In 1871, a small camp was erected on the western slope of Gold Mountain where gold was discovered. Originally, the camp was named Gold Mountain, but the name was changed to Oriental (from its location at the source of the Oriental Wash) to avoid confusion with Stateline, which was also known as Gold Mountain. The camp received its post office in 1887, which remained open until 1900, after which the camp sank into oblivion. All that remains of the camp is a few rude wooden shacks, some stone walls, and rusted debris.

We reached Oriental by taking a dirt road from Bonnie Claire into the mountains past Hard Luck, and getting lost amongst the numerous dirt paths and dry riverbeds. After exploring Oriental, we drove around aimlessly for about an hour before stumbling upon Gold Point. Bring a compass.