The Small Town in Nevada That Feels Like ‘Stranger Things’

Isolation has been an undercurrent of the Netflix series Stranger Things since its 2016 debut. Although the action ostensibly took place in Indiana, California, and Russia, the series was filmed in Georgia, New Mexico, and Lithuania, respectively. I think it just as easily could have been set in the eastern Nevada town of Ely, a high desert outpost on the "Loneliest Highway in America," and a place that knows a thing or two about isolation—and paranormal activity.

Retro Vibe

Stranger Things is set in the early to mid-1980s, primarily in the fictional town of Hawkins, Indiana. Ely, Nevada's historic business district—and much of the surrounding town, for that matter—feels like it has been frozen in time, exuding a retro vibe that feels more like the 20th century than the 2020s. I think the Stranger Things characters would feel right at home—or, at least, equally out of place—here.

Paranormal Activity

The area around Ely is ripe for paranormal activity and includes many sites that are rumored to be haunted, including the Ghost Train of the Nevada Northern Railway. Other places where folks have experienced eerie occurrences include the Ely Cemetery and the Historic Hotel Nevada and Gambling Hall. (I would not be surprised if the latter were haunted by the ghosts of the countless taxidermied animals that adorn its walls.)

The Upside Down

Ely got its start as a mining town, and you'll still find abandoned shafts, pits, equipment, and mining camps all over the region. Nearly two dozen ghost towns dot the landscape around the city. Fascinating? Definitely. Dangerous? Of course. But any one of those abandoned shafts, pits, or ghost towns could be harboring a portal to the Upside Down, and the unsuspecting residents of Ely would never know it—because does anyone really know what goes down in the desolate desert landscape when no one is watching. (No. No, they don't.)

Eerie Locations

In addition to the mines and mining ruins in the vicinity of Ely, there's also an abandoned U.S. Air Force tracking base atop nearby Kimberly Peak, fenced off from visitors and a perfect place for nefarious doings. It's definitely a spot where secretive government researchers could conduct covert experiments with citizens and attempt to open portals into parallel dimensions. I also think the charcoal ovens at Ward Charcoal Ovens State Historic Park look like something otherworldly, a place where a creature like the Demogorgon may well have a lair or an additional portal into this world.

With its timeless retro vibe, rumors of paranormal activity, and a variety of potentially nefarious settings, Ely, Nevada, reminds me of a place that could be a setting in Stranger Things. What do you think? Do you agree that Ely gives off Hawkins, Indiana, in a Stranger Things meets the Wild West sort of way? If you can think of some other towns in the Silver State that remind you of a TV show, be sure to let us know about them over on our Nomination page.