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- Twisted rock layers in Piute Canyon
- More rust and grey-blue in Piute Canyon
- I begin the hike down to Piute Spring by walking over to the trail sign at campsite #2
- Late-day sunlight looks great in Piute Gorge
- I'm almost at the bottom of the rather eroded trail leading down to Piute Canyon
- Part of the road sprouts a lot of rock
- Don't brush up again that Joshua tree and cut your head open while passing by!
- An easy-riding stretch is coming up just around this bend...
- A bit of rock, a bit of sand...
- An hour later and I'm still on this road: getting close to Piute Gorge now!
- I arrive at Piute Gorge and check out a couple of the campsites that overlook the gorge
- I've just arrived at the Piute Gorge area and I love it already, as Ranger Matt told me I would, several years ago
- I choose a campsite overlooking Piute Gorge, then quickly prepare to go for a short hike down to Piute Spring before dark
- Hmmm, my road has become rather sandy here because it's in a drainage channel now
- I come across another cattle pond, this time a really big one
- The road is quite rough for the final few miles to Piute Gorge
- More fun riding on the way to Piute Gorge
- Paint or etching?
- More more more rocks
- I'm quite satisfied by this unexpected discovery here
- Subtle
- A lookout point from the rocks
- Back on the 10-ton bike, I'm happy to see my route has firm ground here
- I wonder if this grassland is natural, or if it was converted into grassland by the cows that grazed here for decades
- After packing up camp, I start the ride down the dead-end road that I didn't ride up yesterday
- So far, this road provides a variety of surfaces from firm to rocky
- A mushroom pops up in the middle of the road amidst a light carpet of eriophyllum flowers, if that's what they are
- I don't need a rest yet, but this looks like a good place to stop and go for a short walk
- Another old cattle pond, this one surprisingly still with a bit of water
- More rocks
- More more rocks
- There are very few flowers blooming at this time of year out here, but I spot a patch of these tiny yellow guys near my tent
- I notice some fresh footprints in the wash while I'm out walking around on my morning toilet run
- I locate The Lost Road by the dry cattle pond and start riding it
- The dried-up cattle pond at sunset is a nice place to get some thinking done
- The 10-ton bike follows the tire tracks through the creosote bush scrub
- Contemplating my route here on The Lost Road...
- I've decided to call this The Lost Road, since I'm not exactly sure where it's leading me
- I stop for a Vietnamese-deer-jerky break in the Joshua tree forest along Hart Mine Rd
- I like riding this straight stretch of Hart Mine Road and gaining a tiny bit of speed
- I ride toward a defunct windmill and water tank on Hart Mine Road
- I arrive at Bathtub Spring, Mojave National Preserve and proceed to filter about two gallons of water
- Riding up Ivanpah Road, Mojave National Preserve
- Elevation gain of bicycle ride to Lost Camp, Lanfair Valley, from Slaughterhouse Spring
- The Lost Road takes me into a wash briefly, with many tire tracks, before I return to the faded trail and find a campsite
- Corral remnants along Hart Mine Road
- I stop at another junction near Hart to decide how I want to proceed
- Before continuing, I look back to the New York Mountains, the area where I spent the last two nights, some 15 miles away
- I decide to try this fairly well-maintained road as a route around the Castle Mountains, even though it's not on my map
- The road narrows and I find myself riding along a chain-link fence
- I'm not able to ride this faded road any longer, and the tire tracks I was seeing here have all but disappeared
- The tire tracks are really faint in some places and hard to follow, like here
- I arrive at a dried-up cattle pond, just before sunset
- The 10-ton bike pushes ahead on The Lost Road, with significant GPS assistance
- I come across another old reservoir along Hart Mine Road
- I pass Waterwell Farm, which appears to be a defunct modern water reservoir
- As I approach the Castle Mountains, the choice of possible routes to follow increases
- It's funny to run into a stop sign in the middle of nowhere near the old Hart Mine
- After filling up on water, I hike the 1/2 mile back to the 10-ton bike and resume today's journey toward the Piute Range
- Back on Ivanpah Road, I'm at about 4600 feet elevation, almost at my high point for the day
- Ivanpah Road passes through a blasted slot through the rocky landscape
- As I approach the old settlement of Barnwell, I'm compelled to stop and look at the old private automobile graveyard there
- At 4800 feet elevation on Ivanpah Road, my high point of the day, I'll turn left on Hart Mine Road at Barnwell, 100 feet ahead
- I take a peek at one of the old houses at Barnwell while riding by, as I like to do
- Parts of Hart Mine Road have a tendency to get a bit washed out
- This sign explains why Hart Mine Road is sometimes in rough condition
- Open range on Hart Mine Road
- This part of Hart Mine Road follows an old railway grade that dates back to the old mining days
- At this point, I'm now outside the Mojave National Preserve boundaries, and will be for most of the rest of the day
- I ride a short distance up the road to Bathtub Spring, stash the 10-ton bike in some bushes and hike up to the spring
- On the way to Bathtub Spring I pass several small, colourful butterflies
- Before Bathtub Spring Road rises up to the old Ivanpah railway grade, I notice a drainage tunnel under the old track bed
- I'm surpised that this drainage tunnel is in such good condition
- Close-up of the tunnel under the old railway grade
- I ride a short distance up Ivanpah Road and turn back to take in the great view across Ivanpah Valley behind me
- I pass the old stone foundation of something near Ivanpah Road
- I walk down to the wash for my morning toilet run and notice the tracks of an old road no longer used
- A big sage is sprouting some fresh-looking growth
- I've had breakfast, done my toilet run and lazed around a bit: now it's time to pack up the tent and move on
- Packing up done! I ride the 3/4 down the bumpy hill to Ivanpah Road
- I arrive at Ivanpah Road and turn right to head up into the New York Mountains
- There's that threatening sign again on Ivanpah Road: Rough Road, Next 23 Miles
- Another morning at Slaughterhouse Spring; nice!
- I finish filtering water at Bathtub Spring just as it gets dark; I close the gate and hike the 3.5 miles back to camp
- A family of small birds (probably Cactus wrens) flies away as I hike up the grown-in remains of an old desert road
- I'm getting hungry; time for an energy bar while hiking across the rolling highlands here
- I arrive at Lecyr Spring
- Dry waterfall: a bigger one this time!
- Willows and mini dry waterfalls in the canyon
- I encounter a small dry waterfall in the canyon
- Slaughterhouse Spring, Mojave National Preserve
- Slaughterhouse Spring hills hike, elevation profile
- A lot of fill was used to build up the Ivanpah railway bed across low-lying drainage areas like this one
- Today's Ivanpah Road, an important north-south corridor in the Mojave National Preserve, is visible behind me
- Here's another slot blasted through the hill for the old Ivanpah railway
- This stretch of the old Ivanpah railway bed is really returning to nature
- Sunset approaches as I hike the old railway bed toward Bathtub Spring
- I'll hike through this one last blasted slot through the rock before reaching the Bathtub Spring area
- Imagine a train passing through here 100 years ago!
- I arrive at Bathtub Spring shortly after sunset and finally figure out how to get through the fence that protects the spring
- Oh, another stray balloon, but this one is different!
- I hike the 1.5-mile-long stretch of the old Ivanpah railway grade northbound to the Bathtub Spring area
- Just before arriving at Ivanpah Road, I walk past a low rock wall with lichen growing on it
- The wash I've been following arrives at Ivanpah Road, so I cross it, and begin hiking the old railway grade
- Salvia dorrii: I thought I detected the distinctive smell of desert sage earlier, and here's some
- I encounter no other human footprints as I hike down this wash toward Ivanpah Road (and I haven't seen any other humans today)
- I hike cross-country a while across rolling Joshua-tree-and-juniper forest in the Trio Mine area
- Hmmm, a skull
- Old rusty cans: That means I've arrived in the area of a former settlement!
- I wonder if this collapsed structure was once a house
- Ah, there's an old-style water heater
- And there's the old stove...
- Once in a while, one stumbles across old abandoned vehicles in remote desert locations, like this one
- Not sure what model of old car this is; it's van-like
- Merle Norman: I take a look at the partially buried carpet waste nearby
- My short hike up the invisible road ends and I begin hiking down a gently sloping wash toward Ivanpah Road
- Upon leaving the Lecyr Spring area, I can see across the upper part of Lanfair Valley to the Castle Mountains
- I hike down Lecyr Spring Road, which is quite eroded in places
- I check out this guzzler not too far away, curious as to whether it contains water or not
- I like this canyon so far: a few more boulders to climb over ahead
- Before I start climb up the adjacent hillside, I notice what I think is a young Palmer's penstemon sprouting in the canyon floor
- It's a short steep climb out of the canyon, but I'm not experiencing any vertigo yet, which is good!
- While climbing up the rocky hillside, I plow through a spider web by accident and have to brush this unusual spider off me
- On top of this hill above the canyon, I now have a clear vista across Ivanpah Valley
- I like being up on my hill here, but there's more canyon down there for me to hike up
- After 20 minutes of hiking near the ridge line, I still have nice views down into the canyon
- Once the canyon rises higher into a less rugged area, I decide to try continuing my hike in the canyon again
- Oh, a balloon in a remote location where people never go!
- I'm now near my high point for the day (5000 feet elevation); Lecyr Spring should be not too far ahead
- I enter the canyon, and some of it is really narrow, at least at first
- A narrow spot in the canyon, with willows growing in the canyon floor
- I think these old flowerheads in the wash are from last season's Cliff roses
- Rock piles along the wash attract my attention
- At the bottom of this pile of rocks is what I call the flat-foot rock toes
- Nice, almost warm morning near Slaughterhouse Spring; I wake up baking in my tent around 8h30
- My first stop of the day is to see see what's at Slaughterhouse Spring
- It was fun checking out Slaughterhouse Spring; time to continue up the old road on today's hike
- I pass a few buckwheat blossoms along the old road near Slaughterhouse Spring
- Looking back behind me, I have a view of the old Goldome mine buildings off in the distance on the other side of Ivanpah Rd
- The old road here that serves as part of today's hiking route rolls up and down, and is rocky in places
- Nice views down to Ivanpah Valley behind me as I hike up the old road
- I run across some ruins on the way toward the canyon
- Nipton to Slaughterhouse Spring by bicycle, elevation profile
- Nipton to Slaughterhouse Spring by bicycle, route
- I decide I don't feeling like riding up Ivanpah Road any further and look for a campsite on adjacent Slaughterhouse Spring Road
- Fluffy post-flower residue along Slaughterhouse Road
- Almost a mile up Slaughterhouse Spring Road, I start looking for a campsite more seriously
- While setting up camp, a pickup truck drives by, not seeing me, and drives up the hill a bit (see the headlights at bottom-left)
- I didn't travel as far as hoped today, but I'm very happy camping here by Slaughterhouse Spring, now planning tomorrow's hike
- I take several short breaks along Nipton-Moore Road, enjoying the solitude and the plant life
- I don't pass any other vehicles while riding Nipton-Moore Road today, but it clearly does get some use
- Against my will, I can't help but look across Ivanpah Valley to the Primm Brightsource solar plant under construction
- One of those long freight trains that crosses the Mojave Desert passes me on Nipton-Moore Road
- A jet-exhaust stream glides by effortlessly in the sky while I rattle along Nipton-Moore Road, hugging the train tracks
- As a result of recent rains, Nipton-Moore Road has had recent washouts that have been freshly repaired
- I arrive at the pavement of Ivanpah Road just after mile 10 and have over 3 miles of pavement ahead
- I ride past the old Ivanpah general store building, a landmark in this area
- After more than 3 miles of pavement on Ivanpah Road, the pavement ends
- Yesterday, to get out here, I boarded the Amtrak train in Stockton, followed by an Amtrak bus to Primm, NV in the Mojave Desert
- I considered staying at a Primm casino hotel last night, but they were full, so I rode 12 dark miles to Nipton and camped there
- Morning at Nipton is nice and sunny; the tent sits at the back of the cactus garden by some eucalyptus trees
- I recharge my cell phone and my headlight battery in the shower building before leaving Nipton
- I stop to watch a cow and her calf as I ride up Black Canyon Road
- Elevation profile of bicycle route from Twin Buttes campsite to Nipton via Cima: Day 15
- Bicycle route from Twin Buttes campsite to Nipton via Cima: Day 15
- I decide to stay in one of the Nipton tent cabins tonight; I'll get up early tomorrow and ride to Primm to catch the Amtrak bus
- Just beyond my tent cabin at Nipton are a few others, but it's mostly quiet tonight
- I park the 10-ton bike inside my tent cabin at Nipton, titled the Surveyor, and settle in for the night
- Just around the corner here, I've got 10 miles of downhill, and about 1300 feet of elevation loss!
- 35 minutes later: after 10 miles of gliding downhill (and pedaling too), I arrive at the stop sign and turn left on Ivanpah Road
- I exit Mojave National Preserve here, and am now headed over to Nipton, the village over there at the bottom of the mountains
- Riding Nipton Road, just a few more miles until I reach Nipton village over there
- I haven't had a flat tire yet on this trip, so I celebrate upon arriving at the Nipton store with a bottle of Fat Tire beer
- A residence and and old truck sit behind the Cima store, lost in time
- An old railway box car also sits next to the Cima store, with nowhere to go
- My break finished at the Cima store, it's time to hit the road again and ride on down the hill to Nipton: 25 miles ahead
- As I ride down Morning Star Mine Road away from Cima, I take in the views of the New York Mountains
- On upper Morning Star Mine Road, I'm heading toward the Ivanpah Mountains, with Kessler Peak at the left
- Well, the Cima store might be closed right now, but it's an interesting place to take a break nonetheless
- The board-and-batten structure of the old Cima store hasn't been whitewashed in a very long time
- The Cima store is closed today, or at least right now; the hours posted are basically meaningless
- After a nice, fast downhill on Cedar Canyon Road, I arrive at the famous stop sign at Kelso-Cima Road
- I have almost five miles to ride up the gently rising Kelso-Cima Road until I reach Cima and the possibly open Cima store
- Oh, there's Cima just up ahead past that Joshua tree
- The rough washboard of upper Black Canyon Road prevents me from gaining any speed as I decend to the Cedar Canyon Road
- A jet flies overhead while I ride Cedar Canyon Road; the passengers note in unison that 'there's nothing down there'
- This stretch of Cedar Canyon Road is always slow and rough (but scenic) on a bicycle
- Once Cedar Canyon Road rises out of the canyon, I can see across to the Cima Dome area
- I have a 700-foot elevation drop ahead of me here on the west end of Cedar Canyon Road
- Also noteworthy on upper Black Canyon Road is the Gold Valley Ranch that I'm passing right now
- Upper Black Canyon Road narrows somewhat before it crosses through the pass ahead at just under 5350 feet elevation
- The 10-ton bike enjoys the rocky backdrop at Hole-in-the-Wall one last time while my cell phone recharges
- I've ridden Woods Wash Road quite a few times while camping here this past week; this is my final commute out of the area
- My first stop is the Hole-in-the-Wall Visitor Centre (again) to fill up on water; it's over 80F in the shade already
- I've been at this great campsite by the Woods Mountains for a week now; this morning I pack up and leave
- Everything is nicely packed up into my saddlebags and attached to the 10-ton bike
- I ride home one last night on Woods Wash Rd after a stop at the Hole-in-the-Wall Visitor Centre to recharge my cell phone again
- Borrego Canyon hike route, Mojave National Preserve, elevation profile
- Borrego Canyon hike route, Mojave National Preserve
- Lots of shiny volcanic-looking rock and barrel cacti love the heat here on this little Borrego Canyon mesa