Nearby Points of interest for Ridgecrest flower fans
1
The Beverly and Jim Rogers Museum of Lone Pine Film History, on Highway 395 an hour and a half northwest of Ridgecrest, preserves the diverse movie lore of Lone Pine, Death Valley and the Eastern Sierra with 10,500 square feet of exhibits, an 85-seat theater, a gift shop and “Back Lot” – the Alabama Hills outside. These rugged rocks have figured prominently on screen from Gene Autry and Roy Rogers cowboy action thrillers to, more recently, William Shatner and William Downey, Jr. films, all in the shadow of Mount Whitney, the highest summit in the contiguous United States.
2
Randsburg, once a mining
boomtown and now a living ghost town off Highway 395 a halfhour south of Ridgecrest, has hardly changed in the intervening century. Highlights include art galleries, Randsburg Opera House, the White Horse Saloon, sarsaparilla and an old-fashioned soda fountain at the General Store.
3
The U.S. Naval Museum of Armament and Technology on
the Naval Air Weapons Station China Lake in Ridgecrest has a lunar soft landing vehicle (the Sidewinder), missiles and rockets developed and tested at China Lake. Admission is free, but you have to obtain a pass to enter the base, either from the Visitors Center or from the guard at the gate on weekends. Present a picture ID for each individual and proof of car insurance.
4
The stunning shapes and striations of Red Rock Canyon State Park (seen in “Jurassic Park” and Disney’s “Dinosaur”) 20 minutes north of Mojave on Highway 14 and the surreal, imposing spires of the Trona Pinnacles National Natural Landmark (“Planet of the Apes” and Will Ferrell’s “Land of the Lost”) a half-hour northeast of Ridgecrest on Highway 178 appear often in movies and TV commercials.
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