Posts by Ducono

It all depends where you're coming from. We did Sequoia - Bakersfield - Elmer’s Bottle Tree Ranch - Ridgecrest, then Ridgecrest again the next day. Trona Pinnacles while staying on the 178, the north route, then the awful Searles Valley and Death Valley, arriving via the Mesquite Flat Dunes... The Trona Pinnacles—that’s the first *Star Wars* location. Super weird, you half-expect Obi-Wan Kenobi to show up.

Hi! I’m heading to NS in September. I found this magazine at my favorite Carrefour.

Goldfield...













A small town in the middle of nowhere where artists have left their mark.

We’re skirting Death Valley and heading back to Rhyolite, a ghost mining town where some quirky statues stand.









And a house made of bottles.





Before heading to a very unique forest....

Las Vegas—we skip the hideous Strip to explore the Arts District







Pilgrimage to Fremont



and its local performers

Heading north to Joshua Tree City, where Miss Crochet set up her cabin over 20 years ago.





We pass Barstow to reach Liberty Sculptures Park, dedicated to the struggle of Asian peoples against communism.







Nothing about the Vietnam War, where Harry Bosch, the hero of Michael Connelly’s novels, fought on his favorite road.

Can’t arrive in South Las Vegas without a pilgrimage to these seven colorful columns in the middle of the desert—the Seven Magic Mountains.

We skirt the Salton Sea to the southwest to reach Anza-Borrego Park and its animal statues.

We’re heading south next to visit Salvation Mountain, a mountain built by a local "postman artist" using straw bales over 25 years.











After a few miles, we finally reach East Jesus... a place that blends a public dump with artistic creation.

The next day in L.A.....the lady insists heavily on going to Hollywood Blvd to see the stars....Personally, L.A. holds no interest for me except for the Laurel Canyon Country Store, where Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, Jim Morrison, Mama Cass, Joni Mitchell, and others used to grab a bite.





A quick tour of the city before heading full south. Destination: the Salton Sea....and its lost artists... First stop: Bombay Beach and its rotten fish smell..



- an abandoned seaside resort due to pollution, where a few eccentric locals still survive

Hi there, after 5 trips to the American West, where should we go in May 2025? My last stay in SF ended badly for me (diabetes flare-up, hospitalization after returning to France), but my wife insists on SF and places we haven’t seen yet... so I’ve decided to skip the big parks and head for some offbeat spots instead... So, SF, then south to the crossroads where James Dean died. No luck—roadworks everywhere, impossible to stop—but I’d noted we could check out the San Andreas Fault near Parkfield and its bar before heading to Bakersfield.

Hey! So, back to SF for the 3rd time in May. Coming from Sacramento, stop in Sausalito! This year’s discovery: the Mission murals and the Women’s Building—really stunning.



We slept right downtown surrounded by folks smoking crack pipes—kinda weird but not aggressive.

Discovered Yerba Buena Park and its giant, colorful statues.



Sacramento: 15 years ago, Old Sacramento was cool... went back 3 years ago, now it’s just tourist traps. South Tahoe—Emerald Bay. Gorgeous colors...



East Tahoe: lots of spots are privatized and expensive, even just to stay 10 minutes for photos...

Hi there, We’d like to spend a few days in Barcelona... the issue is accommodation, and we don’t know anything about it. My brother’s driving to a campsite up north, and his brother-in-law left at 5 AM when there are only two of us... I just got back from my 7th trip to the US, where I know all my spots, so I’m a bit lost here.

Logistically, the south is one huge shopping mall, covered with AC in the stores and hallways.

The north is a collection of stores opening to the outdoors; the stores are air-conditioned... but the outdoor areas aren’t.

We found what we were looking for in the north for Converse and Adidas

Hi there, we just got back... Our budget, excluding transport from home to SF and back: - SUV rental for 9 days...42 € per day. They refused debit and credit cards... luckily I had my Carrefour Pass Black card on me. - Gas wasn’t the most expensive, 10 € per 100 km - Hotels for a mid-range room: 100 € - Food: outrageously expensive, and getting worse... e.g., $58 at Denny’s for an egg dish (charged an extra $0.50 per egg!). A beer, a coffee... at Five Guys, we paid a bit less... As for shopping at Walmart, it was Laughing Cow with chili on a piece of bread, the same Caesar salad, and bad fruit... I have a friend who went with 3 others and did a lot of Airbnbs with kitchens—cooking dinner and prepping lunch salads. Seems way more efficient... - Alcatraz visit: expensive for what it is - National parks: we didn’t spend much—the most expensive, Cedar Breaks, was closed due to a snowstorm...

Converse gift: $30 a pair at the north LV outlet, 50% off if you buy 2 pairs! The north outlet seemed cheaper than the south one...

- Toll: $11 for the Golden Gate Bridge + $10 "service charge"... a tip! On the Pass card.

No... didn't look it up online, you don't see much there.

The San Andrea fault... it's a tiny crack! Not much to see anywhere... I've been to Iceland and the Thingvellir fault—nothing like it, 30m wide, 5m high. The statues? Didn’t really pay attention, to be honest.

Return via Castro, disappointed compared to my first visit 3 years ago