About a year ago, we rented a trailer from Cruise America and took a trip up the California coastline as far as Monterey and came back down US 101 through Paso Robles and San Luis Obispo. We visited several missions and stayed at RV parks along the way.

When were camping at Paso Robles, I took a pair of images for a possible 3D picture of the rented trailer. I found those pictures in an archive and decided to combine them into a 3D image this evening. Click on the image to enlarge - you will need your pair of 3D glasses to see the stereo effect.

Of course, if you don’t have your 3D glasses, you can view the 2D image here.

When we were in Wickenburg, AZ a couple of weeks ago, we visited the old western downtown area. The storefronts and the general appearance of the town are in the 1880s western architectural style.

The bronze sculpture in front of the Desert Caballeros Western Museum is called “Thanks for the Rain” and depicts an old cowpoke kneeling in front of his horse.

I captured a pair of images which I later merged into the 3D image. Click on the thumbnail to see the full-sized 3D image. If you don’t have your free pair of 3D glasses, you can see the 2D version here.

Not an April Fool’s Day joke - Google® Maps, as of April 1, 2010, offers street view in red/cyan 3D anaglyph images. The feature is user selectable with an alternate action icon wearing a pair of 3D glasses. I discovered the feature while I was looking for a vacation destination. The image below (click image to view a larger version) is a street shot near the Torrance Courthouse.

Tonight, we’re staying in the delightfully rustic and comfortable Sunnyvale Garden Suites near Joshua Tree National Park, in Twentynine Palms, in the Mojave Desert, California. We’re staying here for a couple of nights while we’re visiting the park.

The place is a collection of suites situated on a patch of property that is landscaped and decorated like one might find in a desert ghost town. There are many types of desert vegetation and cactus here. I took this 3D image while we were returning from an afternoon walkabout.

As usual, if you do not have your free pair of 3D glasses, you can see the 2D image here.

Tuzigoot is the Apache word meaning “crooked river.” This was the name arbitrarily given to the Sinagua Native American ruins above a big bend in the Verde River near Cottonwood, AZ. This was an interesting stop that we made during our brief but fun vacation in July of 2006. They have a nice museum depicting Sinagua lifestyles and artifacts. You can hike up to the ruins for a self-guided tour.

Click on the image for the full-sized 3D version.

From the National Parks page on Tuzigoot National Monument:

Crowning a desert hilltop is an ancient pueblo. From a roof top a child scans the desert landscape for the arrival of traders, who are due any day now. What riches will they bring? What stories will they tell? Will all of them return? From the top of the Tuzigoot Pueblo it is easy to imagine such an important moment. Tuzigoot is an ancient village or pueblo built by a culture known as the Sinagua. The pueblo consisted of 110 rooms including second and third story structures. The first buildings were built around A.D. 1000. The Sinagua were agriculturalists with trade connections that spanned hundreds of miles. The people left the area around 1400. The site is currently comprised of 42 acres.

If you don’t yet have your 3D glasses, you can view the 2D version here.

Yesterday, on our way back home from Arizona, we got out to stretch and walk the dog at the General George S. Patton Museum, located along Interstate 10 in the California Desert.

While we were walking around in front of the museum, I snapped an image pair of this bronze statue of the General to merge into the 3D anaglyph image seen here.

According to Wikipedia:

The General George S. Patton Memorial Museum of Chiriaco Summit, California is a museum erected in tribute to General George S. Patton on the site of the entrance of Camp Young, part of the Desert Training Center of World War II.

Exhibits include a large collection of tanks used in World War II and the Korean War, as well as memorabilia from Patton’s life and career, especially in regards to his service at the Desert Training Center and that of ordinary soldiers who trained there. Development of the Colorado River Aqueduct and natural science exhibits are displayed as well. In addition, a 26-minute video is shown, detailing Patton’s military service and the creation of the Desert Training Center.

Though Patton only spent less than four months at the Desert Training Center, his establishment of the training grounds directly impacted more than one million troops.

The museum is at the Chiriaco Summit exit off Interstate 10, 30 miles/48km east of Indio.

Click on the image above to view the full-sized anaglyph. If you don’t have your free pair of 3D glasses, you can see the 2D version here.

As far as picking my personal favorites of the 3D images I have made to date, this view of the Grand Canyon, that I captured on our Summer ‘08 vacation, comes pretty close. The view is from one of the turnouts on the South Rim, not too far from Grand Canyon Village.

3D Image: Grand Canyon Looking Northeast - click to enlarge.

The view, looking to the northeast, shows some foreground perspective, an intermediate rock formation and the canyon walls in the far distance. Even though the perspectives are there in the 2D version of this image, the added feature of stereo vision enhances the effect of depth and perspective.

Oh, if you don’t have your 3D glasses yet, you can get a free pair from Rainbow Symphony.