New Idria Ghost Town

This place is accessible by car if you don't mind driving over very bumpy roads for about an hour. I took an AWD with about 6.22 inch of ground clearance and was able to climb up the first few steep unpaved inclines. Not sure how much the AWD helped but I kept in the first care and worked the dips and holes carefully. With any 2WD car, just park near the end of the unpaved road and hike a [very] short distance up. The mine itself is fences up but the surrounding structures are easily accessible. While I stopped to take photos, there were groups of people enjoying their dirt-bikes and all-terrain vehicles. I am planning to return to explore the area more fully.

If you’re looking for a little riskier side trip, the New Idria Ghost Town should be on your itinerary… Once a town built around a quicksilver mine, today the town is abandoned and the water and ground is considered toxic. A trip to the town will get you some pretty neat photos, but the BLM has been known to close the road, so we can’t always guarantee you’ll make it to the town.