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Blue Sun Pictograph Cave

Blue Sun Pictograph Cave

My friend Don Austin coined the name "Blue Sun Cave." The Kumeyaay people once lived here. And even though there is no water nearby, the shelters created by the massive granite boulders provided a welcome home in this harsh desert. The pictographs are considered to be the La

Spoked Wheel Geoglyph

Spoked Wheel Geoglyph

At the end of a long day exploring pictographs around the badlands of Anza Borrego, we made one last stop – the Spoked Wheel Geoglyph. This ceremonial site is a twenty-foot diameter rock alignment consisting of two circles with spokes connecting them. A native trail runs nearby. The spirit of the

Victory Mine

Victory Mine

In 2017, Boxy and I revisited this interesting little tungsten mine out in central Nevada. I first visited this mine in 2002. It was originally discovered in 1945 by W. L. Sovy, Jack Southerland, and Albert Brown. In 1949, it was purchased by J. S. Dougan and associates, who formed

Monolith Alcove Pictographs

Monolith Alcove Pictographs

In early 2016, I met up with DarthJenni and JP to do some exploring in the backcountry of Joshua Tree. We went on a slightly longer-than-normal hike into a seemingly endless maze of granite boulders, arches, and spires. It was almost enough to get lost in. We wandered through an

Atlas Gold Bar Mill

Atlas Gold Bar Mill

We found this huge abandoned gold mill out in Nevada a few years back. It is similar in size and scope to the Atlanta Mill that we visited some time ago. This mill was abandoned in the 90s and has sat idle since. Vandals have ransacked some of the place,

Eureka Croesus Mine

Eureka Croesus Mine

Not far from the Diamond Tunnel is the Eureka Croesus Mine, also known as the California Tunnel. Set up in the 1870s (in the early days of the mining district), it was never a large operation but is interesting today because of the equipment left behind. A double drum hoist

Circle Sun Valley Pictographs

Circle Sun Valley Pictographs

While hiking in the backcountry of Joshua Tree over the winter, the good folks over at Peregriff and I came across this small pictograph site. There isn’t much to the site, just a simple rock shelter with a handful of red pictographs on the ceiling, but it is an