Pearl isn't in the middle of nowhere, it is nowhere. There is no Pearl anymore. I drove through Pearl the other day, but all that really means is that I drove the Pearl Road from Horseshoe Bend to my dad's ranch. It's a great drive when it's not muddy.* Pearl was a booming mining town and at one time there were thousands employed in mines there, clear through the 1940s. The few buildings that remained were dismantled due to continued vandalism. With the price of gold now, there's renewed interest in reopening some of the mines. There are some tailings and mine shafts you can see from the road, but mostly now it's home to cows and wildflowers and a couple of folks who'd rather not be bothered. There's no cell service in the Pearl area and there aren't any land lines either. That's even true of my dad's ranch. He's 10 minutes from the Boise MSA (metropolitan statistical area) and can't call 911 with any sort of reliability. They'd be there in 10 minutes if he could get them, but being able to place the call is a pretty important factor. I don't know why I'm sharing this, other than it's the middle of the night and I took this pretty picture on Pearl Road.
*We drove the muddy Pearl Rd. when I was 8 3/4 months pregnant with Clyde... bad idea. We nearly got stuck and I had visions of having to give birth in the back of my Highlander and not being able to call 911... I actually had to get out of the car and walk while Ben got it unstuck because I just couldn't handle it. Clyde was great and decided being a week late was better than a week early.
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