Road trips are the ultimate freedom in lifestyle; when I go on a road trip, I have a rough idea of my geographical coverage, but I leave the trip mostly unscripted and unplanned letting the journey unfold as circumstances dictate. Some of my favorite road trips are to California’s Eastern Sierra Nevada mountains, winding my way south into the desert, especially Death Valley and the Mojave. The silence, the stillness and the remoteness of these places, the desert in particular, have always appealed to me. There are numerous types of […]

The post 7 Van Essentials: What to Know Before Your First Van Trip appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.

This is arguably the coolest, best and most intriguing oasis in the entire state of California. If one were to plant a hot spring in the most remote of locations, it would be here – in Saline Valley. Certainly one of California’s most remote desert valleys and one of the state’s longest dirt roads – these hot springs are at least 3 hours from any sort of paved road. One can enter Saline Valley via either the North (Inyo mountains) or South passes (Nelson Range). Arriving from the north, the […]

The post Saline Valley Warm Springs, Death Valley – August 2025 appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.

The post Darwin, California – October 2024 appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.

You started your blog in 2015. What or who inspired you to become a travel blogger? You’re right – my blog was launched in 2015, when I began my first solo international journey around Europe. The blog was meant to be a platform for me to catalogue my travels and share travel tips, itineraries and budget hacks. I wanted it to be a useful resource for others looking to visit the same destinations as I’d visited. Some travel bloggers that inspired me were IAmAileen, World Of Wanderlust and The Blonde […]

The post Isabel Leong Travel Blogger appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.

Most likely the most northern commercial date farm in the state of California – this remote ranch is well worth making the trek out to buy delicious dates (some 1,500 trees and 20 varieties). Located about 90 minutes from Las Vegas and 4 hours from Los Angeles. The property has a fascinating history – settled by a Chinese man who came here pre-1900 after working the Borax mines in Death Valley. He mysteriously disappeared (probably forcibly run off his property) around 1900. The property was later settled by State Senator […]

The post China Ranch Date Farm & Bakery – April 2021 appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.

This former mining, now ghost town was founded in 1905 with the discovery of gold in quartz by several miners. Its development was as quick as its bust. Its heyday only lasted for about 5 short years before the mines began to be tapped out and residents moved elsewhere. During its peak this was a formidable community of over 7,000 people with several railroad spurs going to town, some 50 saloons, nearly 20 hotels, numerous restaurants, the Rhyolite Stock Exchange and even a town newspaper, the Rhyolite Herald. Charles M. […]

The post Rhyolite, Nevada – September 2020 appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.

After visiting the original Ballarat in Australia about 90 minutes outside of Melbourne earlier this year, I got the urge to visit it’s tiny relative in the Mojave Desert, California. I drove across what looked like a salt plane – some rare recent rain had muddied the road and left my windshield covered in white droplets. I pulled into the old town, originally founded in 1897, it’s boom was a few short years before the nearby mine shut down in 1905. And the United States Post Office shuttered in 1917. […]

The post The Trip to the Desert appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.

Not to be mistaken for the original Ballarat in Australia (which is still a thriving city and a popular tourist destination), this Ballarat was named after the Australian town by an Australian miner. Originally founded in 1897, it provided services and accommodation for miners working several mines in the nearby vicinity. Its peak population was around 500 – like other remote gold mining towns, once the gold began to play out, the population dropped dramatically. The boom years were short – lasting from 1897 until about 1906 when the town […]

The post Ballarat, California – May 2020 appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.

If the mere thought of visiting the hottest place on earth in summer freaks you out, think again. There are some great reasons to visit Death Valley in July or August. For one thing, there is the dearth of crowds. Unlike in winter, there are virtually no people anywhere. The few visitors you do encounter are most likely intrepid Europeans who have come to indulge in the desert at its most extreme. Also, unlike winter, days are significantly longer, allowing you to see and experience more of this massive and […]

The post Why You Should Visit Death Valley in Summer appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.

When exploring the vast open spaces of the Western United States, millions of travelers visit iconic National Parks like the Grand Canyon or Yosemite. For the uninitiated, Death Valley National Park may appear to simply be a wasteland with record breaking temperatures famous for frying eggs on blacktop. But dig deeper and you have one of the country’s largest National Parks with extremely comfortable daytime winter and early spring temperatures rarely climbing above 85 degrees. There are magnificent striations of color in the barren landscape that change by the minute […]

The post An Oasis in Death Valley is Restored Beyond Its Original Grandeur appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.

Day 1 We began our hike under the 2pm sun from Dana Guesthouse, at about 4,300 feet (1300 meters) above sea level. The beating sun shone down on us intensified by the absence of shade and starkness of our rocky surroundings. Fortunately the hike descended down the side of the rugged mountains until we reached the canyon wash. The three of us were the only ones here – perhaps we were slightly nutty considering really very few people make this 6-day trek to Petra in the peak of the summer […]

The post The Rift Valley Mountain Trek to Petra, Jordan appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.

Upon cresting a Tian Shan Mountain pass at 3200 meters above Song Kul Lake we were treated with spectacular views of a valley far below and towering mountains in the distance. The scenery reminded me of parts of Southern California – especially around Bakersfield or around Death Valley. We hiked for several hours, ultimately reaching a small village in the valley. Looking back at the tall mountains it was impressive to see the great distance we had covered on foot in a relatively short amount of time. Small streams ran […]

The post End of Tian Shan Mountains Trek & Drunks in Minibus appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.

Similar to the International notice for the Mavericks Surf Competition in Central California, I sent out our annual 48 hour window of notice to friends, family and acquaintances from around the world on Thursday June 27, 2013 – indicating temperatures were forecast for record highs in Death Valley, California USA. This was a tough sell for a number of reasons – especially because it is always a last minute notice, it is quite early in the season for sending out this type of notice so people were not expecting it […]

The post My Personal Experience of Record Breaking Extreme Heat in Death Valley appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.

I was thankful for the break in the rain as I loaded my old Volvo station wagon and headed south towards the desert. My mind was heavy with questions about relationships, my job, my future. The car was packed to the roof with enough food for a small nation, and barely enough room for my two kids and a tent. I drove without a real agenda, with only a general idea of places we wanted to see. I had no idea where we would stay, only that we would travel […]

The post Ready to Fly appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.

Luxor lies along the banks of the great Nile (the longest river in the world). If it wasn’t for the Nile there would be no population here (a ribbon across the great Sahara Desert. The green of the agricultural fields extends both sides of the river maybe 8-10km where it abruptly ends at the sands of the Sahara Desert. The town is spread out along the east and west banks with most of the population centered on the east side. There is no bridge spanning the river in Luxor and […]

The post Entering Luxor appeared first on Dave's Travel Corner.