The Buddy Holly plane crash site aka “The Day the Music Died” is located in a rural cornfield in Clear Lake, Iowa, just a few miles from where Buddy Holly, Ritchie Valens and J.P. “The Big Bopper” Richardson played their last show on February 2, 1959 at the Surf Ballroom. Scheduled to play a show in Minnesota the next day, just after midnight on February 3, 1959, Buddy Holly chartered a plane to fly to the gig. The pilot was very young and inexperienced and unfortunately, the plane only flew about six miles before crashing, killing everyone on board.

The crash site today is much like it was back in 1959, lonely, rural and in a privately- owned cornfield. There are posts with a giant pair of Buddy Holly sunglasses that mark where to walk into the site (it is open to the public). The walk is quite long by memorial standards – at least a quarter of a mile into the cornfield or empty field depending on the season, on a well-worn path. There are quite a few trinkets and items left by fans at the spot. In the summertime, interestingly enough, there are quite a few cannabis plants growing around the memorial, likely from seeds tossed by fans as they burn one at the site.

If you’ve ever seen pictures of the crash site, it’s very unnerving to be standing where the wreckage and lifeless bodies of the passengers once were laying. It’s extremely sad and somber, especially in the winter months when the site seems much more desolate and tragic than it already is. For any music fan, this is definitely a pilgrimage worth taking.