About 20 miles south of Ridgecrest, off US Hwy 395, Randsburg is a 'living ghost town,' an abandoned and now (somewhat) reinhabited gold-mining town circa 1895. You can visit a tiny historical museum, antiques shops, saloon, jailhouse and general store with soda fountain. Most places close on weekdays.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
US Naval Museum of Armament & Technology
19.72 MILES
Touch a Tomahawk missile or mug with a 'Fat Man' (atomic bomb, that is) at this museum on a classified US Navy base. The weapons collection will likely…
23.54 MILES
What do the movies Battlestar Galactica, Star Trek V: the Final Frontier and Planet of the Apes have in common? They were all filmed at Trona Pinnacles,…
24.24 MILES
On a hilltop on the grounds of the Rio Tinto Boron Mine, California's largest open pit mine, this museum reeks 'corporate promo' but actually has some…
25.53 MILES
This modest, volunteer-run museum recounts milestones in experimental flight testing in the surrounding desert, including the first breaking of the sound…
25.57 MILES
Despite the name, this low-budget museum is not so much about the famous teams of mules that transported borax from Death Valley to Mojave in the 1880s…
Nearby The Deserts attractions
1. US Naval Museum of Armament & Technology
19.72 MILES
Touch a Tomahawk missile or mug with a 'Fat Man' (atomic bomb, that is) at this museum on a classified US Navy base. The weapons collection will likely…
23.54 MILES
What do the movies Battlestar Galactica, Star Trek V: the Final Frontier and Planet of the Apes have in common? They were all filmed at Trona Pinnacles,…
24.24 MILES
On a hilltop on the grounds of the Rio Tinto Boron Mine, California's largest open pit mine, this museum reeks 'corporate promo' but actually has some…
25.53 MILES
This modest, volunteer-run museum recounts milestones in experimental flight testing in the surrounding desert, including the first breaking of the sound…
25.57 MILES
Despite the name, this low-budget museum is not so much about the famous teams of mules that transported borax from Death Valley to Mojave in the 1880s…