The town remains nearly as isolated today. The only way in is through the narrow, curving roads hugging the face of the mountain range. The nearest metropolitan areas are hours away, yet it takes just a few minutes to traverse this town without a stoplight. The road to the south quickly leads into fields of yellowed grass, punctuated by clumps of scrub brush, that stretch into a far and hazy distance. It's hard to imagine any man has ever walked there.
Mountains loom near and far, some with craggy faces made up of massive boulders piled skyward.
Others seem softer, with earthen peaks that climb gently into the air. It's out here that one can see why people really want to be here. During the day, the sky is a never-ending sheet of blue untainted by even a trace of pollution. At night, it burns with the light of billions of stars, tiny blazing pinpoints from horizon to horizon. It's also one of the only places where a little of what was is still alive.