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Mojave Preserve | July 2010

Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 1:37 pm
by Chazz Layne
Off to Vegas for a celebration of a good friend's 30th, but of course my best possible route to Sin City involves an extra three days zig-zagging through Mojave National Preserve by dirt track. Monsoon season has come later to the Mojave Desert this year, and has so far been somewhat disappointing for folks like us that are actually seeking thunderstorms. Still, the trip was well worth it and the clouds were beautiful...

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We also made a stop by Kelso Depot to visit The Beanery, and a short visit at the still-missing Mojave Cross. The Beanery, once the lunch room at the Kelso Depot, is once again serving food to hungry travelers. The smoothies alone are worth a detour. The food is ok... not great, but it beats a sack lunch.

After lunch, we headed up to-and-around Clark Mountain, the small island of the preserve located north of Interstate 15. I had never visited this area before, and had no idea just how high this mountain rises above the surrounding desert. After a long, steep climb we were rewarded with these views:

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We then visited the Colosseum Mine, a large flooded pit mine just east of the mountain. It is the pictures of this mine I stumbled across a couple years ago that first tipped me off to this forgotten segment of the preserve. On arrival at the mine, we were pleasantly surprised to find the gate wide open, a welcome relief as I was not looking forward to the long hike to the bottom in the heat.

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Here's a picture of Dani I took from the bottom in a vain attempted to capture the scale of this giant hole in the ground...

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The trek around the northern edge of the mountain was no less rewarding, treating us with a beautiful sunset and glowing rain showers. We were also able to note the locations of several campsites for future travels. We did come prepared to camp on this trip, but with temperatures at or above 100-degrees at night I tend to avoid camping if I can help it.

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Day Two

Two great things about hoteling it in Baker: you get to go on night runs without fear of losing your camp, you get to have iHop in the morning. :mrgreen:

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It was already well over 100-degrees by the time we finished breakfast, so we quickly fueled up and got underway. Just south of the border we picked up an eastward-bound dirt track and headed in the general direction of Las Vegas. This was another of those few small areas I'd not yet explored in the preserve, and before an hour had passed we stumbled upon the remains of a dugout, several corrals and a loading ramp.

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As I was taking the picture of the dugout, several dozen very fat quail were startled out and flew off. I can't wait for quail season in October. :mrgreen:

We continued east, with the roads gradually growing fainter and fainter -- no one had been out here in a very long time. If I had to guess, this area probably gets overlooked because of how close to the interstate it appears to be on the map. On the ground, however, this area is far enough out that you can't even hear the highway. On it's way to Cima Road, this route winds around a high plateau, up a canyon, and through one of the healthiest Joshua tree groves I've seen.

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Eventually we reached Aiken Mine Road at the site of an old ranch -- two windmills, several corrals and an assortment of buildings bake under the hot sun here. As with the previous site, it appears no one has visited this area in a long time.

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Off to Vegas

On the way to Vegas we picked up some "trail damage" from a fellow motorist with questionable eyesight...

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The city hasn't changed much since the last time I was here. They've torn down some buildings, built some new ones, closed some shops and opened others... it is still a crowded, noisy, modern city with little or no culture or history. In spite of my admittedly biased view of the place, we had a great time celebrating the big 3-0 with Kay, visiting with old friends, and learning how the game of Blackjack is played with real live people. :mrgreen:

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Day Three

For the ride home we cut south through the New York Mountains via Ivanpah Road and the small town of Goffs. The MDHCA has done a fine job restoring the town and placing markers at nearby historical sites.

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The rest of the pictures, as always, are on Flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/chazzlayne ... 482071690/.

Re: Mojave Preserve | July 2010

Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 3:58 pm
by xtatik
The two of you are chargers! Although it's one of my favorite Mojave areas to visit......I wouldn't think of it at this time of year. The soft-serve at the Beanery would be popular bout' now.
Great report, and after the rains we've had this year,...I can't wait for quail season either.

Re: Mojave Preserve | July 2010

Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 4:01 pm
by socal_rubi
Mmmmmmm.........iHop.

I enjoyed iHop both mornings while at Summerfest.

Great pics. The 2nd one from the left, in the sunset row is my fav. Great lighting.

Re: Mojave Preserve | July 2010

Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 4:04 pm
by SP Jon M3
Looks like it was a great trip. I would love to see that mine.

You should have them pick up the tab for your pass side door as well, just for the inconvenience.

I like the pic below with the stock disco in the background.
Chazz Layne wrote: Image

Re: Mojave Preserve | July 2010

Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 4:58 pm
by Chazz Layne
We're thinking of a group trip back through here when it gets cooler (possibly winter when there's a chance of snow as Clark would be fantastic). This could probably be worked in with Caruther's (sp?) Canyon... another nearby spot I've never been.

Re: Mojave Preserve | July 2010

Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 7:56 pm
by BorregoWrangler
Great trip, Chazz! All the thunderstorms are down here though, in case you were wondering. :mrgreen:

Re: Mojave Preserve | July 2010

Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 8:35 pm
by DennisDawg
Nice . . the Colosseum Mine pictures are very nice. It has been a while since was up that way. Eventually I'll need to get back up there!

Re: Mojave Preserve | July 2010

Posted: Thu Jul 15, 2010 10:57 pm
by salad_man
Awesome pics chazz

Re: Mojave Preserve | July 2010

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 7:40 am
by photojeeper
There is a iHop in Baker...cool! :D Got to put that in my GPS. :D
It's been to long since I done a Mojave Trip, will be doing the Friends of the Mojave Rendezvous 1-3 October 2010. Friday-Sunday. Go to http://www.mdhca.org/ and get in on it. They have a a raffle and good food, might have some tours this year. I have been a member since 1990; I usually go in Decemeber just after Christmas but the last two years, this year too I have the "on-call duty" :x. Great place and good Jeeping!

JJ

Re: Mojave Preserve | July 2010

Posted: Fri Jul 16, 2010 8:33 am
by Chazz Layne
photojeeper wrote:There is a iHop in Baker...cool! :D Got to put that in my GPS. :D
Yup, it's on the west-end next to the Shell station. This is one of the GOOD iHops, the ones with real syrup and perfectly cooked food. :mrgreen:
It's been to long since I done a Mojave Trip, will be doing the Friends of the Mojave Rendezvous 1-3 October 2010. Friday-Sunday. Go to http://www.mdhca.org/ and get in on it. They have a a raffle and good food, might have some tours this year. I have been a member since 1990; I usually go in Decemeber just after Christmas but the last two years, this year too I have the "on-call duty" :x. Great place and good Jeeping!

JJ
We'll hope to see you there then, we're planning to be there this year as well. I received my tickets this week... gotta get 'em filled out and sent in.