15 years ago I was taking a cross country trip and stopped in at the old Roy Rogers Museum --- ah, senior moment, can't think of the town, at the edge of the Mojave. What a great place. We'd parked our bikes in the shade but when we came out the sun was high (about 110) and the bikes were baked. We were going to ride to London Bridge in Lake Havasu City but when we got to Needles at 2PM it was 120 degrees and some folks told us it was 135 at LHC. Instead we stayed the night at Needles and then spent 5 days in Oak Creek Village just outside of Sedona. One of the most beautiful place I've ever been. By the way, if you're ever in Needles, right across the street from the Best Western is a restaurant with a sign that reads "welcome to Needles, CA, 20 miles from water, 2 feet from hell". From there we rode to Albuquerque then to Amerillo, and up through the Pan Handle to Kansas and back to the East Coast.
Anybody ever do that ride? I should mention that we only had 2 1/2 Wks so we shipped the bikes to Dudley Perkins and did the 4,000 mi ride home. Can't say enough good about the way DP treated us. Great folks.

 

Yep! On my trusty FXR umpteen years ago on the way back from the Grand Canyon, took a side trip to Victorville where the museum used to be. Amazing display of everything you would remember from the TV series. And yes, Needles and the entire Mojave Desert area is hot as you-know-where in mid August, with thunder and lightning storms thrown in for good measure. But it was, and still is, one of the best rides I ever made!
~

 

Wow - you're giving me flashbacks. I grew up there - in Hesperia. I think the new museum was in Apple Valley was close to the border with Victorville if I remember right. Been there a zillion times because every time someone came to visit we had to take them there. My mom and dad grew up watching their movies. Seems like there was an old location for the museum where you could still see the faded letters where they removed the signage and it was in Victorville I think, and it was either a bowling alley or next to a bowling ally.

Roy and Dale went to our church in Apple Valley and my mother would fuss at Roy for riding his Harley to church without a helmet. We went to their old house one time -- huge sprawling ranch house shaped like a horseshoe. Her closet/dressing room was as big as my first house. Great people.

 

The original museum was in Apple Valley. They moved to Victorville in '76. Then to Branson Missouri in '09.
http://www.royrogersworld.com/Museum.htm

 

No, but I ate lunch at Roy Rogers on Monday.

 

Sad when they moved to MO. When it was at CA it had one of the finest western guns, saddles and art collection in US. Roy and Dale kept memorabilia from all their movies. I remember an original painting of John Wayne that was so lifelike you'd swear he was going to speak. Hope Branson preserves it all.

 

They closed the Branson museum in 2009 and auctioned off the contents.

 

What a bunch of pimps

 

Sadly for Roy Rogers and Dale Evans fans everywhere, their museum closed
its doors for the final time on December 12, 2009.
http://www.royrogersworld.com/Museum.htm

 

Visited twice in Victorville. A friend ran into Roy on site and shook his hand.
Most of the guns were later stolen from the Victorville location. Must be in someone's hidden collection.
It closed in Branson because Roy told Roy Jr. to close it when it became unprofitable. Also, comically, some people complained of the 'complete' Trigger statue outside.