Presents a history of the Mojave Road, originally an Indian trail, from the first explorations in the 1820s to its years as a wagon road in the 1870s and 80s, focusing on that portion of the road from the California Desert to the Colorado River.

Mojave Desert Trails explores some of the most interesting historic and geological sites in the Mojave Desert. Ecologically and environmentally diverse, the Mojave Desert encompasses a dramatic and enchanting landscape of ancient volcanic cinder cones, Joshua tree forests, sand dunes and rugged mountains. Weather in the Mojave changes as dramatically as its terrain: triple digits from late spring to early fall with winter temps often dropping below freezing. A wet winter, with both rain and snow, will prepare the Mojave Desert for a spectacular display of spring flowers.

The cult-y pocket-size field guide to the strange and intriguing secrets of the Mojave—its myths and legends, outcasts and oddballs, flora, fauna, and UFOs—becomes the definitive, oracular book of the desert For the past five years, Desert Oracle has existed as a quasi-mythical, quarterly periodical available to the very determined only by subscription or at the odd desert-town gas station or the occasional hipster boutique, its canary-yellow-covered, forty-four-page issues handed from one curious desert zealot to the next, word spreading faster than the printers could keep up with. It became a radio show, a podcast, a live performance. Now, for the first time—and including both classic and new, never-before-seen revelations—Desert Oracle has been bound between two hard covers and is available to you. Straight out of Joshua Tree, California, Desert Oracle is “The Voice of the Desert”: a field guide to the strange tales, singing sand dunes, sagebrush trails, artists and aliens, authors and oddballs, ghost towns and modern legends, musicians and mystics, scorpions and saguaros, out there in the sand. Desert Oracle is your companion at a roadside diner, around a campfire, in your tent or cabin (or high-rise apartment or suburban living room) as the wind and the coyotes howl outside at night. From journal entries of long-deceased adventurers to stray railroad ad copy, and musings on everything from desert flora, rumored cryptid sightings, and other paranormal phenomena, Ken Layne's Desert Oracle collects the weird and the wonderful of the American Southwest into a single, essential volume.

Explore this magnificent desert national parkland and celebrate the 20th anniversary of Mojave National Preserve with this new edition of this comprehensive guide. Great auto tours and suggested hikes help you explore vast sand dunes, volcanic peaks, historical attractions and old Route 66.Experience the wonders of Hole-in-the-Wall, the Mojave River, Kelso Dunes and Mitchell Caverns. Tour the world's largest Joshua tree forest. Follow paths of history to Fort Piute, Kelso Depot, Nipton, Goffs and Zzyzx. Hike the enchanted canyons and intriguing summits of a dozen mountain ranges. Get your kicks on old Route 66.Updated and revised in close cooperation with the National Park Service, this book, the only comprehensive guide to Mojave National Preserve offers a great introduction to this wondrous desert land and plenty of suggestions for follow-up visits.* Engaging auto tours, great hikes, clear maps and directions* Get to know the land-its plants, wildlife, mountains and valleys* Visit mining towns, cinder cones and a visitor center/train depot* Discover the best hiking trails, picnic sites, campsites, and lodging "Mojave National Preserve: A Visitor's Guide is a key resource to begin your exploration and to plan each follow-up visit," notes park superintendent Dennis Schramm in his introduction to the new edition of the book. "Authors Cheri Rae and John McKinney know the Preserve and all of its wonders, and their guidebook will help you discover them for yourself."

The latest Sierra Club Adventure Travel Guide is the most comprehensive guide available to the scenic desert regions of California. Includes area maps, access and information on climate and gear. 10 black-and-white photographs. 11 line drawings. 10 maps.