Desert Discovery Center


This kid-oriented, educational center in an adobe building seeks to unravel the natural, cultural and historic mysteries of the Mojave desert through exhibits and activities. Star of the show is the Old Woman Meteorite, discovered in 1975. It's the second largest ever found in the USA, weighing a hefty 6070lb.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby attractions

1. Main Street Murals

0.61 MILES

Barstow's Main St is well known for its history-themed murals that spruce up often empty and boarded-up buildings. Pick up a map at the Chamber of…

2. Western America Railroad Museum

1.02 MILES

Rail buffs make a beeline to the Casa del Desierto to marvel at a century’s worth of railroad artifacts, including old timetables, uniforms, china and the…

3. Route 66 ‘Mother Road’ Museum

1.03 MILES

Inside the beautifully restored Casa del Desierto, a 1911 Harvey House (architecturally significant railway inns named for their originator Fred Harvey),…

4. Stone Hotel

8.04 MILES

Pay your respects to early desert adventurers at the old Stone Hotel. Built in 1875 of adobe and stone, it once housed miners, desert explorers and…

5. Calico Ghost Town

9.89 MILES

This endearingly hokey Old West attraction consists of a cluster of pioneer-era buildings amid the ruins of a 1881 silver-mining town, reconstructed…

6. Bagdad Cafe

22.07 MILES

This grizzled cafe was the main filming location of Percy Adlon's eponymous 1987 classic cult flick starring CCH Pounder and Jack Palance. The interior is…

7. Elmer's Bottle Tree Ranch

22.72 MILES

Colorful as a box of crayons, this roadside folk-art collection is a forest of over 200 ‘bottle trees’ made from recycled soda and beer containers,…

8. California Route 66 Museum

28.84 MILES

Inside the old Red Rooster Cafe opposite the railroad tracks, this nostalgic collection features a kitchen sink's worth of yesteryear's treasures,…