The End of the Stranded Midwest Tour 2008

Ghetto school in East St. Louis © Jacob Holdt

Yesterday was brutal. We drove from St Louis to Chicago (298 miles) and found only one situation to shoot. Definitely not the best way to end a 1,500 mile search for stranded motorists. Normally I would be completely frustrated, but this project is all about the collapse of certainty in America during the second term of the Bush administration, so coming up short seems symbolically appropriate.

When I do these trips I often speed from city to city, rarely stopping to visit the bounty of attractions America has to offer. For the final leg of this trip we slowed it down a bit and took in some of the sights.

First stop was a pilgrimage to Miles Davis' boyhood home in East St Louis. East St Louis looks exactly like New Orleans did after Katrina, only the devastation in this city was caused by the gradual decay of America's industrial economy. More than ninety percent of downtown East St Louis appears to be boarded up or falling down and there didn't appear to be but a few liquor stores providing the basics for people. No place to buy milk or gas or diapers or work. It's really tragic that the richest country in the world allows this kind of poverty smack dab in its heart.

Cahokia Mounds

A short ride from East St. Louis we stopped to see the Cahokia Mounds. Cahokia is the ruins of a massive ancient city inhabited by Native Americans between 650-1400 CE. There are over a hundred mounds that still remain on the site including Monk's Mound, the largest man-made earthen mound in North America.

Mathew Brady

Much further down the road in Springfield, IL we visited the tomb of Abraham Lincoln. The tomb was closed, but we had a good time watching as an endless parade of minivans pulled up and unloaded pods of dirty faced sausage children to pay their respects to the Great Emancipator.

When we got to Chicago we realized too late the city was running the marathon and hosting an outdoor country music festival on the same day. Several tense hours in traffic later we made it the Gitelson's for a delicious dinner and proper introductions to the new Git on the block, Archie.

After dinner we drove to Milwaukee (92 miles) and caught a few hours of sleep before our early morning flight back to New York.

Greetings From Kansas City

B.B.'s Lawnside BBQ, Kansas City, MO

We've spent the past three days on the road working on my Stranded project. On Wednesday we flew into Milwaukee, rented a car, and where off on big loop of the Midwest. From Milwaukee we drove straight to Minneapolis then to Des Moines and then to Kansas City.

Up until today the trip has been a bit of stranded motorist bust. From Milwaukee to Minneapolis (336 miles) we only encountered a single situation to shoot, but as I approached the car I realized the couple were smoking a joint and were not too interested in having their picture taken.

From Minneapolis to Des Moines (244 miles) we found one stranded motorist on I-35 just outside of Dow, Iowa. Her name was Milta and she was a Christian missionary on her way to visit her daughter in Des Moines when her car broke down.

Des Moines to Kansas City (194 miles) proved fruitless. We saw a number of people broken down in the opposite direction, but by the time we found an offramp and raced back, they were long gone. I've never traveled this far and found so few motorists to shoot. Luckily, when we got to Kansas City I hit the jackpot and shot four situations today.

Kansas City is a pretty happening town. We visited the American Jazz Museum and the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in the 18th and Vine historic district and then we took in the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art. The Nelson-Atkins has an impressive permanent collection with a great selection of photography. Definitely a must see if you are ever in Kansas City.

We couldn't come to Kansas City without eating some barbeque. So, after the museum we headed to a B.B.'s Lawnside BBQ for a rib dinner and live blues. The ribs were the best I've ever tasted and the band, Trampled Under Foot, was h-o-t. This place felt like the real deal.

Tomorrow we are off to St Louis (249 miles)...

Greetings from New York City...Sigh

It's strange how one day you find yourself at the apex of mental and spiritual satisfaction stretching out in the vast unspoiled beauty of Mendocino County and the next day your joy is stripped clean to the bone as you fight with your fellow New Yorkers for an extra inch of space on the AirTrain from JFK. New York is all about compression and I realize now more than ever that my future may involve a move to a place where expansion is not only possible, it’s the norm.

Speaking of just such a place, my brief time in Portland was fantastic. I met with the very lovely Laura Moya and the board of Photolucida in the stunning new Blue Sky Gallery space to discuss my Domesticated project and the upcoming Critical Mass monograph of the series. They couldn't be more supportive of my work or more enthusiastic about the book. The folks at Photolucida and Blue Sky Gallery share a commitment to emerging photographers and the broader photography community that is truly inspired. I have some additional good news from that meeting, but will fill you in on the details once everything is formal and finalized.

Greetings from Point Arena, California

Another long day of traveling through beautiful country. We only ran into one stranded motorist, but I think the photos will be great. Possibly a triptych. Normally I would be disappointed after driving for an entire day and only shooting one situation, but this trip was just too amazing to complain.

We started in Eureka down Highway 101 toward the Avenue of the Giants. Standing in the coastal redwoods of Humboldt County is a religious experience. They are like a cathedral. You just exist in their presence empty of words and in total awe at the power of these trees.

After the 31 mile trek through the redwoods we picked up Pacific Coast Highway and drove down the Mendocino coast. This is where we found our stranded couple whose car had broken down next to a stretch of beach. They set up some tents and were camping for a couple of days while they tried to figure out next steps.

The Mendocino Coast is just amazing. Every turn reveals something more breathtaking. When you are in this area of the country you understand not to try capture it with pictures. You just look. You try not to talk about the beauty because words will fail. You just listen. This type of natural beauty politely demands you to just absorb it in the moment and promise to come back.

Tomorrow is the last day of our trip. The plan is to head inland slightly and start hitting up the wineries of the Anderson Valley and the Russian River Valley and then stay the night in San Francisco. We fly out of SFO early Sunday morning and head back to the grime and grit of New York City.

Greetings from Eureka, California

5th Street and Broadway, Eureka, CA © Stephen Shore

What a haul. Today we traveled the length of Oregon on Interstate 5, across to Crescent City on Highway 199, and down the Redwood Highway to Eureka. Along the way we photographed five stranded motorists including a one-legged hippie named Josh in Humboldt County. All day long the light was perfect and each situation proved better than the next.

Tomorrow we are going to tour Avenue of the Giants and then head to Mendocino County for a final luxurious evening before leaving the west and heading back to New York.

Greetings from Portland, Oregon

We rolled into the Rose City yesterday after a hike through Oneonta Gorge and a stop at the Edgefield for a couple of beers. We found a couple of stranded motorist, but the next couple of days are all about exploring Portland and taking a rest from photography.

Last night we hung out in the Hawthorne neighborhood with the fabulously talented Corey Arnold and crashed at his home for the night. It's always a unique privilege to talk shop and careers with someone whose work you really respect and who's in a similar place trying to figure out this whole fine art photography thing. It's even better when he is a cool cat and very nice guy.

Greatings from Cascade Locks, Oregon

Another long drive today, but the stranded business was good. We left Boise and found a couple stuck under an overpass not ten minutes later. The photos from this shoot should be a little different and I am excited to print them.

A short while later we saw a woman and her children stuck in the east bound lane of I-84. We were heading west bound. As is often the case with my Stranded trips I have to search for the next exit and travel in the opposite direction to get the picture. Two steps forward and three steps back. This time the turnaround was worth it. There should be some amazing pictures from this stop. The lady kept jumping a barbed wire fence to fill up a water bottle in an farm aqueduct so she could stop her car from overheating. It was quite the scene.

Several hundred miles later in Oregon we found a guy off the highway in a narrow pass in Lime, Oregon. The scenery was striking and it should be another strong image.

Finally, we hit the Columbia River Gorge and found our final stranded motorist in Rufus, Oregon. He was a long haul trucker trying to deliver his load on time, but hopelessly stuck as his rig was pouring out black smoke.

After two states and close to 400 miles of road in a single day we finally decided to have a nice dinner in lovely Hood River, Oregon. It was good to be a little civilized after three straight days of snacks, road side food, and peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.

Tomorrow we are going to tool around the Columbia River Gorge and then make our way to Portland for a couple days of Rose City excitement.

Until tomorrow...

Greetings from Boise, Idaho

Long day yesterday. We drove from Winnemucca, Nevada, to Wells, Nevada, and then up Twin Falls, Idaho, and west to Boise. Many miles and only three stranded motorists. We did stop at the Snake River Canyon in Twin Falls and saw the site of Evil Knievel's 1974 jump attempt. There is a lot of beautiful open land out here, but not many stranded motorists.

Today we are going to poke around Boise and then head to Portland.

Greetings from Winnemucca, Nevada

What a day on the road. Here's a quick recap:

Last night we arrived in San Francisco around midnight, rented a car, and headed east toward Sacramento. The plan was to drive for about an hour and then find a hotel. Just outside of Richmond we hit a major traffic jam and only made it to Vallejo. You have to love California.

This morning we left Vallejo and made our way through Folsom. Funny, but every prison town seems to have an outlet mall, too. Just outside of Placerville we found our first stranded motorist, Johnny. Johnny was stuck on a blind curve with a flat and didn't have a jack. He did have a wicked angry clown tattoo on his shoulder, though. After taking some photos we continued to Lake Tahoe.

Lake Tahoe is simply gorgeous, but we had a lot of ground to cover so it was down the mountain to Carson City and Reno. A few miles out of Carson City we found our second stranded motorists, Billy and Janelle. Billy had just bought his car and it was already dead. It was really sad. They had a cute little dog named, Butch. We tried to help, but his car was shot.

Reno is a photo book waiting to happen. It's a ghetto Vegas with so many strange characters there must be a factory pumping them out just outside of town. I am definitely coming back.

The road from Reno to Winnemucca is several hundred miles of the most desolate and beautiful terrain you can imagine. We didn't run into any stranded folks during this leg and that was probably a good thing.

So, here we are in Winnemucca at the Scott Shady Court Motor Lodge after a quick meal at Winner's Casino. Tomorrow we are off to Elko, NV and Twin Falls, ID.

Waltz Across Texas

Stranded photos are always a challenge. Imagine your car has just died and you are sitting on the side of the road as trucks thunder past you only feet away. Your mind is racing with thoughts of how you are going to get off the highway and how much of your paycheck it's going to cost you to get your car running again. You are probably at a very low moment in your life. And then a car pulls up and a stranger asks if they can take your picture. That anyone ever says 'yes' amazes me. That most say 'yes' continues to blow my mind. Beyond the extreme tension inherent in the moment I am also working against the sheer improbability that someone will be broken down at the exact time and location that I happen to be passing in my car. I have made many trips and traveled many miles with this project and sometimes it doesn't bare photographic fruit.

Last Friday we took another road trip to hunt for stranded motorists and explore the vacant glory that is coastal Louisiana and East Texas. The trip covered over 1,200 miles and yielded only one stranded motorist and one roadside photo shoot. In the past this lack of output would have frustrated me to no end, but this trip was different. We decide to embrace the randomness and let our curiosity and the open road be our guide.

In Bayou Vista, LA, we stopped at the community center to visit the Barnes and Bailey circus (not Barnum & Bailey) and met Sam whose job it was to glue glitter to the hooves of the dancing horses.

In Huntsville, TX, we stopped at the “world’s largest statue of an American hero” -- a 67 foot concrete and steel effigy of Sam Houston. Huntsville is a gift that just keeps giving. We visited the Texas Prison Museum where I bought a wallet that was purported to have been made by a prisoner. On close inspection I found a Made in China sticker. Maybe they meant to say a Chinese prisoner made the wallet. From the museum we made the short drive to the Walls Unit of the Huntsville prison. The Walls Unit is the oldest prison in Texas and the location of the “Friendship” state’s death chamber where over 355 state-sponsored homicides have taken place since 1976.

Outside of Buffalo, TX, we pulled over to watch a giant strip mining operation and soon had new friends in the form of 80-year-old Morgan and his dachshund buddy, Snickers. Morgan seemed to be a little weary from the day -- or perhaps he was drunk. Whatever his condition he had a hard time keeping upright. “I fall down a lot,” he said.

Our journey then took us toward Waco along highway 164 to visit the Mt. Carmel compound of the Brand Davidian church. This was the site of the 1993 BATF and FBI siege on David Koresh and his followers that resulted in the deaths of 82 people. The chard foundation of the building still remains along with several militia-funded memorials that pay tribute to those that died and celebrate Koresh as a modern day Davey Crockett.

Just a short distance from Waco is Crawford, TX, and the site of another compound owned by a messianic leader hell bent on steering his followers toward a fiery downfall. I speak, of course, about George Bush and his western White House ranch. We drove out to the gate of the ranch, stole his newspaper, and then made a mad 200 mile dash back to Houston. The next morning we drove back to New Orleans.

All in all the trip was a healthy helping of American pie and, despite only finding one stranded motorist, I did find some inspiration for a new series. Tonight I will be driving back to Huntsville and will be shooting at the Walls Unit all weekend.