The best deserted travel destinations aren't just remote. The United States is full of rugged wilderness areas thanks to its robust national park system. But the most interesting places to visit offer more than just natural splendor. With the help of Travel + Leisure, the Los Angeles Times, the U.S. Geological Survey and the U.S. Census, we've compiled a list of top deserted vacation spots in the country. You'll find ghost towns, abandoned mines and tiny towns, all worth choosing as your next unusual vacation spot.
Bodie, California
- Bodie, California, is on Travel + Leisure's list of the coolest ghost towns in the U.S. Part of this distinction is due to superstition -- it is believed that anyone who takes any item from the site will be haunted by Bodie's ghosts until the item is returned. Part of the appeal is the sheer size of the abandoned town, which claimed upward of 10,000 residents in its 1870s heyday. And part of Bodie's "cool" factor is that the town remains precisely as residents left it, complete with stocked shelves and plates on the table. Located about 75 miles southeast of Lake Tahoe, Bodie is a National Historic Landmark.
Dogtown, Massachusetts
- Most ghost towns are found in the American West, and they're usually mining towns that went through a rapid boom and bust. Dogtown is different. Located on the Atlantic Coast north of Boston near Gloucester, Massachusetts, Dogtown is most famous for the boulders that dot the heavily wooded landscape, bearing slogans such as "Courage," "Prosperity Follows Service" and "Get a Job." The boulders were erected in the 1930s, long after the town was abandoned. In fact, Dogtown may be the country's oldest ghost town -- it was settled in the mid-1600s, and the last building was torn down in 1845. Dogtown is also a popular spot for geocaching.
Mentone, Texas
- Mentone is the county seat of Loving County, Texas, the least populated county in the continental United States. Fewer than 20 people live in Mentone. You'll find a post office, the Boot Track Cafe and a gas station in town -- and that's about it, besides the two-story courthouse and the local school, which doubles as a nondenominational church. Mentone is in West Texas near the New Mexico border and is worth a stop on the way to or from visiting Carlsbad Caverns.
Rhyolite, Nevada
- Rhyolite is another Western ghost town, named for the volcanic rock that makes up the mountains surrounding the place. Founded in 1905, the town once had a symphony, a stock exchange and a booming red-light district. But Rhyolite's glory was particularly short-lived; the town was abandoned by 1916. Its most famous feature is The Bottle House, which is just that -- a house built from liquor and beer bottles.
Lake City, Colorado
- Lake City is the county seat of Hinsdale County, which the U.S. Geological Survey has declared the most remote county in the lower 48 states. That means it has the most roadless terrain per capita than anywhere else in the continental U.S. -- not surprising when you realize Hinsdale County, in the southwestern corner of Colorado, is mostly federal wilderness. Use Lake City as a base for outdoor adventuring, from camping and rafting to fishing and horseback riding.
