find the inner beauty of a town. This is their park. As you can see in the background they are surrounded by lovely snow capped mountains. I was really hoping the park would deliver the goods but sadly it did not.</p><br style="clear:full"/></slide>
<slide><p align="center"><img src="/images/bmhome1.jpg"/><br style="clear:both"/>I went looking for homes after that. It's a very small town. You can see the bulk of the town in a 10-15 minute walk or a 5 minute drive. Most of the houses look like this one. This was a corner lot so it had a bigger yard than most. As is the way in Battle Mountain greenery is absent. Remember the cliche "He could sell ice to eskimos" well in Battle Mountain they say "He could run a landscaping business in Battle Mountain."</p></slide>
<slide><p align="center"><img src="/images/bmhome2.jpg"/><br style="clear:both"/>Like many towns Battle Mountain "Remembers the children." This house had a small ramp in the back. Had I not shown up during Easter services maybe I would have been able to catch it being used. The entire town was like something out of a post-WWIII film with its dusty roads, and absent population. Pretty much everyone was in church except for some police and a couple girls running around in a jeep booking for the interstate.</p></slide>
<slide><p align="center"><img src="/images/bmfalling.jpg"/><br style="clear:both"/>I cracked up as I drove past this place. I think it used to be some sort of restaurant. I imagine sites like this one are what gave Battle Mountain the coveted Armpit of America award.</p></slide>
<slide><p align="center"><img src="/images/bmgraveyard.jpg"/><br style="clear:both"/>No visit to an old West town would be complete without a visit to the graveyard. Battle Mountain's graveyard is situated near the county court house and a couple trailer home parks. Unlike most cemeteries they decided to eschew traditional landscaping and line the place with gravel. A bold move, and probably cheaper. It's cost-cutting enterprises like this that do corporate America proud. This is the section of the graveyard that had the fancier tombstones. I'm glad that broken swan wasn't a pink flamingo.</p></slide>