Looking over the ridgeline and seeing the back side of the Dos Cabezas and the range I’d just explored, I decided to stop and reflect on closing the chapter in the Chiricahua mountains, a truly special place.
Desert
Ironwoods, Ghost Towns, & Picacho Peak – [Butterfield Trail, Day 7]
On any good adventure, when you come across ruins, you’ve got to explore them; so I decided to start my day with an unexpected detour.
Gila Valley Mesas, Petroglyphs, & Sonoran Mountains – [Butterfield Trail, Day 6]
The sixth day on the Butterfield Overland Stagecoach Route began as usual, with a sunrise and a fresh cup of coffee. I’d spent the evening at the site of the Oatman Massacre, and was ready to move further down the trail. The trail originally took this route off of the mesa, but was far too […]
Overcoming Obstacles; Winch Recovery, Shoveling, & Oatman Massacre [Butterfield Trail, Day 5]
Today would be a day full of obstacles to overcome. This was my first day in extremely remote areas of the Gila River Valley, often with no cell service and little to no traffic.
The Center of the World to The Middle of Nowhere – [Butterfield Trail, Day 4]
After leaving the Border and surveying Los Algodones, I headed for my last stop in California… The Center of the World. It runs on an honor code, and is a unique tribute to the history of mankind. Jacques-André Istel and his wife, Felicity (who the town is named after) created this site originally as the […]
On The Border Near Algodones; The Wall, Plank Road, & Imperial – [Butterfield Trail, Days 3 & 4]
From Anza-Borrego, the Butterfield Trail dips briefly into Mexico, I couldn’t cross the border this trip, so I continued to El Centro, CA where I set up shop in the State Street Coffee house and confirmed the plans for my push towards Arizona. The 8 parallels the Butterfield Route in Mexico, without any of the […]
Goat Canyon Trestle, Canyon Sin Nombre, & Vallecito Wash – [Butterfield Trail, Day 2, cont.]
From the Vallecito Springs Station, I broke off from the Butterfield Trail, and headed towards Dos Cabezas in order to link up with a defunct old railway, leading to a special place I’d always wanted to check out in Southern California, the Goat Canyon Trestle. Built in 1932, The Goat Canyon Trestle is the world’s […]
The Final Days in Joshua Tree; Butterfield Stage Route Expedition, West to East (D-3)
After some needed traveling to Dallas and a nice California beachtown called Carpinteria, I came back to my home in Joshua Tree to put nearly all of my household goods on a moving truck and bid it farewell for the next few months. As my belongings clattered their way towards storage limbo, hammered into nondescript […]
To Plan an Expedition
“What better place than here, what better time than now?” -Zack de la Rocha Overview: Exploration; The desire to discover uncharted territories, conquer challenging obstacles, experience new and fascinating cultures, and experience breathtaking views of Planet Earth innately resides in us as humans as the want for growth and knowledge. For our team, the long-term sights […]
Other worlds within our own; Trona Pinnacles, CA.
The weekend of April Fools found us time for a day-drive to the mysterious Trona Pinnacles in Ridgecrest/Trona, California. Located a few miles south of the Panamint Valley and the entrance to Death Valley, the Trona Pinnacles are a quick drive from the Greater Los Angeles area, and truly a spectacle to behold. We approached the […]
In the anticline.
“…The wonderful grandeur, the sublimity, the great loneliness and beauty of the canyon. Leave it as it is. You cannot improve on it. The ages have been at work on it, and man can only mar it.” – Theodore Roosevelt This past weekend we took a trip to Anza-Borrego Desert State Park in Southern California, […]
If you don’t stop and look around once in awhile, you could miss [the wildflowers].
Driving through the Joshua Tree National Park this weekend, I was exposed to a rare glimpse of life and color. We’re currently experiencing the ‘Superbloom’, an event that occurs when extraordinary amounts of rain fall on the desert, causing flowers to bloom at unprecedented levels. This ‘Superbloom’ is a direct result of ‘El Niño’ and […]