By Talaina Kor For the first time in Atlas Obscura’s 11-year history of cataloging the most interesting places in the world, they have created their own addition to the list, and its right outside of Holbrook. Described on its website as a “definitive guidebook and friendly tour-guide to the world’s most wondrous places,” the creation of The Plotz Plot definitely fits the bill. Situated on a little over an acre of land about half a mile from Route 66 near Adamana, in the baren Arizona desert is a small bright orange cargo shed with its name in bold white lettering across the side. After entering the shed by keying in the lock code, visitors can enjoy a DIY-esque museum of items left by others and labeled with tags explaining their significance. The first item to be inducted into the shed was a backpack from the site’s namesake, David Plotz, who served as the Atlas Obscura’s CEO. The tag attached reads: “This Deuter Giga Bike Backpack represents the time I spent as CEO of Atlas Obscura. For more than five years, I commuted from my home in Washington to our headquarters in Brooklyn. I would say goodbye to family early Monday morning, board an Amtrak train, and return home late each Wednesday night. This backpack was my constant companion during those years. Now, I am leaving Atlas Obscura—and this backpack—behind to take my next adventure.” Plotz Plot was a farewell gift to Plotz upon him leaving the company. “We were sitting around and wondering ‘what should we do for him?’ Then we thought maybe we could create an Atlas Obscura place” stated Atlas Obscura co-founder Joshua Foer, “So we started Googling around and we found out that it was possible to buy a plot of land on eBay. And we found the most inexpensive land we could buy was in Holbrook.” With that discovery, Foer traveled to Holbrook to build The Plotz Plot, which was originally a small gray shed bought from Tractor Supply. The intention of the space was to create a gallery of items with personal meaning. “I guess the idea was David was going through a pretty major life transition. It was more than just going from one job to another job,” said Foer on what inspired the concept. “We thought about what would it look like to create a place that could help people going through those kinds of transitions. So, the notion was to create a space that anybody could visit and just leave behind a memento from this part of their life that they’re leaving behind so they can move on to the next part. And wouldn’t it be awesome and interesting to see what kind of things people would leave behind and you’d end up with a kind of fascinating museum.” Unfortunately, the strong winds known in this region blew down the first shed, which wasn’t fortified enough to handle the harsh weather. After the initial “blow” of being told the shed fell apart, Foer decided to see if the site was getting enough visitors to rebuild. “If I get some more emails from people actually going to visit this place, then maybe I’ll come by out and fix it.” After seeing that the site was gaining traction, Foer flew back to Arizona from his residence in Massachusetts to rebuild The Plotz Plot. Although recreating the shed was a grueling task, Foer had more helping hands the second time around. Along with a father and son team, Ash and Tim Harris, driving all the way from Tucson to volunteer for the project, Holbrook resident Levi Tafoya also extended his services to help rebuild and became somewhat of a liaison between Foer and the location. “We all decided to get together on the same day and knock it out,” said Tafoya, “I think people need to view this place as something of importance. I think it needs to be an important moment in your life you decide to leave behind.” Visitors are encouraged to visit the site and leave their own mementos. Atlas Obscura asks that any contributions be tagged appropriately, and the door be relocked upon leaving. Plotz Plot is accessible from Adamana Road off of Interstate 40, Exit 303 at the coordinates 35.025639, -109.8195. The lock code is 4444. For additional information, visit the website at www.atlasobscura.com/places/plotz-plot.
