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, an eerily beautiful natural landmark where some 500 calcium carbonate spires (tufa) rise up to 140ft out of an ancient lake bed in otherworldly fashion. The site sits at the end of a 5-mile dirt road off Hwy 178, about 18 miles east of Ridgecrest. Check locally for current road conditions.
Lonely Planet's must-see attractions
US Naval Museum of Armament & Technology
15.34 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
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…
Nearby attractions
1. US Naval Museum of Armament & Technology
15.34 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
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…