The Unexplained Bodies Along Route 66

What this episode is about

The narrative explores the mysterious disappearance and subsequent discovery of Erica Lloyd's body along Route 66, highlighting the unsettling circumstances surrounding her last known movements and the challenges of unsolved cases in desolate areas like San Bernardino County. It examines themes of isolation and the complexities of navigating vast, unincorporated lands, where accountability for such tragedies often becomes blurred.

Key takeaways

• In the vast expanse of San Bernardino County, no body seems to care—unless it’s on TikTok.
• Erica's desperate escape from lockdown ends in tragedy, proving sometimes, solitude brings more danger than solace.
• James' last call echoes a chilling reminder: if help is a mirage, desperation can lead you astray.
• Folklore meets fear in Amboy, where whispers of cults shroud the desert in mystery—dark tourism with a twist!
• Eight bodies in fourteen months is no coincidence; it’s a desert riddle that begs to be unraveled.

Who speaks in this episode?

• Tashara (Host) · 9 min speaking
• Anthony (Guest) · 4 min speaking

What is discussed, and when

1. 0:00 – 3:00: Erica Lloyd, Aurora James, Amboy, San Bernardino County
2. 9:00 – 12:00: Royy's Cafe and Motel

Notable quotes from "The Unexplained Bodies Along Route 66"

• Best to hold it together. The pandemic had forced her to close her beauty salon, and now she was homeschooling her 12-year-old son. The pressure was overwhelming. On June 11th…

  about Erica Lloyd · at 0:34

• Two told me to come do this with them, I was nah, it's not that scary. But something I'm realizing that I don't like is what is this? For anyone who needs to understand, we are…

  about San Bernardino County · at 1:35

• But his family disagrees. James knew the desert well, and they believe he wouldn't have wandered aimlessly. They also find it deeply suspicious that none of the people who saw…

  about Aurora James · at 3:11

• Ritual killings, human sacrifice, and ancient ceremonies that demand blood. To test this theory, we continued our investigation into Amboy, a nearby ghost town said to be a hot…

  about Amboy · at 4:20

• Honestly, that's probably not too far off. I would not doubt that if I was told that's what this is. We're now at Royy's Cafe and Motel. This is kind of the landmark of Amboy, California. This is kind of weird. It's not a gas station.

  about Royy's Cafe and Motel · at 10:24

Who and what is mentioned in this episode?

People

• Erica Lloyd — Person · Victim in primary unsolved case (referenced subject) · 3 mentions · first at 0:26
  Her 2020 disappearance and later discovery of her body near Jumbo Rock in Joshua Tree anchors the episode’s first major mystery and sets up the broader pattern of deaths in the area.
• Aurora James — Person · Victim in secondary case (referenced subject) · 2 mentions · first at 2:25
  A nearby disappearance/death shortly after Erica’s vanishing; his last phone call and the location overlap (same intersection) are used to suggest possible foul play and a wider pattern.
• Billy Christian — Person · Referenced associate (unverified identity; possible witness/person of interest) · 1 mention · first at 0:51
  Named as one of two people allegedly ‘holding’ Erica’s campsite; included as a potentially relevant connection in the timeline, but no further identifying details are provided.
  Off at a friend's house and told her best friend she'd be gone for a few days. But her friend noticed something strange. Erica said two people, Christian and James, were…

Places & events

• Amboy — Place · Setting · 1 mention · first at 0:19
  A ghost town in the Mojave Desert, central to the episode's investigation of mysterious disappearances and cult activity.
• San Bernardino County — Place · Setting · 1 mention · first at 1:42
  The large county where the mysterious events and disappearances discussed in the episode took place.
• Royy's Cafe and Motel — Place · Setting · 2 mentions · first at 9:28
  A landmark in Amboy, California, mentioned as a site of potential cult activity and eerie encounters.
• Joshua Tree — Place · Setting · 1 mention · first at 0:58
  A national park where Erica Lloyd was last seen before her disappearance, adding to the mystery of the episode.
  Overwhelming. On June 11th, hoping to clear her head, Erica dropped her son off at a friend's house and told her best friend she'd be gone for a few days. But her friend…

Full transcript with timestamps

0:00 Woah woah woah woah woah woah. Is that a guy? You should drive. We left our uh producer behind. Uh, she did not want to come along with us.

0:10 Sounds like someone's like opening and closing a door. Like, that's a person. Oh my god.

0:19 We are at the crossroads of Amboy Road and Dani Dani Road. And this is the site of our first unsolved murder. In June of 2020, 37-year-old Erica Lloyd was doing her best to hold it together. The pandemic had forced her to close her beauty salon, and now she was homeschooling her 12-year-old son. The pressure was overwhelming. On June 11th, hoping to clear her head, Erica dropped her son off at a friend's house and told her best friend she'd be gone for a few days. But her friend noticed something strange. Erica said two people, Christian and James, were holding her campsite at Jumbo Rock's campground. Park records show Erica entered Joshua Tree. The very next day, she had her final conversation with her mother. Her mother recalled that Erica was speaking unusually fast.

1:13 After that call, Erica went silent. No one ever heard from her again. It wasn't until a year later that her body was found over 20 m from the campground. What was Erica doing so far out in the desert? Why had she chosen that place as her escape? Her disappearance remains a mystery.

1:30 Something that I do not like. When these two told me to come do this with them, I was like, nah, it's not that scary. But something I'm realizing that I don't like is what is this? For anyone who needs to understand, we are in San Bernardino County. You know, San Bernardino County being one of the biggest counties, I think, in the nation.

1:46 Yeah. There's a lot of land that's just kind of untouched, not lived in. But there's also a lot of like little towns, little stops along highways that are considered uninccorporated towns. Essentially means like finding a body out here, nobody wants to take responsibility for it. So, when they see a vandalized car out here with the windows smashed in and all that, they're not going to investigate because who cares out here to them, right? We care. That's why we're out here. We kind of want to bring attention to stuff like this and potentially run into maybe the culprits, but uh

2:16 No, no, thank you. Let's go take a look at where uh where James body was found and see if we can't find anything else.

2:21 Yeah. Just a week after Erica vanished, another strange case unfolded nearby. A man named James set out on his red bike to help his girlfriend's friend, who claimed she was stranded at an intersection of Shelton Road and Highway 62, the very same place where Erica's abandoned car had been left. When James arrived, he called his girlfriend to say that he couldn't find her friend. A moment later, he told her simply, "I got it." and hung up. He was never seen again. Search teams looking for Erica later found James red bike near the intersection. Months later, a hunter discovered James remains a mile and a half away. Authorities ruled his death as a result of harsh desert environment.

3:11 But his family disagrees. James knew the desert well, and they believe he wouldn't have wandered aimlessly. They also find it deeply suspicious that none of the people who saw him last ever reported him missing. His family insists foul play was involved. Over the next 14 months, six more bodies were discovered in that same area, leaving the community with more fear than answers. All right, we venture deeper. I mean, you can see there's there is nothing out here. There is a lot of crime, maybe some spooky stuff, maybe some cults out here. And I think we're we're we're looking to find it. At least I am. I feel like the excitement initially of finding a cult would be fun, but then like actually like encountering a cult would not.

3:57 I feel that. I don't want to be the victim, right? Like I don't want to We're We're sharing a lot of pretty messed up stories today of bodies that were found. I don't want to be one of those stories.

4:10 For decades, locals have whispered another explanation for these disappearances. They believe a cult operates in the area. a group practicing ritual killings, human sacrifice, and ancient ceremonies that demand blood. To test this theory, we continued our investigation into Amboy, a nearby ghost town said to be a hot spot for cult activity. Amboy may look empty, but many travelers report feeling watched the moment they enter. People describe a heavy presence like unseen eyes staring out from the windows of the abandoned buildings. Some even claim to see figures moving in the shadows. Drivers along Amboy Road have reported visions of horrific car crashes, wrecked vehicles, and bodies strewn across the desert floor. But as they approach, the chaos seems staged, almost like a trap, waiting for someone to stop.

5:14 Okay, so I figured while we're driving up in Amboy, rather than just tell you a little bit about these Marine buddies that I have that have stories about how cursed Amboy is and how it's hell, may as well just call him and have him tell some of it himself. Hey

5:29 yo, what's up, Anthony? Not so much, man. How are you? Um, I'm doing good now. Maybe not later. Maybe I had mentioned to you at some point, but uh currently Tashar and I are on our way to Amboy.

5:39 Oh, personally, I would never drive there. Anytime you drive, you always feel like you're being watched.

5:53 Did you ever see anything? I had this feeling once and I just got in my car and just looked it out. I never had this feeling ever. Like I've been training in the desert for like the past 4 years. Never had that feeling. an amoid. Wow.

6:07 And one of my guys were like, "Yeah, no, no, there people out there." He said, "Wait, one of your guys said that there are people out there." Is that that's what he said?

6:16 100%. Yeah. We're in Vegas coming back from um celebrating uh the Marine Corp. His wife in the side, he parked inside a road and just had to go like to the bathroom real quick. And he was just looking out in the distance and he just sees like three shadowy lump on the ground just moving. What? He couldn't tell you closer to him or not until one made a very sudden jerk.

6:41 It made a sudden jerk what? Like toward him. Yes. What? Obviously he lived to like tell the story. So what what happened?

6:50 Like as soon as he saw that like sudden jerk, he knew like it not ammo. It had to be something else. lock the car and to start driving off. And because of that winding road, he was able to see the path to burn and he saw like confirm like three guys just waiting on him about to jump him.

7:04 Oh my god, that's that's intense. Oh my god. Was scary too. like you just stopped like in the middle of the road like either they were just there already and just happened to be in the worst spot ever ever or he like saw them approaching and just saw them slowing down and just took the opportunity and just rushed there.

7:28 Jesus. Yeah, that's that's a bit creepy. That's more than creepy. That's like that's terrifying. That's like straight out of a horror movie. So most most of the Marines that you know wouldn't even risk driving through Amboy at night.

7:43 Yeah, just to keep our guys safe, I guess. How do you feel about Tashara and I driving on Amboy road right now about to make a stop in Amboy?

7:48 You got a weapon? Do you have a weapon? Well, okay. Well, I think the silence is pretty telling there. How you feeling?

8:06 Scared. Yeah. Yeah. If those stories are anything to go by, uh, definitely should be scared.

8:11 Well, all those stories about people stopping out, we're going to have to be a car stopped. Can't just drive past this uh train.

8:23 There's like a a little shed over there. If I was a cult member, I'd hide in that shed and like wait for for people like us to stop for the train. I think I think the train is done. I think so now.

8:35 Yeah, I think so. Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa whoa whoa. What is that? A guy? It is.

8:43 Oh my god. You should drive. He's just walking. He's Where? He's just He's just Oh my god. Are we

8:53 Why aren't you driving? Well, why is he just walking? And he came from that direction. What if he came from the shed?

9:06 Oh my gosh. Oh, he's gone. You can't even see him anymore. Who just randomly walks out here?

9:14 Um, yeah, that has me a bit spooked. I can't even lie. All right, here we are. Is this Royy's um hotel?

9:22 Yeah, it is. It is. Isn't Royy's hotel closed now? There's a car park. There's someone walking. Maybe it is open. There's someone at the door. She's like trying to trying to open the door. All right, let's uh let's pull over. Oh my gosh, there's a car here.

9:42 Is the back window broken? Yeah. What if there's someone sleeping in here? It's possible.

9:50 Uh no. What's that? Oh, that is terrifying. What the heck is that? Those are shoes.

9:58 Yeah, shoes and clothing. I could be wrong, but I think in LA or like you know, cities in LA, like people throw the shoes of someone who's died up on the power lines, right? Could you imagine if

10:17 there was a lot of shoes that victims of the Mojave Desert? Yeah. Honestly, that's probably not too far off. I I would not doubt that if I was told that that's what this is. We're now at Royy's Cafe and Motel. This is kind of the landmark of Amboy, California. This is kind of weird.

10:35 It's not a gas station. It's a gas station. I I don't Is it active? I mean, it's definitely not. The pumps aren't active, right? But what was that lady doing over here?

10:48 Just speaking out the door. I think she was going through the trash can, too. This is This is weird. The the creepiest part is is up ahead. This is where the motel used to actually be. I know this is definitely not a functioning motel anymore, but uh it's definitely um definitely a gift shop here.

11:06 And there's lights on in there. Where? Oh, you're right. You see the lights? Do you see anyone moving?

11:18 Is there anyone there? Or what's that? Did you hear that? There was definitely a loud There it is again. I think we should

11:27 Let's go either. Let's go. Let's go. Let's go. No, I was going to say, "No, no, let's go. Let's go investigate." I think you were saying, "Let's go investigate that sound."

11:32 I love how you're just like pushing me in front. Yeah. Well, cuz you're not in camera. You got to be in camera.

11:37 I'm scared. Do you see anything? No. Ew. Oh. Wo. Stop. Oh my god. Do you see it? Look, it's a like a ram.

11:46 That's creepy. Is that Do you see the like gated door? Yeah. Yeah, it's like a prison door.

11:54 We keep It sounds like someone's like Sounds like someone's like opening and closing a door.

12:01 Do they have a a thing walker? What is Oh, that's my shadow. This is terrifying. All right, these are the I think the motel rooms. These are a bit creepy.

12:17 They're very creepy. I don't know about very. Well, what's weird to me is that usually like abandoned places like this

12:27 are boarded up and like wellkept or like there's security around. Right. Right.

12:32 Here it's just like it's just open. Oh, yeah. I mean like the doors are open. Nothing's boarded up.

12:34 Do you see that? What are you talking about? Wait. Stop. Stop. Stop. What? Look.

12:39 We got to go. What is that? No. Hold on. Hold on. No. Stop. It's There's no way it's a real person.

12:45 That's No, cuz it's it's a museum there. It has to be like a statue of Wait, that's a person? No, I don't think so. It's literally not moving. Cuz like I'm not denying that looks like a person. If if it if it's a person, we'll just run away. We'll just run through the the cars are just over there. It's fine.

13:00 What if it's What if it's not just a person? We don't we don't know how big the the room is. What if there's multiple people and that's just like their person to draw out people like us?

13:14 I think it's a statue. Let's just walk up to it. Population zero of Amboy. There's no one living here. We'll take it slow.

13:20 You walk in first. Okay. All right. I I will. I will. Okay. Here's the here's the weird thing. Okay. I don't I don't see anything, right?

13:26 But we Okay. Yeah. Oh my god. Okay. All right. Let's be realistic. It's probably a homeless person.

13:43 Yeah. And they were We probably just disturbed them. It's night time. Yeah. They're probably sleeping or supposed to be sleeping and then we woke them up.

14:03 After venturing deep into the middle of nowhere and retracing the steps of a few tragic stories, we were truly shaken to our core. There are plenty of theories, but as far as we're concerned, you can't ever be too sure as to what really happens in the Mojave Desert.

Questions about this episode

Who speaks in "The Unexplained Bodies Along Route 66"?

Tashara (Host), Anthony (Guest).

What is "The Unexplained Bodies Along Route 66" about?

The narrative explores the mysterious disappearance and subsequent discovery of Erica Lloyd's body along Route 66, highlighting the unsettling circumstances surrounding her last known movements and the challenges of unsolved cases in desolate areas like San Bernardino County. It examines themes of isolation and the complexities of navigating vast, unincorporated lands, where accountability for…

What is mentioned in this BuzzFeed Unsolved Network episode?

7 people, works and ideas are mentioned, including Erica Lloyd, Amboy, Aurora James, San Bernardino County, Royy's Cafe and Motel, Joshua Tree. Each one on this page links to its own page with every episode that mentions it.

How long is "The Unexplained Bodies Along Route 66"?

The episode runs 15 min; the transcript is about 2,473 words in 58 timestamped sections.

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