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Lucky Turkey Arrastra and Blind Mule Placer Cabin

Lucky Turkey Arrastra and Blind Mule Placer Cabin

These mines are a bit of a mystery as very little is known about them. The hike visits a roofless stone cabin first, then heads over to the Lucky Turkey Mine with its arrastra, and finally out to a remote cabin at the Blind Mule Claim. The little bits of

Sunnyside Mill

Sunnyside Mill

Deep in the forests of central Idaho and almost entirely surrounded by the Frank Church-River of No Return Wilderness is the Sunnyside Mine. Once a large mine, it has been completely reclaimed. It does have some mill ruins left. Discovered by the Caswell brothers in 1899, they sold the mine

Ward Stamp Mill

Ward Stamp Mill

Up in the high country of the Eastern Sierra and south of Bridgeport, is the old site of Ward. Never a big mine or camp but it makes an interesting place to visit in that a stamp mill still remains there. It's also a bit of a challenge

American Flag Mine Cabin

American Flag Mine Cabin

Also once known as the Mojave Hilton, I couldn't find any history on the American Flag Mine or the cabin. I first visited the cabin in 2011 before any repairs had been done on it. I stopped by for visits in 2016 and 2022. You can see the

Duct Peak

Duct Peak

You will need to dust off your peak-bagging boots for the trek up the 3,137-foot Duct Peak. This small peak is in the eastern part of Joshua Tree in what I call the "Empty Quarter" of the park. This section of the park is completely undeveloped, and

Big Wall Petroglyphs

Big Wall Petroglyphs

In late 2017, my friend JP and I explored in the backcountry of Joshua Tree National Park. On our way to another site, we stopped at a small petroglyph site in a wash that we are calling the "Big Wall Petroglyphs". There are only a handful of petroglyphs

Vontrigger Springs

Vontrigger Springs

Also known as Von Trigger Springs, the spring and surrounding hills were first prospected in 1858 (some say the 1870s) by a German man named Erick Vontrigger for gold. He found a rich pocket of gold but kept his discovery secret. He died in San Francisco in 1880, taking his