Starbuck's Exploring

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Guy Starbuck

Guy has explored the deserts and mountains of the southwestern US for more than thirty-five years. In that time, he has found a couple of hidden and remote locations that don't see many visitors.

503 posts

March 2022 News

March 2022 News

Below are the updates since the January 2022 News post. Site updates: * Map! I added a Map page. Maps show the trips that have GPS waypoints and/or directions. * I've also added GPS waypoints to over two hundred trips. GPS waypoints are limited to paid subscribers only. I

Morning Glory Mine (Death Valley)

Morning Glory Mine (Death Valley)

The Morning Glory Mine is a neat little mine high up in the pinyon pines of Trail Canyon. It's not easy to reach, so it doesn't get as much visitation as other places in Death Valley. You really have to want to go there. And despite

Rattlesnake Canyon Smelter and the Heartbreak Ridge Arrastra

Rattlesnake Canyon Smelter and the Heartbreak Ridge Arrastra

Most people interested in the old mines of Southern California know about the old "Spanish" smelter on the eastern edge of the San Bernardino Mountains. It is just off Burns Canyon Road in Rattlesnake Canyon and is well-visited. The smelter is old. One report states that it was

Martin Crossing Cabin

Martin Crossing Cabin

I've been to this cabin in the backcountry of Death Valley National Park a couple of times over the years. The first time I visited was in 2006 with Dan. More recently, I made a return trip in 2022. It is a moderate hike, but getting close to

Sky Portal Pictographs

Sky Portal Pictographs

It took quite a few hours of bushwhacking to reach this remote set of pictographs under a single boulder in the backcountry of Joshua Tree. It was an all-day adventure. The brightness of the pictographs found here is rare. Most rock art in Joshua Tree is faded from weather and

Hexahedron Mine

Hexahedron Mine

Sometime before 1894, Al Tingman ("The Father of Indio") and Ed Holland (of Lost Horse Mine fame) staked claims on some rich gold ore outcrops high above Pleasant Valley. They sold the mine to Bill and John Garrison, who formed the Hexahedron Mining Company. The Company dug a

January 2022 News

January 2022 News

I've been working on trip reports. The directions are taking way longer than I thought they would, so I'm cutting back to just GPS waypoints and tracks for now. Maybe in the future, I will be able to add more details to them. But in an