Places paolascopetti Wants to Go

Nature has shaped this drainage tunnel into the digestive tract of a mighty beast.

Colorful sand dunes create a unique attraction in this part of Utah's red-rock country.

Walk through the sets of old western films at this small museum in Utah.

This abandoned open-pit copper mine features stunning turquoise mineral pools and excellent rock-hunting opportunities.

A Saint Nicholas-themed ghost town in the Mojave desert.

All of the 20 occupied houses in this mostly abandoned town feature some curious display of junk art.

A pair of large white marble lions guard this stretch of the Mojave Desert, and it is utterly mysterious how they got there.

This dormant volcanic crater has been converted from a roiling pit of magma to a pleasant hiking spot.

The ghost town that ended up on Ebay.

One of the ghostly stops along Route 66.

A desert ghost town—occupied for only 12 years—was once home to more than 500 silver mines.

Decommissioned experimental solar facilities that pioneered solar energy technology.

An abandoned 1920s-era stretch of cabins now overshadowed by the 66 Motel.

This golf ball–shaped former desert real estate office now houses a UFO museum.

An eclectic trailer park retreat in the middle of the California desert.

An old California photo stand has been turned into a shrine to the cozy art of crochet.

Explore 10 acres of environmental sculptures.

Located on 420 acres in the high desert, this spiritual center is dedicated to the "science of the future."

A ring of creosote bushes that are estimated to be 11,700 years old.

This strangely vacant Western amusement seems to be an empty tribute to residents of Lucerne Valley.

This outdoor observatory offers stellar views and a scale model of our solar system.

In this roadside "community for the small," abandoned toys gain new lives.

Artist Jack Pierson made this surreal sculpture in honor of Wonder Valley, a countercultural community on edge of civilization.

In California, colorful roadside signs remind us all that love transcends borders.