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Mojave Preserve

Mojave National Preserve and surrounding region of California

30 posts

Barnwell Petroglyphs

Barnwell Petroglyphs

In March of 2023, fellow explorers JP, Darthjenni, and W9JIM invited me on a trip to the Mojave National Preserve. The Mojave Preserve (and the East Mojave in general) is such a great place to off-road, camp, and explore. The park is crisscrossed by graded and 4WD dirt roads that

Tramway Mine

Tramway Mine

This gold mine lives up to its name. The inclined wooden tramway is the most interesting thing here, making this old mine worth visiting. Don't be confused; it is not an aerial tramway but a railed inclined tram used to lower ore down from the mine to the

Sagamore Mine Camp Ruin

Sagamore Mine Camp Ruin

The 2023 York Fire burned the camp. See below. The Sagamore Mine, also known as the New York Mine, was a silver, lead, copper, zinc, and gold mine. It was first discovered in the 1870s by Mormons who found rich silver veins in the foothills of the New York Mountains.

Gold Butte Mine (Mojave)

Gold Butte Mine (Mojave)

Recently, I had a request to post my photos of this mine and camp out near Goffs in the Mojave Desert. I had forgotten all about it. I originally went out and visited the site in 2014. I found a few empty cabins and old cars in camp - not

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

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

Stuck on Soda Lake

Stuck on Soda Lake

Oh, so one day, way back in the beginning of 1991, when I was just a young pup, my friend Jim and I were out off-roading in the sand dunes of the Devil’s Playground area out near Baker, California. We had been roaming around the desert all weekend, but