Starbuck's Exploring

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No Directions

These trips have no directions or GPS waypoints. Some are misnamed on purpose. Typically, someone has asked me not to share the location or real name. Be sure to scroll down to load all the posts.

170 posts

Cave of the White Orbs

Cave of the White Orbs

Hidden in the rocks of Joshua Tree is a small pictograph rock shelter called the Cave of the White Orbs. I was asked not to give directions to this location. In 2021, I had the opportunity to meet up with a friend and head out there. We’ve both covered

"Royal Beefeater" Mine

"Royal Beefeater" Mine

A while back, I took a few days off to do some mine exploring with a friend. He said he had a couple of exciting mines to show me. He wasn’t wrong! One of the mines we stopped at was first worked in the 1920s and was completely unremarkable

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,

Hidden Handprint Cave

Hidden Handprint Cave

Deep in the Wonderland of Rocks is a unique rock shelter. Once used by the Serrano, it is a sacred place. They must have gathered here for rituals. The ceiling is marked with more than a dozen small red handprints, a shooting star, spoked circles, and other interesting symbols. It’

Boundary Island Petroglyphs

Boundary Island Petroglyphs

In a far-flung corner of Joshua Tree, there is an isolated boulder outcrop with a few dozen petroglyphs. The petroglyphs are generally abstract in design and could be of Serrano or Chemehuevi origin. There are quite a few circle petroglyphs here with lines descending from them. It would be

Sun Sword and Whale Rock Petroglyphs

Sun Sword and Whale Rock Petroglyphs

With a tip from a friend, I went out searching for a remote set of petroglyphs in the backcountry wilderness of Joshua Tree National Park in early 2020. I had a few clues in my search. I was looking for petroglyphs that were near an old campsite and hidden on

"Hunting Grounds" Mill

"Hunting Grounds" Mill

Lost in the woods of central Idaho, we found a Chilean-style roller mill still full of ore waiting to be processed. The mill is a C.C. Lane slow-speed roller mill and was installed at the mill site around 1930. It once had a steam engine to go