Total Escape Explores "Ghost Towns to Graveyards" This Halloween Total Escape Adventures Press Release, 2003 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE COMPANY: Total Escape Adventures CONTACT: Dana Williams PHONE: 619-922-3380 EMAIL: danamite@totalescape.com WEB: www.totalescape.com October 7, 2003, San Diego, California—This Halloween, while community fright fests and haunted amusement parks offer cheap thrills, Total Escape Adventures will seek out the real ghost towns and spooky graveyards of California's past. On the "Ghost Towns to Graveyards" excursion, the first of such themed trips by the seven-year-old Web-based company, participants will spend four days and three nights exploring the lost cities and witnessing the lost souls of California's Gold Rush era. With an itinerary that ranges from the southern Sierra Nevada mountains to the Mojave Desert, the tour group will discover such secret ghost towns as Skidoo, Ballarat and Cerro Gordo, and the cemeteries in which their inhabitants now reside for all eternity. "When you're in a ghost town, it's exciting to know that thousands of people from all over the country came to this spot, leaving behind their homes and families in search of California's gold," says trip leader Morris Neer, who will offer commentary and historical information throughout the tour. "People on this trip will learn to enjoy the eerie beauty of looking into the past and get a better understanding of that magical time known as the gold rush days." Other sights and landmarks along the way may include Alabama Hills, Trona Pinnacles, Barker Ranch (a.k.a. "the Manson Family Hideout"), and the Wildrose Charcoal Kilns in Death Valley. Total Escape's "Ghost Towns to Graveyards" tour will set out from Kern County on Thursday, October 23, and wind down in the "living ghost town" of Randsburg on Sunday, October 26. The trip includes three nights of hotel accommodations in three unique lodges along the way. Cost per person is $190 (couple, based on double occupancy), $225 (share room) or $315 (single). Participants must provide their own transportation, but carpooling arrangements may be coordinated. For more information, or to book a reservation, log on to www.totalescape.com/trips. Total Escape was founded by travel professional and computer artist Dana Williams in 1996 as an all-in-one travel site where visitors can research destinations, book reservations and purchase equipment-all in one place. The Web site, totalescape.com, hosts over 2,300 pages of content, making it one of the most valuable resources for California travel and recreation information on the Internet seven years running. The company also specializes in back road camping excursions to "off the beaten path" locations throughout California, Utah and Baja. Upcoming tours for the rest of 2003 include visits to the hot springs of Guadalupe Canyon in Baja; a petroglyphs expedition outside of Bishop, California, on Thanksgiving weekend; and a New Year's celebration full of adventure at Baja's remote destination, Mike's Sky Ranch.   ###   [Home]   Recent Publications: Why We're Fighting: "The War Over Iraq: Saddam's Tyranny and America's Mission" Supreme Court Upholds Copyright Term Extension in Eldred v. Ashcroft More Writing Samples Resume & Experience: Resume [PDF] List of Publications Portfolio Other Sites: The Daily Strick Travels to Distant [Strick]Lands StrickNet Internet Consulting Contact