Field guides & capsules
Planned trips
Places told as field guides — the plan first. The trips already photographed are on Journeys. Each one also practices one thing worth being able to do. The places still to plan are on the spots list, and every trip already planned is on one page in plain words.
Pick a day below and the board says which ones actually work, and why the rest don’t. No booking chip on a card means nothing to book — just go.
Going
Register
Effort
Teaches
Been?
Sat/Sun · no car
Los Angeles · Broadway · Bunker Hill · Echo Park
Ten Minutes on Foot
An 1893 iron atrium, a dollar-fifty funicular, and a lake at the end
No Car1 to book
Thursday
Mid-Wilshire · Culver City · Echo Park
One Plane at a Time
A 90V afternoon: a concrete span, Moss’s broken boxes, and downtown at gold
Easy44 mi
Saturday
Marin Headlands · San Francisco
The Headland Is Hollow
Gun casemates buried in a hillside, and a cupola of 1,600 coffers across the bridge
Real Drive48 mi
Any morning
Los Angeles · West Hills · El Escorpión Park
The Cave Mouth
A sandstone cave mouth forty minutes out, the chamber looking out at a paper sky, home by half past nine
Easy49 mi
Any Sunday
Los Angeles · Downtown · Boyle Heights · Vernon · Maywood
No One In It
Opie's freeways and Mudford's industrial LA, on the day nobody's there
Easy50 mi
Any day
Los Angeles · Sepulveda Basin · the Hills · Melrose
Steel and a Pink Wall
A spillway at dawn, a wall before the queue, and four ways of making a hard edge
Easy50 mi
Not Mondays
Los Angeles · Lake Hollywood · Griffith Park · Los Feliz
The Hill at Both Ends
Sunrise to 22:00 on one hill — the sign at dawn, the Observatory after dark. Not Mondays
Easy50 mi
Thu–Sun
Los Angeles · Pasadena · the Arroyo Seco
The Arroyo
A bridge from underneath, a noon tour, and two houses four minutes apart
Easy54 mi1 to book
Thu/Fri/Sat/Mon
Los Angeles · Palisades · Malibu · Point Dume
Coast Road
Two booked doors before noon, then nothing to catch until sunset
Real Drive55 mi2 to book
Thu–Sat
Los Angeles · LAX · Watts · City Terrace
The Basin Line
Three unlike futures on one line — all shot the same way
Easy55 mi
Any morning
Los Angeles · Chatsworth · Santa Susana Pass
Chatsworth Formation
Tilted sandstone forty minutes out, the rim at sunrise, home by nine
Easy56 mi
Any morning
Los Angeles · Santa Clarita · Towsley Canyon
The Narrows
Vertical conglomerate up a canyon floor, the slot in shade and the sky gone white, home by half past ten
Easy56 mi
Any clear morning
Los Angeles · Santa Susana Pass · Rocky Peak
Both Sides of the Pass
Boulders at sunrise on the Simi side, the stagecoach grade after eight on the Chatsworth side if you want it
Easy61 mi
Friday
Alameda · Richmond · Berkeley · Oakland
Built to Let the Light In
Four buildings letting daylight in, and one built to keep it out
Real Drive62 mi
Saturdays only
Los Angeles · Hollywood Hills · West Hollywood · Los Feliz · Silver Lake
Somebody Lived Here
Five houses people lived in, shaped entirely by somebody else's opening hours
Easy65 mi3 to book
Any morning
Los Angeles · Malibu · Circle X Ranch
The Rock That Balances
A six-mile loop above Malibu, the rim at sunrise, a rock you walk through, the summit by mid-morning
Big Day72 mi
Any day
Los Angeles · Palos Verdes · Long Beach
Harbor and Headland
A lighthouse behind a fence, four disguised oil islands, and a hill that still pumps
Real Drive80 mi
Sat · gate 06:00
Orange County · Garden Grove · Irvine
The New Industrial Parks
Sunrise on Johnson's glass, then Baltz's walls, empty because it's Saturday
Big Day110 mi
Not Mondays
Los Angeles · Sylmar · San Francisquito · Agua Dulce
There It Is, Take It
Where the water arrives, what broke, and the rock older than both
Big Day120 mi
Any day
Los Angeles · Northridge · Mount Wilson · Azusa
Above the Basin
Curved glass, the observatory domes, and a dam — each with more sky than the last
Real Drive150 mi
Any morning
Los Angeles · Los Padres · Piedra Blanca
White Stone
White sandstone domes above Ojai, raked at dawn, front-lit by nine, home a little after two
Big Day192 mi
Not Mondays
Los Angeles · Cajon Pass · Devil’s Punchbowl
One Fault East
Two tilted-sandstone formations on the San Andreas, sunrise and the eight-o’clock gate
Real Drive204 mi
Any day
San Jose · Davenport · Moss Landing
From the Road Only
Three things you cannot go into, shot square-on from the public road
Real Drive229 mi
Cool clear days
Antelope Valley · Pearblossom · Mojave
The Long Straight
Hockney's junction — ninety miles out, and the road itself is the subject
Big Day240 mi
Any morning
Los Angeles · Santa Barbara County · Gaviota
The Wind Caves
Honeycomb sandstone above the Gaviota Pass, the first sun across the cells, a charge in Buellton
Big Day267 mi
Watch and go
Los Angeles · Lompoc · Vandenberg
Lit Before the Sun
A twilight Vandenberg launch, the plume lit over a dark ridge, only when the schedule earns it
Big Day302 mi
Any clear afternoon
Los Angeles · Anza-Borrego · Galleta Meadows
The Serpent Under the Road
A steel serpent that dives under the road: one arch and its shadow on white sand with the 90V, and a mile of Breceda animals in winter light
Big Day396 mi
Nov 8–15, 2026
Japan · Okayama · Naoshima · Teshima · Tokyo
A Wall Cut by Its Own Shadow
Ando's walls at the low sun, and a white shell in the rice terraces — two islands by ferry
Long Trip6 to book
10 nights · Nov
Italy · France · Rome · Civita · Castelfranco · Como · La Tourette · Ronchamp
The Rationalist Rail
Arches at EUR, Civita in the fog, the Brion, Terragni, a cell at La Tourette and Ronchamp last — ten nights by train
Long Trip5 to book
Dec 2025
Japan · Tokyo · Sapporo · Furano
Dialed In
Coffee dialed one cup at a time, and a first flow on skis
Long Trip
Any 4 days · mid–late Jan
Calgary · Abraham Lake · Cline River · Alberta
Abraham Lake: Frozen Breath
Methane breath frozen in the ice, shot straight down and high-key — three nights on the shore, a guide, a helicopter
Weekend7 to book
Jan 20–30, 2027
Morocco · Marrakech
Marrakech — Pisé and Lattice
Pisé walls at dawn, one lattice, one mosque over the water
Long Trip9 to book
4 nights · first week of June
Portugal · Porto · Leça da Palmeira
One Wall Against the Sea
Siza’s tidal pools at nine, before the first swimmer — one wall between the still pool and the Atlantic
Weekend5 to book
Early Dec 2026 · 3 nights
Los Angeles · Beijing · Harbin · Seoul
One White Curve
One white building in the snow, a scout and two full days — in through Beijing on the 240-hour rule, out through Seoul
Weekend4 to book
Oct 18–30, 2026
Shanghai · Hangzhou · Seoul
Shanghai & Seoul
The coffee city, Hangzhou’s tea hills, and Seoul’s roasters
Weekend8 to book
Feb 7 – 15, 2027
Japan · Hokkaido · Sapporo · Biei · Tomamu
Hokkaido White
Ando’s Buddha in a white mound, Noguchi’s park in snow, one tree on a Biei field, Ando’s chapel at Tomamu — seven nights
Long Trip5 to book
Late Dec – mid Jan · 7 nights
India · Delhi · Agra · Abhaneri · Jaipur
The Dome Dissolves at Dawn
The Taj going white in the fog, and two stepwells as pattern
Long Trip6 to book
15 nights · September
Namibia · Sossusvlei · Lüderitz · Skeleton Coast · Walvis Bay
Namibia by Air: Dunes into the Sea
The Namib's dunes falling into the Atlantic, seen from the air twice — fifteen nights, eight flights, no car
Long Trip9 to book
4 nights · Nov 2026
Italy · Sicily · Gibellina · the Cretto
Gibellina: The Cretto in the Capital Year
Burri's white concrete over a lost town, at three dawns, in its capital year
Weekend5 to book
7 nights · first half of March
Norway · Oslo · Svalbard · Longyearbyen
Svalbard: The Seed Vault in Blue Hour
One white blade of steel on white snow — the Seed Vault flat-on, two private evenings
Long Trip7 to book
Feb 20 – Mar 1, 2027
Italy · Venice
Venice — Stone, Water, Scarpa
Stone over water at first light, and Scarpa twice in a day
Long Trip14 to book
13 nights · July
Brazil · São Paulo · Brasília · Inhotim · Lençóis Maranhenses
White Concrete, White Sand
Niemeyer's white concrete, then the white dunes of Maranhão — thirteen nights, five flights
Long Trip9 to book
Oct–Apr · 2 nights
Trona · Amboy
Nothing Behind It for Miles
Spires and a neon sign — mostly empty on purpose
Weekend165 mi
Any 2 days · Oct–Apr
Joshua Tree · Landers · Niland · Bombay Beach
Not a Ruin
Purifoy's salvage, a painted hill, and a town that is not abandoned
Weekend175 mi
Wed–Fri · booked
San Diego · La Jolla · Torrey Pines
Two Ranks and a Crown
Kahn's empty court, one booked hour of it, and Pereira's crown
Weekend242 mi1 to book
Any 2 days · Oct–Apr
Las Vegas · Boulder City · Hoover Dam
Every Building on the Strip
The Strip as typology, and a dam at dawn from the free side
Weekend280 mi
Any Wed–Sun · Sep–Jun
Palm Springs · Rancho Mirage
Four in the Desert
Four modernist buildings in ten miles, shot as one set
Weekend290 mi1 to book
Nov–Mar
California City · Saltdale · Randsburg
Nothing Was Built Here
A street grid with no houses, and two things that quit
Big Day340 mi
Fri–Sat · Oct–Apr
Los Angeles · Highway 14 · Trona · Red Rock Canyon · Jawbone
A Night on the Fourteen
Spires at sunset, the Red Cliffs at dawn, one night under the cliffs
Weekend358 mi
Sat–Sun · Nov–Feb
Owens Valley · Owens Lake · Lone Pine · Manzanar
The Lake LA Drank
The dust-control grid under a snowed Sierra, Manzanar at first sun
Weekend464 mi1 to book
Any 3 days, a Tue, Thu or Sat in the middle · Dec–Feb
San Simeon · Hearst Castle · Piedras Blancas
The Pool She Lined in Gold
Hearst Castle's Roman Pool square-on, a lighthouse with no top, the seals at last light — two nights in Morro Bay
Weekend622 mi4 to book
Any 3 days · Oct–Mar
Los Angeles · Mojave · Barstow · Afton · Cima Dome
Two Nights in the Mojave
A canyon at dusk, a folded basin at dawn, a burned dome at last light — two nights in Barstow
Weekend626 mi2 to book
Weekend · check Hwy 1
Santa Barbara · Big Sur · Carmel
Forty Years on One Headland
Weston's headland, and the long road north to reach it
Weekend656 mi
Wed–Fri · Dec–Jan · on a sunset low tide
Los Angeles · Big Sur · Pfeiffer Beach · 17-Mile Drive · Asilomar
The Keyhole on the Low Tide
The keyhole arch on a sunset low tide, the Lone Cypress at first light, Julia Morgan in the dunes — two nights up the coast
Weekend703 mi2 to book
Sun 22 – Tue 24 Nov 2026 · 2 nights
Los Angeles · Imperial County · the Algodones Dunes
One Ridge Against the Sky
Two First Forty dawns on the dunes: one ridge, white sky, out before Thanksgiving
Weekend736 mi1 to book
Fri–Mon · three nights
Los Angeles · Las Vegas · Seven Magic Mountains · Valley of Fire · Red Rock
Front Light on the Paint
One painted stack against a paper sky, Valley of Fire at both ends of the day, Calico at sunrise — three nights in Las Vegas
Long Trip859 mi1 to book
Nov 2 – 5, 2026 · 3 nights
Los Angeles · Death Valley · Hoover Dam · Seven Magic Mountains
The Far Wall Lights First
Two valley dawns, the dam at first light, and the stones on the way home
Long Trip873 mi3 to book
Thursday to Sunday · Nov–Feb
Northern California · Marin · San Rafael · Point Reyes
Three Hills and a Tunnel
Wright's Civic Center on the Friday tour, the lighthouse stairs before four, the cypress tunnel empty at dawn
Long Trip955 mi3 to book
Any 5 days · Nov–Feb
Arizona · Utah · Page · Lake Powell · Lone Rock
Everything White Was Underwater
Lake Powell’s white ring at Lone Rock, the dam and its arch, high key in winter — four nights from Page
Long Trip1168 mi3 to book
Shot · Jul 2026
Los Angeles · Pico · Mid-City · Beverly Hills
Twenty-Six Again
Three elevations, and the flat light that did not turn up
Easy21 mi
Shot · Jul 2026
Los Angeles · San Pedro · Long Beach
Salt and Concrete
A dawn run through the harbor, the ridge left for another day
Real Drive70 mi
Shot · Sep 2026
England · London · Manchester
Blue Moon Rising — England
Ten days car-free — the derby weekend, and a camera the whole way
Long Trip
Shot · Sep 2026
Colorado · Telluride
Telluride — Autumn Classic
Thin air, chrome and canyon, and the quiet half
Weekend5 to book
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