A tribute to the Mojave and Yachi's bar
The high desert is a strange, beautiful and ominous place
“Sleep comes, like a drug, in God’s country.” — U2, Joshua Tree
It was a small bar, in the middle of nowhere.
Somewhere in the Mojave desert.
Jim, my brother found it. Said we had to stop in for a beer.
Just a small adobe building, a trailer and that’s about as much as I remember.
It was Yachi’s bar.
She came from Japan, married this US Air Force pilot, and they ended up in the Mojave desert, running a small bar.
I can’t remember his name, but he flew cargo planes in and out of Asia. Places like Tokyo, Manila, Bangkok … you name it.
A runway is a runway, you might say, and he saw a few.
We parked Jim’s Explorer, and ventured inside. The outdoor temperature wasn’t too baad, it was fall, in the 80s F.
But it was nice and cool, air-conditioned inside Yachi’s bar.
There was one other guy having a beer, in a corner. He didn’t turn to look at us, so we figured he wasn’t interested in company.
Yachi, who acted as a bartender, came up to us and smiled, asking if we’d like a cold MGD, which we both said OK to.
Nothing like a cold Miller Genuine Draft in the Mojave, at mid-day after a hike.
My brother, Jim, loved the American desert. And he loved places like this.
Many times, we would venture out to his latest discovery.
The high desert is a strange, beautiful and ominous place. You have to wonder who lives out here, and why.
Jim, who lived in Sherman Oaks, wasn’t big on touristy places, like Disneyland, Universal Studios, Rodeo Drive and Santa Monica pier.
No, for Jim, it was the Mojave that had all the allure. And the more isolated and unique, the better.
Places like Mojave airport, where old commercial planes go to die, or exploring the mysterious Tehachapi mountains, or Roy's Motel and Cafe in Amboy on Route 66, a popular stop for movie stars back in the day.
Or spending a day at Joshua Tree National Park, a spectacular place for photographers and climbers, or snagging some good ribs at a diner in Twentynine Palms, or an overnight at the Harmony Motel where U2 stayed to shoot their famous album cover.
Or sometimes just following a desert road, and seeing what you might discover. Like a gigantic desert tortoise, or maybe a roadrunner. Like the cartoon, they do exist and the do travel at a ridiculous speed.
They say if all the dead bodies stood up from their shallow graves in the Mojave, there would be hundreds to appear — it’s a popular place for dumping bodies, apparently.
But on this day, we were in a jovial mood. I can’t recall the music playing, whether it was Waylon or Willie, or maybe a country station.
The MGD went down nice, really nice.
We were in country to take in a special event — the annual Pancho Barnes get-together at nearby Edwards Air Force Base.
A tribute to Pancho’s Happy Bottom Riding Club ranch and Chuck Yeager, the man who would break the sound barrier and set many aerospace records.
I don’t know if they still hold that today, the new base commander was not amiable to tourists, but back then it was a fun event — great barbecued tri-tip and all the fixin’s.
Park guides on site too, and a band later in the evening, and, yes, lots of MGD.
All amongst the protected historical ruins of Pancho’s infamous ranch.
By chance driving in, we saw an incredible sight — a B-2 Stealth Bomber flying on the deck with an F-16 chase plane mirroring its every move.
We didn’t dare photograph or video it. We were on the base and that was a no-no.
It was doing high speed, knife edge passes over the Edwards dry lake bed. And man, I am talking high speed, knife edge on the deck.
If you would have seen it, you wouldn’t have believed it was possible. This great big B-2 dish-shaped bomber, on the deck, tilted 90 degrees on its side.
Amazing. Incredible. Impossible!
It’s only by the grace of God and computer technology, that this plane can do what it can do. I would find out later, that the B-2 had anti-gravity technology on its leading edge.
A fact that got an engineer in big trouble, when he leaked it to the media.
There’s only one place where that technology could have come from, but this column is not about them, so let’s leave that one behind us.
Let’s get back to the MGD and Yachi’s bar. A place that was probably frequented by some of the aerospace greats from Edwards back in the day.
Jim and I were half-way through our beers, when a fellow came out into the bar, from the back door. He was carrying a guitar.
He seemed a nice guy, youngish, maybe in his 30s. He said hello to us and was about to play something on his guitar, when Yachi told him: “Frank, get back in the trailer.”
There was obviously some issues here, some background we weren’t aware of.
The man begged to stay, and just said he wanted a beer. But again, Yachi stood firm: “Get back in the trailer Frank, just go back.”
It was a tense moment, a standoff. We weren’t sure what would happen next.
The man looked at us, at Yachi, and back at us.
We were dumbfounded, didn’t know what to say. Best to keep to ourselves on this one, we thought.
After a minute or so, he retreated back to whence he came. Back into the trailer. Sadly carrying his guitar with him.
Poor guy, they weren’t going to let him drink. Perhaps it was for his own good. But we’ll never know.
That was the last time I was at Yachi’s bar. Jim later told me, the old man died, and Yachi sold the bar to someone.
It was the end of an era. A sad ending.
The lasting image I have, is of the amazing desert night sky. Clear of any clouds, the stars are amazing and crystal clear.
Like nothing you have ever seen, and better than any tourist trap in Los Angeles.
I followed one light in the sky, as it made a 90-degree turn, and then zoomed off. You just never know what you’ll see, in the Mojave.
Love the stories of you & Jim, Dave!! 😃