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- The sunset and belt-of-Venus view at the top of the Old Government Road is as good as it's going to get
Sunset is right now. This is looking east, at areas mostly outside Mojave National Preserve: I haven't visited any of those areas yet. - There's a moon in the sky!
... and it's called "the moon." - I walk back down to the canyon floor: big rocks, willow trees and cottonwoods along Piute Creek
Where should I stop to filter water? - Layers of roots, dropped foliage and sand drainage in this dry part of the Piute Creek bed
- I walk through a few cottonwood trees to get back to the stream that emanates from nearby Piute Spring
- I cross through some of the riparian brush at Piute Creek
There might be some remains of an old road around here, so I take a few minutes to look for it. - I don't find any of the old road, but I do find parts of a trail here in Piute Canyon
- I follow the trail a short distance up a hill, but this is headed away from the stream that I want to follow
I decide to turn back and try hiking up the creek bed a little. I wonder to where this trail leads... - It's fun to explore randomly, but I'm also here to fetch more drinking water
Here's Piute Creek again, my water source today. Rare desert streams like this are almost magical amidst the dry landscape. - While getting ready for today's hike down to Piute Spring, I have my first and only sighting of humans for the day
A pair of Jeeps ride up the road and stop briefly at the next overlook above Piute Gorge. They're close enough that I see them get out of their vehicles for a few minutes to take in the views, but I don't know if they can see me over at the next overlook. - This part of the Piute Gorge Trail is marked by rocks, but there are few footprints here to keep the trail alive
OK, I'll add a few footprints of my own. - As I gain a little elevation, I can see the rounded corral that I rode past yesterday
... and I can see all the way across Lanfair Valley to the New York Mountains, where I was a few days ago. - On my way up the hill, I pass by this engraved rock
Strange, this doesn't seem like a location where I would normally find one of these... - And here's another one...
Did someone place this here? I look around, but don't see any others like it, so I continue on with my hike over the hill toward Piute Spring via the Old Government Road route. - The Piute Gorge Trail joins the Old Government Road and I approach the crest
I look around and realize that there's a lot to explore around here in addition to following the old dirt road that was used for decades. Maybe I should have started today's hike a little earlier. - Nice views across the next valley toward the Dead Mountains Wilderness area, outside Mojave National Preserve
- From here, I'll start winding my way downhill toward the Piute Spring area
I can see some of the Old Government Road ahead of me that will serve as my downhill trail. - Today, not much remains of the Old Government Road except for some rock build-up
Just enough of a track to follow... - Sometimes, the old trail is washed out
...but I know I'm headed toward the wash down below, so it doesn't matter if I get off-track a little. - I arrive at the wash headed toward Piute Creek and follow it downward
I've been having stomach cramps all the way down the hill, probably because I was hungry and ate too much this morning before starting today's hike. My mistake! - At the bottom of the wash, I walk around looking for P G s that are indicated on one of my maps
I don't see any signs of said P G s, so I wonder if maybe they were stolen long ago. Or maybe I've walked right past them without noticing! - I arrive at the end of the road, happy to make it before dusk
An excellent belt-of-venus hovers over the Lanfair Valley below. - Elevation profile of bicycle route, Piute Gorge to Hackberry Spring via Rattlesnake Mine
36.5 bicycle miles and about 1500 feet of elevation gain. - Round-trip bicycle route, Piute Gorge to Hackberry Spring via Rattlesnake Mine
36.5 bicycle miles and about 1500 feet of elevation gain. - Just a few hundred feet further...
... the road ends. - I've just finished filtering my water and it's getting dark; time to ride back to camp at Piute Gorge, in those distant hills
I have 15-20 miles of bicycle riding ahead of me yet! A few miles down the road, in the dark, I encounter a lot of loud coyote yipping. I keep looking around to see if I can see them under the bright moonlight (they're so close), but I don't. - I ride 2 miles on Ivanpah Road before turning off on the Mojave Road to head back to Piute Gorge; I arrive home a bit past 21h
It's a long ride, sometimes beautiful in its solitude under the clear night skies, sometimes frustrating when I make a wrong turn on a fruitless side road, hoping for less sand on stretches where I have no choice but to walk the bike. Jet-exhaust streams in the sky lit up by moonlight during the quiet ride home are memorable. I get a bit chilly (35F forecast tonight after a high of 70F during the afternoon), can't locate one road, but the last 5 miles are bliss. I've only eaten two Clif bars and a few handfuls of tamari almonds during the afternoon, so I'm feeling hungry, a bit dehydrated, and running on adrenalin rather than real energy.<br><br> Two or three miles before arriving back at camp, I notice two things in the darkness. I increasingly have a headwind, and this wind feels distinctively warmer. I don't feel hungry when I arrive back at camp (I'm too tired), but at 23h45, I decide that I must eat. It takes almost 45 minutes to boil water for my instant meal due to the strong wind tonight. I eat natural High Honey-Lime Chicken with Wild Rice, which is rather bland and subtle (will not buy again, though it suits my mood right now). Despite high winds, I can hear a lot of crickets as I try to fall asleep after my meal. - I want this campsite!
Maybe next time. - I'm almost at the spring, but it's much easier to walk up this rocky stretch than to try riding up it
I *could* ride up it, but I'm always interested in conserving energy, since I have a 15-mile ride back to camp ahead of me. - I come around a corner, and the sun is behind the mountains now
Less than two miles to go... - Rocky hills along the road into the Hackberry Mountains
I'm really enjoying my first visit in this landscape, which feels quite different from the areas around it that I already know. - Fine gravel!
Ugh, loss of traction. off the bike for a few feet again! - This private property in the Bobcat Hills area is marked by plastic pumpkins
The road is in better shape in this area and thus easier riding. - My road ends, and I scoot across Ivanpah Rd to start riding the road into the Hackberry Mountains
Decision done. I'll keep riding into the mountains and hopefully reach Hackberry Spring by dark. I was intending to visit that area during previous trips, and never got around to it. - The first part of the road into the Hackberry Mountains is a bit sandy and bit rough
Typical Mojave backroad! - I pass an old corral in the Hackberry Mountain foothills
- Predictably, I have to walk the bike across this sandy wash crossing on the way into the Hackberry Mountains
- It looks like signage has been recently re-erected to remind people to not drive their 4WD vehicles in the Wilderness area
- This stretch of the road is pretty soft, and I have to walk the bike a bit
If there's much more of this, I will not arrive at Hackberry Spring before dark. - This short, steep and eroded piece of road makes me wonder if it will get worse
These dead-end roads tend to deteriorate the further one goes. - The road almost becomes invisible in a few spots on the way up the hill
- One thing I enjoy about this road is the changing landscape
Here I ride across a grassy area. - A scattering of Joshua trees dot this transitional Mojave landscape
- Sunset will be a couple of hours from now; I'm trying to decide whether to go all the way to Hackberry Mountain, ahead at left
Decisions... I don't have to decide right away. I still have over three miles to go until this road ends at Ivanpah Road. I'll decide then. - This unusual metal grate over a mine hole is apparently intended to keep the mine shaft open to bats
- The views from the Rattlesnake Mine rooster-comb extend all the way across the Lanfair Valley to the New York Mountains
Hey, I was over there a few days ago! The bicycle sits quietly at the junction of the roads below me. Can you see it? - From the Rattlesnake Mine site, I still have views across the valley to my Piute Gorge campsite, that slot in the distant hills
- I take a look at some crumpled structure remains near Rattlesnake Mine before continuing my bike ride
- Everyone loves a good historic desert can dump, don't they?
- Beyond Rattlesnake Mine, the old road gently climbs another 200 feet or so
Soft surface in places occasionally requires that I walk the bike. - From the Rattlesnake Mine site, I have a clear view across the valley to my Piute Gorge campsite, that slot in the distant hills
I'm guessing it's reclamation land from the mine that hasn't completely grown back yet. It can take many decades for a desert landscape to slowly recover from human uses. - A little further up Rattlesnake Mine Road, I decide to go for a short walk up to the top of the rooster-comb ahead
- A few yellow flowers (Encelia farinosa perhaps) bloom at the old Rattlesnake Mine site
It appears that these flowers are only found in an area of disturbed soil (on the edge of where old mine installations were removed?) - This part of the old Rattlesnake Mine site has great views over to both the Castle Peaks and the Castle Mountains
Castle Peaks are the sharp spikes at left (I've camped over there before) and Castle Mountains near Hart are the larger hills at right. I rode across some of that area during the last two days. - I take a look down into the canyon at an old discarded truck before heading out on today's bicycle ride
Apparently there used to be a road down there! I have the usual breakfast of granola, nuts, dried apricots, vitamin C drink, and coffee (3 cups this morning: I may need it). - Shortly after I start today's bike ride, I ride past an old circular corral
I wasn't going to stop for a photo break so soon! - Inside the corral is a fire ring
Nice place for an overnight camp! - Just before I start riding up the pipeline road here, I run into Bryan and his sons in their pickup, and we have a great chat
The first people I've seen in almost three days! Bryan explains that the drive up from Hwy 95 is pretty rough. I haven't been that way yet. I tell them about the hike down to Piute Spring and they did it. I hope they liked all the crazy rocks down there! - I have to walk the bike across several sandy wash crossings on the pipeline road
... but the ride is going well so far. - Elevation profile of Piute Canyon/Piute Spring hike
3.6 hiking miles, about 600 feet of elevation gain. - Hiking route: Piute Canyon to Piute Spring
3.6 hiking miles, about 600 feet of elevation gain. - About two gallons of water filtered from Piute Spring, I hike back up the canyon to my campsite
With the new water load on my back and 500 feet of elevation gain ahead, the climb back up the canyon at dusk is a bit slower than it was coming down. But equally scenic and perhaps even more special as sunlight disappears for the day. - Elevation profile of bicycle ride to Piute Gorge
An easy 11.6 bicycle miles with about 600 feet of elevation drop, but rough road makes it not as fast as one would expect for such a short distance. - Big boulders in Piute Canyon
Most of the time, I'm easily able to walk around these, so far. - Piute Canyon: down we go...
- A half-moon looks down at me while hiking Piute Canyon
Looking forward to a bit of moonlight tonight! - It must be dramatic when water gushes down this well-worn drainage in Piute Canyon
- This huge ball of rocks seems to have tumbled down the hillside in Piute Canyon
- I should be close to Piute Spring now
- I come around another rocky bend and arrive at trees, mostly willows: Piute Spring is here somewhere
Now I just have to locate the spring, which hopefully won't be difficult. - I pass a few coyote melons on the way back up Piute Canyon and arrive at my campsite just before total darkness
Great way to end the day! When I get back, the first thing I need to do is set up my tent, in the dark. The late-afternoon wind is gone and now it's super-quiet out here. An interesting sight is a jet-exhaust stream in the sky illuminated by moonlight. Super tonight is Mountain House Chicken Teriyaki with Rice; I'm starved and eat it quickly. A couple of owls up on an adjacent hill protect me with their hoo-hooing before I get to sleep around midnight. - Here's a little rock shelter in Piute Canyon
It won't provide much shelter in the event of a flash flood here, however. - Colourful layers of earth are exposed in Piute Canyon
- Some of the layers are tilted
- Layers exposed by erosion
- This rock-wall segment in Piute Canyon has a crumpled appearance
- Rust and grey-blue in Piute Canyon
- Boulders strewn about in Piute Canyon
- Layers of sandy sediment are exposed here and there in Piute Canyon
- A couple of steep steps down here in Piute Canyon
Hmmm... I hope I don't run into any really difficult drop-offs on my way down to the spring. - I pass through a slot in Piute Canyon
- Piute Canyon opens up a little
- 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
I didn't want to camp at this campsite in case it gets extra human traffic that I don't want to see in the morning. I'm camping over at #3. Despite this sign, there's not much of trail here, but it's enough to get you started and inspired. - Late-day sunlight looks great in Piute Gorge
I follow the trail down to the canyon, wondering what I'll see on the way to Piute Spring. - I'm almost at the bottom of the rather eroded trail leading down to Piute Canyon
This trail doesn't seem to be used often. Once on the canyon floor, there is no more trail, so I just follow the canyon downward. - Part of the road sprouts a lot of rock
I would carefully ride right over all this on my mountain bike if I weren't carrying all my gear with me today. Instead, I get off and walk a little, so as not to shake everything up too much. - 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...
... I think. - A bit of rock, a bit of sand...
- An hour later and I'm still on this road: getting close to Piute Gorge now!
High clearance needed here since the left tire track is a couple of inches lower than the right one. I just stay in the right track, until my side of the road gets bad too. - I arrive at Piute Gorge and check out a couple of the campsites that overlook the gorge
Great scenery, nicer than what I was expecting to see. I see tire tracks, but no people. Nice campsite here, but a bit exposed to this afternoon's strong winds, so I'll go over and check out the next one. - 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 think that next mountain range over in the distance is the Dead Mountains, which is also on my list as a future destination. - I choose a campsite overlooking Piute Gorge, then quickly prepare to go for a short hike down to Piute Spring before dark
I don't have that much time for my hike, considering the early sunset (16h30) at this time of year, so I don't even bother setting up my tent before the hike. I'll erect it when I return. - Hmmm, my road has become rather sandy here because it's in a drainage channel now
The sand isn't deep, but there's just enough of it that I can't maintain traction. So I walk the 10-ton bike for close to a mile here, enjoying the landscape. - I come across another cattle pond, this time a really big one
I have to go for a walk and take a closer look. - The road is quite rough for the final few miles to Piute Gorge
The rugged road surface makes for fun mountain-biking in places, even though I'm not in the mountains, and even though I can't let myself gain much speed due to the load I'm carrying. - More fun riding on the way to Piute Gorge
Of course, here and there I have to get off the bike and walk it a bit. - Paint or etching?
Or both? - More more more rocks
More more more mark-up. - 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
Of course, I know these good road conditions can change at any moment! - I wonder if this grassland is natural, or if it was converted into grassland by the cows that grazed here for decades
I want to go for a hike up there! - After packing up camp, I start the ride down the dead-end road that I didn't ride up yesterday
Not much traffic here. In fact, I won't see anyone else today, and I didn't see anyone yesterday either. - So far, this road provides a variety of surfaces from firm to rocky
I wonder if it will be this easy all the way to today's destination, Piute Gorge, about 10 miles away. - A mushroom pops up in the middle of the road amidst a light carpet of eriophyllum flowers, if that's what they are
I'll find a couple more of these mushrooms nearby. - I don't need a rest yet, but this looks like a good place to stop and go for a short walk
A decent potential campsite here, but I think I liked mine better last night, further up the road, less enticing to motorized vehicles. - Another old cattle pond, this one surprisingly still with a bit of water
I crossed a couple of cattle ponds yesterday, but they were completely dry. - More rocks
More mark-up. - More more rocks
More more mark-up. - 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
Looks like it might be a kind of eriophyllum. - I notice some fresh footprints in the wash while I'm out walking around on my morning toilet run
There were some mice playing with the corner of my tent last night, but these aren't mice-prints. - Elevation gain of bicycle ride to Lost Camp, Lanfair Valley, from Slaughterhouse Spring
19.4 slow bicycle miles and about 1200 feet of elevation gain. - 19.4 slow bicycle miles and about 1200 feet of elevation gain. - The Lost Road takes me into a wash briefly, with many tire tracks, before I return to the faded trail and find a campsite
It's after dark when I set up camp. My unplanned campsite is on a slight mound, and I immediately notice that this corner of Lanfair Valley accumulates cool air; it's a chilly evening. But so quiet way out here. And so dark too, except for a bit of moonlight.<br><br> I have the mouse problem again tonight, with a small critter scratching at my tent floor, perhaps trying to get in.<br><br> Supper is Mountain House Chicken and Rice, really good, and I'm hungry enough now that it's the first backpacker meal on this trip that I've fully enjoyed so far. I'm not overly exhausted today, but my legs are a little tired.<br><br> My upper body is a bit tired from the extra water I've been carrying on my back to avoid loading it on my front rack. I spend a lot of time this evening just thinking, and occasionally stepping outside to look at the stars.<br><br> An amazing bright-yellow moon just before moonset makes it feel like headlights from some unknown vehicle are shining on my tent. Startling! I've been hearing owls cooing off and on all evening, and fall asleep before midnight. - Corral remnants along Hart Mine Road
Due to roughness and a bit of a loose surface on this road, I've been riding along here mostly at a slow 6-9 miles per hour. - I stop at another junction near Hart to decide how I want to proceed
I'm tempted to camp somewhere around here and check out the remains of the old Hart Mine nearby. But I also want to continue through or around the Castle Mountains toward the Piute Range and, ultimately, Piute Spting. - 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 continue toward the Piute Range, as much as I'd like to explore the old Hart Mine nearby. I don't want to get sidetracked and perhaps not make it to Piute Spring on this trip. - 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 original route I mapped out passes over rough old trails, so this might be easier (unless it doesn't go where I want it to go!) - The road narrows and I find myself riding along a chain-link fence
I believe there is more mining land beyond the fence. - I'm not able to ride this faded road any longer, and the tire tracks I was seeing here have all but disappeared
I walk around a little and try to decide whether to follow this fading road, or follow a set of equally faded tire tracks nearby. - The tire tracks are really faint in some places and hard to follow, like here
Perhaps the beautiful sunset glow is distracting me as well... - I arrive at a dried-up cattle pond, just before sunset
So peaceful and beautiful here, but I do need to decide where to go from here. It will be dark soon and it's so much easier to navigate by daylight. - The 10-ton bike pushes ahead on The Lost Road, with significant GPS assistance
The Lost Road is so grown-in on some stretches that I would never be able to follow it without my GPS (I can't always tell when I'm on it!) - I come across another old reservoir along Hart Mine Road
This one appears to be of slightly older vintage than the Waterwell Farms reservoir I just passed. - I pass Waterwell Farm, which appears to be a defunct modern water reservoir
I'm guessing this was used to store water for the nearby and recently closed Castle Mountain Mine (Viceroy Mine). - As I approach the Castle Mountains, the choice of possible routes to follow increases
I opt for the left fork in the road here because one route I have mapped through the Castle Mountains passes through the gap between the hills at centre-left. - It's funny to run into a stop sign in the middle of nowhere near the old Hart Mine
I haven't seen any other traffic today, but all the tire tracks around show that people do come here fairly often. - 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
The days are short at this time of year; I don't know how far I'll get. A jet flies by in the sky. - Back on Ivanpah Road, I'm at about 4600 feet elevation, almost at my high point for the day
I remember riding this stretch of the road at sunset, trying to ignore heat exhaustion, during last May's trip. But it's scenic under all circumstances. - Ivanpah Road passes through a blasted slot through the rocky landscape
This segment is part of the original Ivanpah railway bed, later converted to be part of today's "modern" road. Most of the old railway bed in the area is unmaintained and is being allowed to deteriorate naturally. - As I approach the old settlement of Barnwell, I'm compelled to stop and look at the old private automobile graveyard there
... history, but it's on private property. - 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 always enjoy the views of the New York Mountains from this area. They look blue today in the autumn shadows, rather than their usual green. - I take a peek at one of the old houses at Barnwell while riding by, as I like to do
The property sports a new gate! - Parts of Hart Mine Road have a tendency to get a bit washed out
Hence the "Road Not Maintained" sign here. - This sign explains why Hart Mine Road is sometimes in rough condition
"Road subject to flash floods." - Open range on Hart Mine Road
No cows here today however. I believe the this area was part of the old OX Ranch, whose ranging allotment here has been retired. - This part of Hart Mine Road follows an old railway grade that dates back to the old mining days
Views of the Castle Mountains and Hart Peak open up. - At this point, I'm now outside the Mojave National Preserve boundaries, and will be for most of the rest of the day
I pass a couple of BLM (Bureau of Land Management) signs that one doesn't see inside national parks, such as Mojave National Preserve. NN144 refers to the network of BLM-inventoried and -numbered routes that are open to vehicle travel. - 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
Bathtub Spring is just 0.5 miles up the road, a nice short hike. It was getting dark when I hiked here yesterday after sunset. - On the way to Bathtub Spring I pass several small, colourful butterflies
I see these from time to time out here, but wasn't expecting to see butterflies on this autumn trip. - Before Bathtub Spring Road rises up to the old Ivanpah railway grade, I notice a drainage tunnel under the old track bed
I walk over to check it out. - I'm surpised that this drainage tunnel is in such good condition
...then it occurs to me that the tunnel has likely been maintained here because the important access road to Bathtub Spring passes over it. Most other parts of the old railway grade are apparently being allowed to return to nature. - Close-up of the tunnel under the old railway grade
Some nice stone work here! I'm guessing that most of the stone work is original, despite the apparent recent restoration work. - I ride a short distance up Ivanpah Road and turn back to take in the great view across Ivanpah Valley behind me
While hiking and biking, never forget to stop and take a look behind you! The tall peaks over in the distance are in the Clark Mountain Range, also part of Mojave National Preserve. An old structure from the former Goldome Mine sits in the middleground. - I pass the old stone foundation of something near Ivanpah Road
Those are the Bathtub Spring Peaks in the background, where I hiked in May 2011. - I walk down to the wash for my morning toilet run and notice the tracks of an old road no longer used
I'm surprised that I didn't notice this while walking around here yesterday morning. (A jet flies by overhead.) - A big sage is sprouting some fresh-looking growth
Smells great; probably Salvia dorrii. - 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
Breakfast was the usual granola, tamari almonds, dried apricots, vitamin C drink and two cups of instant Starbucks coffee (much better than regular instant coffee). - Packing up done! I ride the 3/4 down the bumpy hill to Ivanpah Road
I've left camp before 11h; that's pretty good for me! It's always nice to start with a downhill, however brief, but it's so bumpy that I don't accumulate any speed on the way down. - I arrive at Ivanpah Road and turn right to head up into the New York Mountains
Compared to the worn and battered track I've been riding, Ivanpah Road looks like a very modern engineered road. - There's that threatening sign again on Ivanpah Road: Rough Road, Next 23 Miles
Indeed, my overloaded rear rack snapped on the stretch ahead several years ago. That taught me to not overload it (the sign didn't help me though)! However, this road isn't so bad compared to the rougher back roads in much of Mojave National Preserve. - Another morning at Slaughterhouse Spring; nice!
I've decided to pack up this morning and ride toward the Piute Range area. We'll see how far I get with these short autumn days and my love of procrastinating and packing up slowly. Despite low energy, I'm inspired after yesterday's hike! - Slaughterhouse Spring hills hike, elevation profile
13.8 hiking miles and about 1500 feet of elevation gain (and loss). - A lot of fill was used to build up the Ivanpah railway bed across low-lying drainage areas like this one
After 100 years, some of these fill areas are eroding significantly. - Today's Ivanpah Road, an important north-south corridor in the Mojave National Preserve, is visible behind me
I've often looked up at this old railway bed while riding up Ivanpah Road, but never got around to hiking it until today. I did hike a piece of it north of Bathtub Spring in my May 2011 trip out here. - Here's another slot blasted through the hill for the old Ivanpah railway
A Cholla cactus and a Desert Almond grow in the middle of the old railway bed here. The old railway bed is badly eroded at this location. - This stretch of the old Ivanpah railway bed is really returning to nature
You'd never know that trains rode straight ahead here 100 years ago. - 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!
Joshua trees are growing here now. Bathtub Spring should be just up ahead. - I arrive at Bathtub Spring shortly after sunset and finally figure out how to get through the fence that protects the spring
Yes, there's even a bathtub here, a spring true to its name! (Bathtub Spring in the Mid Hills does not have a bathtub.) It's not obvious at first how to open the fence, but I persist, knowing that there must be a way to get to the water that I need. - Oh, another stray balloon, but this one is different!
Someone put a rock on this balloon to keep it from blowing away. I usually retrieve these stray balloons and throw them in the trash, but I may not pass by a garbage can for several more days, so I leave it here, under its rock. - I hike the 1.5-mile-long stretch of the old Ivanpah railway grade northbound to the Bathtub Spring area
Several slots were blasted through the rocky hills 100 years ago to create a fairly flat railway bed. The Bathtub Spring Peaks in the background, where I hiked in May 2011, pick up the golden pre-sunset light. - Just before arriving at Ivanpah Road, I walk past a low rock wall with lichen growing on it
Great colors here; landscape-painter's delight! - The wash I've been following arrives at Ivanpah Road, so I cross it, and begin hiking the old railway grade
Looking forward to hiking this segment of the old railway grade, which I haven't hiked before. - Salvia dorrii: I thought I detected the distinctive smell of desert sage earlier, and here's some
Possibly I've also been walking on Chia sage to produce the aroma; I've seen a few of those today as well. - I encounter no other human footprints as I hike down this wash toward Ivanpah Road (and I haven't seen any other humans today)
Late-afternoon arrives early at this time of year in California, so I see both shade and yellow sunlight, depending on my exact location. - I hike cross-country a while across rolling Joshua-tree-and-juniper forest in the Trio Mine area
It's not quite as a dense as the Joshua-tree forest near Cima, but many of the Joshua trees are mature and display the usual array of interesting shapes. - Hmmm, a skull
Non-human, fortunately (this time). - Old rusty cans: That means I've arrived in the area of a former settlement!
Anything else of interest here? - I wonder if this collapsed structure was once a house
... or just an outbuilding of some kind. - Ah, there's an old-style water heater
So those ruins are most likely former living quarters... - And there's the old stove...
Old stoves like this sometimes burned wood, sometimes stove oil (like one in an antiquated rental house where I once lived), depending on the region. I wonder which fuel burned in this stove... - Once in a while, one stumbles across old abandoned vehicles in remote desert locations, like this one
A mostly buried carpet straddles the old road here, if you look closely. - Not sure what model of old car this is; it's van-like
... and it's really shot up (it seems that all abandoned cars in the desert are well shot-up!) - Merle Norman: I take a look at the partially buried carpet waste nearby
Looks like someone renovated a Merle Norman store somewhere and dumped the old worn carpet here. Pretty photos on the Merle Norman web site are quite different from this ugly view of the shop's garbage dumped in the Mojave Desert. - My short hike up the invisible road ends and I begin hiking down a gently sloping wash toward Ivanpah Road
I pass the rusty leaves of several Rhus trilobata bushes on the way down the wash. - Upon leaving the Lecyr Spring area, I can see across the upper part of Lanfair Valley to the Castle Mountains
I'll probably ride over to that area of Mojave National Preserve tomorrow. Much of today's hike will be downhill for the rest of the day as I walk across the valley ahead. - I hike down Lecyr Spring Road, which is quite eroded in places
High clearance required here! - I check out this guzzler not too far away, curious as to whether it contains water or not
Well, it contains no fresh water, but its water tank is nearly full of water, which seems rather stagnant. Again, useful in an emergency, but not my first choice for water. - I like this canyon so far: a few more boulders to climb over ahead
I'm still not seeing any human footprints anywhere here. - Before I start climb up the adjacent hillside, I notice what I think is a young Palmer's penstemon sprouting in the canyon floor
... OK, time to climb up that hill. - It's a short steep climb out of the canyon, but I'm not experiencing any vertigo yet, which is good!
My footing is fairly firm for the most part, and I enjoy climbing up places like this, as long as I don't have to climb back down. - While climbing up the rocky hillside, I plow through a spider web by accident and have to brush this unusual spider off me
I don't think I've seen this kind of large spider before. It camouflages with the rocks. I think I also lightly poked my hand with a small cactus needle on the way up the hill and am hoping that I was not bitten by this spider! - On top of this hill above the canyon, I now have a clear vista across Ivanpah Valley
I can even see the straight line of part of Ivanpah Road stretching across the valley. - I like being up on my hill here, but there's more canyon down there for me to hike up
However, I think I stay up on the rolling hillside here for a little longer, in case there's another impasse waiting for me down in the canyon. - After 20 minutes of hiking near the ridge line, I still have nice views down into the canyon
There's no obvious route to follow up here: I'm constantly climbing up and down a little on this rugged hillside. - Once the canyon rises higher into a less rugged area, I decide to try continuing my hike in the canyon again
The canyon is more sandy than rocky up in this area. - Oh, a balloon in a remote location where people never go!
... and it is even printed with a nice rose pattern. I wonder what the bighorn sheep around here think about this design? - I'm now near my high point for the day (5000 feet elevation); Lecyr Spring should be not too far ahead
It's nice to be up high enough now to be in a forest of pinon pines and junipers. - I enter the canyon, and some of it is really narrow, at least at first
Cool and damp in the shady areas populated with small willow trees. It's a hidden world back here with no human footprints. What else is to come? - A narrow spot in the canyon, with willows growing in the canyon floor
This keeps getting more interesting. - I think these old flowerheads in the wash are from last season's Cliff roses
I'm almost at the end of the dead-end road here, and there are even a few human footprints here in addition to the tire tracks. - Rock piles along the wash attract my attention
In particular, I notice the etching-like horizontal lines in one rock at centre-left. Hmmm. A pinon pine grows on top of the rock pile. - At the bottom of this pile of rocks is what I call the flat-foot rock toes
... or maybe it's knuckles on a fat hand? - Nice, almost warm morning near Slaughterhouse Spring; I wake up baking in my tent around 8h30
I'm surprised at the expiring Desert senna flowers here and there; I didn't realize they can bloom in autumn. My energy is still a bit low this morning, but I head out on today's hike after breakfast anyway. - My first stop of the day is to see see what's at Slaughterhouse Spring
I haven't been here before. I've heard that there's no water available here, so I'm not expecting any.