Went camping at the Colorado river close to Yuma AZ, over the New Years weekend and stumbled onto this place in Bard, CA. It's called a museum, but it is basically this old timer's collection of over 100 model T's and A's and tons of old machines and mechanisms. Amazing place. I couldn't focus he had so much stuff. All the cars were set up on wood blocks and ran! This guy had stacks of everything old. Old washing machines, irons, blacksmith tools, farming equipment, kitchen appliances, construction tools and equipment, mining equipment etc. etc. He had a completely assembled modular Texaco gas station that he got off some old lady in San Diego set up in this place! Very cool. At any rate, I snapped off a bunch of pictures before my camera ran out of juice. I highly recommend stopping by and chewin' the fat with Ole John Cloud...bring a joke and get ready to be tested on an array of old tools and there uses! Here's the link to the picts: http://s90.photobucket.com/albums/k250/RonBurnco/Cloud Museum/?start=0 BTW- he says he wasn't interested in selling anything, but I get the feeling he would part with any item for the right price.
Cool...Looks alot like the Museum in Murdo SD...........1/2 museum, 1/2 junkyard........Love places like that.
Sounds like the kinda man you wanna make reeeeeeeeeaaaallllly good friends with Kinda makes me want to take a little trip...
THANKS! Wonder what type of cyclecar that body is from in photo #13? Thats a ROOF overhead on the T in photo 14. Thanks post posting the photos.
Anybody been there lately? Was there in 2006, at it was really worth the trip! Guess the collection has grown since then! Here is some pix i took!
Since you asked... I was there yesterday. Thought I'd died and gone to HAMB heaven. Lots of rust out side the buildings but nothing a HAMBer couldn't handle. Lots of great barn find solid cars, and some restored ones, inside the buildings. Most are Model T Fords including a few nice original 26-27 roadsters (but I liked the restored 26-27 coupe), quite a few As, a 1936 Ford, a few Dodge Brothers... one interesting engine (he has a few) was a T with an OHV conversion... Johnny told me he started collecting this 21 years ago - hard to imagine you could acquire so many neat old cars in only 21 years! Well worth the trip and $5 admission if you are anywhere near Bard Valley CA or Yuma AZ, it's at 1398 York Road (on route S24 close to the Date Farm - 10 miles from Winterhaven). Bring your camera (I forgot mine....) !! http://cloudmuseum.dynamitedave.com/
I went to the Cloud Museum last month. He's still at it. Tons of stuff. I rebuilt the website as well with new pictures. I condensed it down to a single web page. Check it out at http://cloudmuseum.dynamitedave.com/ First real update since 2007.
I was there several times in mid 2000s and it is awesome! He let me in free a couple of times 'cause I was in the '48 Plymouth when I went. He actually took me over to his storage yard a mile or two away and dig for "T" stuff as well. It was damn near as cool as the museum.
He's a great guy, and puts most of the cars together with parts and pieces and even tries to use old bolts and wood. I used to stop and talk to him before he put a fence around it.
So cool...and always looking for a new road trip destination...thanks for the post. Posted using the Full Custom MUNDSTER app!
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