Some days, I miss Nevada and the West more than others. I particularly miss the little-known spots, the rarely visited locations, and the wide-open places.

This picture is from a spot in Central Nevada, east of Tonopah. The federal government wanted to set off a nuclear bomb in this place many years ago, but they abandoned those plans after a nearby nuclear test caused more problems than the engineers expected.

However, before abandoning plans, the federal government prepared the site for a nuclear test, and then left white pillars as warning signs. Why the warnings? That has never been clear to me. Supposedly, there was some sort of contamination in the preparation of the site. (The signs say there is “petroleum impacted soil.”) Perhaps the federal government doesn’t want people poking around (figuratively and literally).

There are many mysteries in Nevada and the West, and plenty of wide-open spaces to ponder those mysteries. But at the point I took the photo, it was better to leave the mystery for another day and just watch the moon rise over the mountains.