'Cast Away' Crossroads

The final scene of Cast Away is one of the most noteworthy endings of a film in the early 2000s, with a long-lost package finally finding its way home, and protagonist Chuck Noland (played by Tom Hanks) finding himself at both a metaphorical and literal crossroads in his life. 

The red dot on the road, where Hanks stood, is no longer there (time, sun, tires and Texas wind & dirt). The caliche (“dirt”) road is still there - and hasn’t been paved over. Head down that dusty road for about six miles and you’ll come to the ranch house and barn seen at the beginning and end of the film. It was an actual B&B but the pandemic shut it down. 

The intersection near Mobeetie, Texas is a postcard for the middle of nowhere, as described by a line at the culmination of the film: 

“Well, that’s 83 South. And this road here will hook you up with I-40 East. Um…if you turn right, that’ll take you to Amarillo, Flagstaff, California. And if you head back that direction, you’ll find a whole lot of nothin’ all the way to Canada.”