How to learn about the places we go

[Ghostcat]

I’ve been giving a lot of thought to the places we overland/offroad to, especially in regards to the people and events that came before. Everything from the geologic process to wildlife to human civilization. My kids are at that curious age where they have al the questons but I often don't have great answers.

Hoping to gather/share some resources on

1. What kind of things folks research before their trips?(after permits, supplies, weather)
   • nature stuff (mountains, rivers, rock/minerals, constellations, etc.)
   • wildlife stuff (flora and fauna of the area)
   • historical stuff (ghost towns, mining camps, battle sites, old structures, etc.)
   • other
2. Resources you utlize
   • specific Youtube channels? Books? Websites? Guides?
3. Any cool examples you've sought out or come across out in the backcountry?
   • waterfalls, graves, battle sites, abandoned buildings, rare flora/fauna?

(#3) For example, my daughter and I came across this skeleton exploring the Mogollon Rim in central AZ a couple weeks ago. (Hard to tell in the photo but it was pretty big, at least 6' long spine.)

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[Ouchie]

Love this topic. I don’t have any specific examples or resources for you, but sometimes you can check out state park websites you plan to visit and they can give some cool information! I’ll be watching this one waiting for others to chime in.

 

[RavensEyeOffroad]

I’ve been giving a lot of thought to the places we overland/offroad to, especially in regards to the people and events that came before. Everything from the geologic process to wildlife to human civilization. My kids are at that curious age where they have al the questons but I often don't have great answers.

Hoping to gather/share some resources on

1. What kind of things folks research before their trips?(after permits, supplies, weather)
   • nature stuff (mountains, rivers, rock/minerals, constellations, etc.)
   • wildlife stuff (flora and fauna of the area)
   • historical stuff (ghost towns, mining camps, battle sites, old structures, etc.)
   • other
2. Resources you utlize
   • specific Youtube channels? Books? Websites? Guides?
3. Any cool examples you've sought out or come across out in the backcountry?
   • waterfalls, graves, battle sites, abandoned buildings, rare flora/fauna?

(#3) For example, my daughter and I came across this skeleton exploring the Mogollon Rim in central AZ a couple weeks ago. (Hard to tell in the photo but it was pretty big, at least 6' long spine.)

Anytime I make a video for my channel ive been trying to break up the boring parts with information about the area or a story from it etc. Most of it is found through google but sometimes you just find things out along the way. In Utah we found a cool camp spot near some dino tracks, the following more a man who I call the "Navajo bro" was at the tracks and showed us all the cool ones we probably would have missed otherwise. He was able to tell us what sort of tracks they were and stuff like that. Often times I try and find the obscure thing that maybe someone else giving a historical account may have missed. We did some hatfield and McCoy stuff, some Land Between the Lakes, I had no idea there was a plane crash at the grand canyon until I was doing a video about the grand canyon and figured it out. I find that stuff interesting as well and like I said I try and provide neat info to my viewers without droning on and on. I also talked about some ghost towns we visited, petroglyphs etc. Come by and check it out it sounds right up your alley!

 

[HooliganActual]

@Ghostcat

I’m in AZ too and spend a ton of time at the Rim; I’d put even money on that skeleton being an elk.

But to your question: we do a lot of exploring without advanced info. Get a State Land Trust permit and with BLM, NF, etc. access you can drive 80% of this state. There are times we come across a place where we want to spend more time in the future and then that’s when we do “the research”. Guide books are a great resource but I tend to only know that some exist only after I have found the area whether through random exploration or seeing it in a video, on here or whatever.

I also backpack a lot around the state and run across roads while out hiking in the middle of nowhere that I then come back and research.

While I can’t say I’ve run across a compiled resource of guides, I’ll share some that I have that you could look into:
- Guide to Arizona Backroads & 4-Wheel-Drive Trails ISBN:978-1-934838-19-8
- Arizona Trails Central Region ISBN:978-1-930193-01-7
- Driving the Great Western Trail in Arizona ISBN:978-1-519320-20-9
- Mojave Road Guide ISBN:978-0-914224-37-2 (Not AZ but historic and just across the CA border)
- Arizona Peace Trail Atlas ISBN:978-1-7326014-1-3

The first two listed books have lots of different trails in them but aren’t as detailed about any single trail. The other 3 are fully dedicated to the trail and have all the history, points of interest, coordinates, etc.

Good starting points…

 

[Jcsii]

to add to the above.

Youtube:

Shawn Willsey, ran across this guy when doing some research on Moab. Geology




Tristan Higbee, his videos usually find some interest stuff.

https://www.youtube.com/@SUVRVing


Old school

Local news papers:


R.E. Burrillo, even bought his book. I highly recommend it. Archeology, Channel is also ok..

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/02/24/...-burrillo-lyle-balenquah-and-jonathan-bailey/



https://www.amazon.com/Behind-Bears...694609158&sprefix=r.e.+burrillo,aps,74&sr=8-1

Ouray/Durango
Most local papers, I assume to drive traffic and revenue, usually have local history sections

https://www.ouraynews.com/2023/09/06/imogene-pass-run-turns-50/

https://www.durangoherald.com/artic...g-mine-spill-water-quality-remains-a-concern/


And when really board at work..

Google earth, enable photos and scan around. Usually people will take pictures and post interesting things...

You also see a lot of things that show the impact we have had in those areas.

 

[Riding with Gladys]

Love this thread. The west has a real abundance of opportunities. East coast is fun but much less open terrain to choose from.

 

[Ghostcat]

Anytime I make a video for my channel ive been trying to break up the boring parts with information about the area or a story from it etc. Most of it is found through google but sometimes you just find things out along the way. In Utah we found a cool camp spot near some dino tracks, the following more a man who I call the "Navajo bro" was at the tracks and showed us all the cool ones we probably would have missed otherwise. He was able to tell us what sort of tracks they were and stuff like that. Often times I try and find the obscure thing that maybe someone else giving a historical account may have missed. We did some hatfield and McCoy stuff, some Land Between the Lakes, I had no idea there was a plane crash at the grand canyon until I was doing a video about the grand canyon and figured it out. I find that stuff interesting as well and like I said I try and provide neat info to my viewers without droning on and on. I also talked about some ghost towns we visited, petroglyphs etc. Come by and check it out it sounds right up your alley!

That Hatfield and McCoy type stuff is fascinating. Also I think it's very easily missed as one might not know where a marker is or even a few abondoned buildings. Not to mention if some of these events are since the camera we might even have pictures of these guys.

In AZ we have the Pleasant Valley War (what a great name!) with guys like "Commodore Perry Owens" (speaking of names).

You can't tell me this guy doesn't come with some stories.

Also how might ne check out that channel?

 

[Ghostcat]

@Ghostcat

I’m in AZ too and spend a ton of time at the Rim; I’d put even money on that skeleton being an elk.

But to your question: we do a lot of exploring without advanced info. Get a State Land Trust permit and with BLM, NF, etc. access you can drive 80% of this state. There are times we come across a place where we want to spend more time in the future and then that’s when we do “the research”. Guide books are a great resource but I tend to only know that some exist only after I have found the area whether through random exploration or seeing it in a video, on here or whatever.

I also backpack a lot around the state and run across roads while out hiking in the middle of nowhere that I then come back and research.

While I can’t say I’ve run across a compiled resource of guides, I’ll share some that I have that you could look into:
- Guide to Arizona Backroads & 4-Wheel-Drive Trails ISBN:978-1-934838-19-8
- Arizona Trails Central Region ISBN:978-1-930193-01-7
- Driving the Great Western Trail in Arizona ISBN:978-1-519320-20-9
- Mojave Road Guide ISBN:978-0-914224-37-2 (Not AZ but historic and just across the CA border)
- Arizona Peace Trail Atlas ISBN:978-1-7326014-1-3

The first two listed books have lots of different trails in them but aren’t as detailed about any single trail. The other 3 are fully dedicated to the trail and have all the history, points of interest, coordinates, etc.

Good starting points…

Elk was our best guess too (8 yr old wants to be a zoologist someday), thanks.

I imagine that backpacking you really get out and away and find some interesting things (off offroad, so to speak). We'll pin something of note in Gaia and sometimes come back to research it but at least as often it takes a couple repeat trips before "oh yeah, what was that?"

Great books. I particularly like the dedicated trail approach. Bigger in scale but also consistent in "theme" or vibe that can really make a trip have some purpose.

 

[RavensEyeOffroad]

That Hatfield and McCoy type stuff is fascinating. Also I think it's very easily missed as one might not know where a marker is or even a few abondoned buildings. Not to mention if some of these events are since the camera we might even have pictures of these guys.

In AZ we have the Pleasant Valley War (what a great name!) with guys like "Commodore Perry Owens" (speaking of names).

You can't tell me this guy doesn't come with some stories.

Also how might ne check out that channel?

There are so many untold stories out there. Lots of history, its said many dont find much of it interesting, short form tik tok has ruined things.
My channel is https://www.youtube.com/ravenseyeoffroad
Im pretty low sub count and ive been really trying to up my production and quality to hopefully earn subscriptions. If you think im worth a sub please do Im still finding my balance on voice over work and just shutting up haha.

 

[Ghostcat]

I’ve been doing this since before the internet and back then it was mostly word of mouth and exploration. There’s a plethora of info out there whether it be books or websites, but I would also suggest joining a group ride on Meetup or FB. I listened and learned over the years from the elders, and I try to pass on what information I’ve learned from them.
Things that help-
Maps (the paper kind)
GPS apps (Gaia, Avenza, Google)
FunTreks books and app
TrailsOffroad.com
Those will take you a long way but to expand further you need to meet people and find out what they know. I literally spend hours a week on Google Map satellite or Gaia looking for trails and interesting places to go. I’ll never see it all but I’ll keep trying.

Here’s a screenshot of my navigation apps. iOverlander, what3words and FreeRoam I haven’t used much but the rest I use a lot

Great references. I put my 10 yr old on Google map duty for our next trip. Satellite view with spurs and possible water sources (AZ theme). I'll admit as a parent I tend to lean toward known trails and familiar areas but the only way to push that comfort zone is to try new things.

I two aspiring rockhounds and we've tried to incoproate that into our trips and Gaia has some layers where old mines are present. We're still novices but excited about figuring that stuff out.

 

[Mtpisgah]

My wife is a reference librarian, I let her do the research. She will come up with all kinds of things.

 

[Ghostcat]

to add to the above.

Youtube:

Shawn Willsey, ran across this guy when doing some research on Moab. Geology




Tristan Higbee, his videos usually find some interest stuff.

https://www.youtube.com/@SUVRVing


Old school

Local news papers:


R.E. Burrillo, even bought his book. I highly recommend it. Archeology, Channel is also ok..

https://moabsunnews.com/2022/02/24/...-burrillo-lyle-balenquah-and-jonathan-bailey/



https://www.amazon.com/Behind-Bears-Ears-Exploring-Histories/dp/1948814307/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2AZPMW64DVJO9&keywords=r.e.+burrillo&qid=1694609158&sprefix=r.e.+burrillo,aps,74&sr=8-1

Ouray/Durango
Most local papers, I assume to drive traffic and revenue, usually have local history sections

https://www.ouraynews.com/2023/09/06/imogene-pass-run-turns-50/

https://www.durangoherald.com/artic...g-mine-spill-water-quality-remains-a-concern/


And when really board at work..

Google earth, enable photos and scan around. Usually people will take pictures and post interesting things...

You also see a lot of things that show the impact we have had in those areas.

" Google earth, enable photos " great idea.

I would also follow that Willsey for a week in the backcountry just observing and learning about the rocks. Very cool. (And a case study in people (including myself) that would just walk right by it otherwise)

 

[Ghostcat]

There are so many untold stories out there. Lots of history, its said many dont find much of it interesting, short form tik tok has ruined things.
My channel is https://www.youtube.com/ravenseyeoffroad
Im pretty low sub count and ive been really trying to up my production and quality to hopefully earn subscriptions. If you think im worth a sub please do Im still finding my balance on voice over work and just shutting up haha.

Agreed on the stories and history. re: channel - Excellent and will do.

 

[RavensEyeOffroad]

" Google earth, enable photos " great idea.

I would also follow that Willsey for a week in the backcountry just observing and learning about the rocks. Very cool. (And a case study in people (including myself) that would just walk right by it otherwise)

Ive been screen recording projects in google earth and putting that footage in the video. Kind of gives folks an idea of the scale of things. I try and do it like this > Google earth > drone shot > phone shot

 

[Ghostcat]

Have you tried geocaching? I used to do it a lot when my kids were younger. It’s another way to get out and explore.
https://www.geocaching.com/play

My kids have been asking about this for months. They call it treasure hunting but I think they have buddies who do this around town. Excelent idea.

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