Otherworldly rock formations, stargazing, and a whole lot of history in California.
Detour three hr outdoors of LA and a few mile off Highway 395 in the small townsfolk of Lone Pine , California , and you ’ll be rewarded with the gateway to the Alabama Hills , a landscape of stark sweetheart and cinematic wonder . Spanning nearly 30,000 acres , these rounded , Lord’s Day - baked hills were grave by centuries of wind and rain and endure as mum sentinels against the backdrop of the toweringSierra Nevada . Their nonnatural appearing of weathered rock formations and sparse vegetation has made them a favorite location for film maker for decennium , delight witness to distant planet and epic battleground .
But the Alabama Hills are n’t just a film backdrop . They are a lieu that inspires solitude , where the sizeableness of thedesertsky and the ruggedness of the terrain make a good sense of awe and wonderment . tramper can research a internet oftrailsthat wind through the hills , offeringbreathtaking viewsof the surrounding mountains and valleys . Photographers can fascinate the ever - changing light and shadows that trifle across the landscape , create images that are both striking and aery . Andstargazerswill wonder at the clarity of the dark sky , where countless stars twinkle unabashedly , flaunting their splendor .
The Alabama Hills are a place of contrasts , where the harshness of the desert meet the grandness of the heap . They are also a post of story , where ancient petroglyph and end of mining towns severalize stories of the yesteryear . Getting there is easy : take Highway 395 to Lone Pine , ferment west at the stoplight onto Whitney Portal Road , then ride about 2.5 mile to Movie Road and turn mighty . The Bureau of Land Management manages the Alabama Hills and tenting there is free .
Movie Road in the Alabama Hills in Lone Pine, California.|wolf4max/Flickr
Film History
Hollywood filmmakers began to take an stake in the Alabama Hills take up in 1920 . Since then , more than 400 movies and TV show have been shoot there . Classics likeYellow SkyandHow the West Was Wonwere filmed along Movie Road . The 1990 sci - fi classicTremorswas shoot almost entirely on location in the Alabama Hills . During 1993 , portions ofMaverickwere filmed there . More recently , scenes fromStar Trek Generations , Gladiator , Iron Man , andDjango Unchainedwere take in the Alabama Hills .
The Inyo Film Commission estimates that they issue an average of 70 to 80 license per year that ensue in filming somewhere in the expanse . This is mainly restricted to modest and independent tale features , although large film production occasionally still stage productions there .
TheLone Pine Film Festivaloccurs every October , which features screening , panel , and discussions that display case movies film in the Alabama Hills . It takes place at the country ’s only Western film museum , the Museum of Western Film History , where you could grab a map at any sentence and take a ego - guided turn of Movie Road . During the festival , which is celebrating its thirty-fourth year , “ on location ” guided tours are also available , with different musical theme include an Ansel Adams - themed tour that takes you to some of the sites where he captured his famous images .
A still of Gregory Peck and Anne Baxter perched in the Alabama Hills from the classic Western ‘Yellow Sky.'|Photo by Twentieth Century Fox Pictures/Sunset Boulevard/Corbis via Getty Images
Before You Go
There are no facilities , water , or food in Alabama Hills . Although it is only about a five minute drive from Lone Pine , there is no cellular telephone response there . All the road in the Alabama Hills are washboard roads , and even though some of the main roads may be jolty , they are mostly flat . irrespective , it ’s wise to drive a four wheel thrust or high - clearance vehicle , along with a full GPS and a full tank of gas .
The indigenous people of the Lone Pine Paiute Shoshone Tribe still reside in this area , where their ascendent have subsist for G of long time . It is important to esteem and care for this land , and to not disturb or demolish anything that you may find . There are no trash service , so pile out all trash , and camp in designated campgrounds only . Also , be certain to travel on existing roads and trail as vegetation in this climate can take 10 to recover when beat by off - road driving or parking .
Must Visit Spots in the Alabama Hills
Nightmare Rock
GPS Coordinates:36 ° 35’47.5″N 118 ° 05’54.5″WNightmare Rock vocalise like it could be the type of monolith that obsess your dreams , and it is indeed unsettling . A outre rock organisation that has been paint to resemble a monstrous gape trap with words of sharp teeth , it is a stark contrast to the smooth , rounded boulders that populate this area . The font ’s feature change over sentence , depending on who decides to give it a refreshing paint job . Located on Whitney Portal Road at the entrance to the Alabama Hills , it also do as an unofficial saluter of sort .
Mobius Arch
Heart Arch
GPS Coordinates : N 36 ° 36.780 W 118 ° 07.398This is one of the easiest arches to line up in the Alabama Hills . you could spot it from the Mobius Arch parking sight . The philia frame is most seeable from a aloofness , in particular from the parking field , and it is accessible via a poor spur track trail that fork off from the main Arch Loop Trail . Once you ’re off the main trail , you ’ll demand to navigate odd terrain and scramble over some rock to get to Heart Arch . The roundtrip hike is about 1.5 mile and is consider moderately challenging due to the off - trail section and some elevation gain .
Gene Autry Rock
GPS Coordinates:36 ° 36’14.2″N 118 ° 07’01.4″WNamed after the famous singing cowhand , Gene Autry Rock is a gravid , prominent rock formation situated on a Alfred Hawthorne on a small dirt road . It was give its name because Autry , a legendary figure in Western films , often rode his buck to the top of the sway during take geological fault . It was sport inBoots and Saddles , one of Autry ’s picture , and was also in one of the scenes inDjango Unchained . You ’ll want a four - roulette wheel parkway or high clearance vehicle to reach this constitution , but it is easy visible from the road .
Hidden Window
GPS Coordinates:36 ° 36’26.98″N 118 ° 7’46.18″WHidden Window is a lesser - known but fascinating instinctive feature article in the Alabama Hills . It ’s a small , almost perfectly rotary yap in a rock candy face , resembling a windowpane looking out on the vast landscape painting . Located just off Movie Road , it brook alone near the wayside and is relatively prosperous to espy liken to some of the other arch and formations in the area . For photographers , it presents a unique opportunity for originative piece because the contrast between the glum inside of the window and the bright landscape beyond creates a spectacular burden .
One of the most popular rock formations in the Alabama Hills, Mobius Arch.|Photo by Danielle Bauter for Thrillist
The features on Nightmare Rock are constantly painted over.|Photo by Danielle Bauter for Thrillist
