Movie Magic in the Alabama Hills

Jill's Journal: Just outside of Lone Pine, in the large valley between the Sierra Nevadas to the west and the Inyo Mountains to the east, are 30,000 acres of unusual and incredible rock formations. These rocky hills – named the Alabama Hills – would be worth seeing all on their own, but Hollywood has kicked them up a notch. Since the 1920s, more than 400 movies and dozens of t.v. shows have been filmed here.

The Alabama Hills are particularly suited for Westerns, but they’ve also served as stand-ins for India, Africa, Arabia, the Gobi Desert, and distant galaxies. The dirt road meandering through the area called “Movie Flats” is appropriately named “Movie Road.”

Some of the more recent “big” movies filmed on location here include Gladiator, Maverick, G.I. Jane, and Gone in 60 Seconds. Old-time movies include some of John Wayne’s, Roy Rogers’, Gene Autry’s, Clark Gable’s, Tom Mix’s, Fatty Arbuckle’s, Errol Flynn’s, Gregory Peck’s, Robert Mitchum’s, Gary Cooper’s, and Hopalong Cassidy’s finest.

Television shows shot here include episodes of The Lone Ranger, Star Trek, Bonanza, The Virginian, The Twilight Zone, and so, so many more. Two days ago, Movie Road was closed for filming, so who knows what’s about to come out next from “them thar hills.”

Long before movies and t.v., the Alabama Hills area was named by Confederate sympathizers during the Civil War. The name honored the Confederate cruiser C.S.S. Alabama, which sunk 50+ Union ships.

A few specific examples of former movie sites found here include the grave site from the movie (not the t.v. series) Rawhide...

...a precarious wagon scene from How the West Was Won...

...and a pivotal scene from Showdown, shown today...

...and in the film. Other sites we visited included a few spots from Gunga Din, The Gay Caballero, The Tall T, and Hell Bent for Leather, all good old Westerns.

Our very favorite area was The Lone Ranger Canyon, where literally hundreds of scenes from the original movie serial and then the wonderful old show were filmed (including the original ambush when the Texas Ranger became The Lone Ranger). This was all way before my time, but I adored the re-runs as a kid. “Hi-ho Silver, away!” It was on par with re-runs of The Rifleman for me. :)

And since no mention of The Lone Ranger can be complete without the opening song, here it is in all its glory (I have no idea if the opening was filmed here, but doesn't the terrain look suspiciously similar?):

And more shots of The Lone Ranger Canyon…I warned you it was my favorite.

Our three girls weren’t overly impressed by all the Hollywood work done here, but they absolutely loved climbing among the rocks. They’re like little mountain goats.