Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch – Route 66, CA

As you know, we love unique, off the beaten path adventures. When we found out there is such a thing as the Bottle Tree Ranch, only 1.5 hours from our house, we had to go visit. It is one of those things that you have to be there in person, willing to immerse yourself in with the art to be able to appreciate the beauty and hard work Elmer had put into this place. You can see his heart and soul shine through these eccentric pieces of arts.

STATS:
Where:
Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch – 24266 National Trails Hwy, Oro Grande, CA 92368
Coordinates: 34°41’25.2″N 117°20’21.7″W

Hours: Open sunrise to sunset

Fee: It is free to enter but Elmer accepts donation.

Parking: there is no official parking. You can park on the side of the road in front of the property.

Restroom: There are no restrooms here.

Estimated Completion Time: 15 – 30 minutes, unless you love taking photos like us.

Ideal Weather: Anytime really. Although summer can get very warm, there is plenty of shade inside the ranch.

Ideal Time: morning or evening would provide you with the best lighting for photos but it is awesome anytime.

Dog-friendly: I would not recommend bringing your dogs in here. It is a small and fragile space with an occasional broken glass on the ground.

THE ADVENTURE:
As we pulled up in front of the Bottle Tree ranch, I still didn’t know what to expect. The front fence is partially covered with signs that kind of obscure the view of what lies just behind it. It looks like it could be a fenced up dirt lot, overrun by a sea of glass bottles. The place looks unassuming at first. We parked on the side of the road and got out. As you walk through the entrance, you’re greeted with a welcome sign and a forest of bottle trees. They are at first, visually overwhelming. There is so much glass that it is almost hard to see where one tree ends and the next begins.

NOTE: make sure you pull over all the way and be respectful to traffic. Do not leave your car doors wide open or stand in the middle of the road to take photos. The small number of cars that come through here do so at a pretty good speed sometimes.

You really need to keep your eyes peeled as you weave your way through the sea of glass trees on the property. Many of the trees are topped with very unique things. Some have street signs, some have traffic signals, two in the back have replica rifles. One is even tasked with holding on to a torpedo. There’s also a Willys Jeep that resides near the middle of the property. Elmer’s personal favorite is a bottle tree with a homemade rake on top that he had found on one of his adventures.

The Bottle Tree Ranch started simply enough. Every time Elmer Long and his dad went on their camping trips to the desert, they collected bottles and other artifacts. The bottle collection grew to thousands. As his dad got older, he started to give the bottles away. However, Elmer just couldn’t part with his collection. He decided to save his beloved bottles and turn them into bottle trees that he installed on his property on Route 66 near Oro Grande, CA. He built his very first tree in 2000.

In the beginning, the bottles came from private dumps on ranches or other large parcels. The owners would let his dad rummage through spots where people had been tossing their trash for generations. Now he gets bottles from all over the world. People send them or bring them, from all over the world. We couldn’t help but bring a moving tub full of wine bottles with us to contribute to this intriguing masterpiece.

If you ask Elmer, he doesn’t consider himself an artist. He is just someone who thinks of what they want to do and then does it. “It’s a crazy world, and it’s mine,” he said.

The one thing I love about the Bottle Tree Ranch is that there are so many unique, hidden things scattered around the place. At first, all you see are glass bottles after glass bottles. However, if you really look and pay attention to all the little details, you’ll start to notice Elmer’s heart and soul shining through. His personal touches and personality are everywhere from the hidden Tigger, interesting signage to the little handmade wind chimes.

As we made our way around the seemingly endless sea of sculptures, a breeze started to kick up. The ranch started to come to life. Some bottles clicked or rattled on their posts. The many artistic windmills that are scattered amongst the trees began to spin. The sounds of the wind chimes combined with the whistle of the wind blowing through the bottles was such an incredibly peaceful sound. It was like standing in the middle of an orchestra of inanimate objects.

Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch is part art gallery, part planetary cleanup effort, part craziness, but 100% awesome. It is definitely something you should see for yourself. It’s located about 2 hours from Los Angeles or San Diego and a short detour on the way to Vegas before Barstow. If you are heading to Vegas, don’t forget to check out another unique art installation, the Seven Magic Mountains. If you get hungry after visiting the ranch, we recommend the Cross Eyed Cow Pizza. It is a small local place with interesting decorations and bomb pizza. Right outside Cross Eyed Cow Pizza, you’ll also get to see some cool wall murals, interesting art pieces as well as the Route 66 sign.

Happy Adventuring. Don’t forget to follow us on Instagram, subscribe to our Youtube channel, and sign up for our newsletter!

RECOMMEND GEAR:

Don’t forget to check out our Recommended Gear section as well.

•  Sunscreen:
  We use eco-friendly, reef safe sunscreen. Alba Botanica Hawaiian Sunscreen or Sun Bum Sunscreen

•  Closed toed shoes
There is broken glass everywhere on the ground so make sure to wear closed toed shoes.

•  Water
It can get extremely hot here so bring some extra water.

• Tip:
Not required but Elmer accepts donations.

CAMERA GEAR:
•  Camera:
    Sony a7 III

•  Lenses:
   Sony 24 -70mm f/2.8 Carl Zeiss Vario Sonnar T Zoom Lens 
   Sigma 10-20mm f/3.5 EX   

• Drone:
DJI Mavic 2 Pro

Save your pins: