Mapping the Forgotten,​ the Abandoned and the Bizarre...

Welcome to Waypoints West, an ever growing archive of incredible places, forgotten by time, and omitted from the map. Through years of extensive research, pouring over books and historical archives, we have compiled an ever growing list of gold mines, ghost towns, plane crashes, shipwrecks, military sites and more. Our search area includes California, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, Nevada and Arizona. We invite you to join us as we track down and document these incredible places. In an effort to protect these delicate sites, Waypoints West is a paid, members only site. Subscribing is easy, and you can cancel at any time. New locations are posted at least twice a month. 

Preservation

Our members have a passion for history and its preservation. First and foremost we strive to ensure these sites remain intact and undisturbed. Sharing these locations publicly could be potentially disastrous. It is for this reason that Waypoints West operates as a private, paid membership site. Members who are found to have damaged, defaced or disturbed any of these locations in any way, will be removed from Waypoints West, and in severe cases, reported to to law enforcement.  

Lost Mines of the West

The western United States is home to thousands of abandoned mines, remnants of the countless gold rushes that gave birth to the "Wild West." The better known of these mines are often gated, destroyed by vandals or sealed off completely. However, many remain well preserved, if one only knows where to look...

MINES

Shipwrecks

Since Spanish galleons first sailed the coast of California, the rocky Pacific shoreline has seen the demise of many an unfortunate vessel. Storms and navigational errors have driven hundreds of ships aground. Other were intentionally scuttled. Only a few recognizable wrecks remain above the surface. See where on Waypoints West.

SHIPWRECKS

Ghost Towns

Throughout history, whole cities have vanished from the map, swallowed up by time. Boomtowns that sprung up nearly overnight, died even faster when the ore ran out. The ruins of these old towns still haunt the more remote corners of the West. Find out where!
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GHOST TOWNS

AIRCRAFT & CRASH SITES

Since before World War II, the rugged, mountainous terrain of the West has claimed countless aircraft. Substantial wreckage remains at only a handful of these sites. We have tracked down many of these wrecks and are constantly searching for more. From small, civilian pleasure planes to massive, four-engine bombers, become a member and visit them yourself.

AIRCRAFT

Abandoned Military Sites

Civil War forts, World War II bunkers, Cold War missile silos... these are just a few of the dozens of abandoned military sites that can be found scattered across the West. Sign up to find everything from tanks in the desert to massive artillery batteries along the coast. 

MILITARY SITES