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- I sit under the big oak tree at the spring for a few minutes to enjoy the shade
- Presumably, this rusty, old sign used to deliver a message of some kind
- This wood block looks like it was used as a base for pounding things
- A couple of signatures adorn the inside of the door
- Time to head back down to Keystone Canyon; next stop Keystone Spring
- A few little red flowers catch my eye as I walk quickly down the canyon: probably Scarlet gilia
- This is a great little canyon, full of rocks and trees, completely quiet and remote
- I think I've found it: Bronze Mine Spring
- Rails once ferried a tram to the the top of the chute
- Looking in the opposite direction, the tram track leads from a storage building
- As I walk around, looking for the spring, I come across a pile of acorns
- OK, now I take a break under the shade of a big old pine tree and eat some almonds
- Slightly refreshed from my break, I go for a walk around the site and note a fairly intact old chute
- Timbers prop up the old chute
- I go for a walk to see what the chute looks like from above
- I keep hiking up the old road into the New York Mountains, looking forward to seeing the old mine site ahead
- Ah, now I can see some old mining remains in the distance
- The road ends and I find a fire ring that hasn't been used for a while, and an abandoned truck
- I wasn't expecting to find anything at this site except for perhaps some old mining debris
- I'm overheating and need a break, but I can't resist the urge to take a peek inside first
- A stove and a broom
- A platform for sleeping and a shelf for food
- Here and there in Keystone Canyon, I've been seeing the occasional red penstemon flower for hummingbirds
- After a few minutes, I'm already high enough to have a view across to the other side of Keystone Canyon
- Striped boulder in lower Keystone Canyon, Mojave National Preserve
- Here is some kind of manzanita bush growing in Keystone Canyon, New York Mountains
- Rock wall in Keystone Canyon
- Time to hike uphill and gain a few hundred feet of elevation on another old road
- This small shrub in Keystone Canyon reminds me of Yerba Santa (Eriodictyon californicum)
- A few yellow flowers bloom in the gravel of Keystone Canyon (probably Groundsel, aka Senecio)
- Back on my feet after my break, partially rejuvenated, I start hiking up Keystone Canyon
- I look at sap on the bark of the pinon pine at my former Keystone Canyon campsite while drinking water and eating almonds
- I luxuriate briefly in the shade of a big pinon pine at a campsite in Keystone Canyon where I've camped before
- I take a look back at the tent down there as I get going on today's hike to Keystone Spring; hot sun, slight hot breeze
- I've missed most of this spring's flower blooms, but there are still occasional cactus blossoms
- Hiking cross-country here in the New York Mountains foothills provides views across to the Castle Peaks
- I haven't seen any people yet today, but I have found signs of people: a balloon
- By 9h, it's too hot in the tent, and I have no choice but to get up and start today's hike to Keystone Spring
- The first stop on today's hike is nearby Mail Spring; a pair of deer stare at me as I approach
- Hmmm... a rubber glove near Mail Spring
- Well, here's how much water remains at Mail Spring in late spring 2012
- There's a wildlife camera here at Mail Spring; I wonder if my photo has been taken
- Several large mahonia (berberis) bushes at Mail Spring are covered with thousands of yellow flowers
- This old cistern at Mail Spring was probably frequented by cattle back when this was still grazing land
- An inscription in the concrete at the Mail Spring cistern reads 'Bob + Louise'
- Another inscription in the concrete at the Mail Spring cistern reads 'Ed Shirey'
- I wake up in the Mail Spring area of Mojave National Preserve and realize I'm still alive after yesterday's hot bicycle ride
- I'm tired and not feeling refreshed, but the New York Mountains up the road from my tent look good in the early morning sun
- Mojave National Preserve: Primm, Nevada to Mail Spring, 3000 feet of elevation gain
- Mojave National Preserve: Primm, Nevada to Mail Spring, 3000 feet of elevation gain
- Close-up of my fuzzy shadows caused by the eclipse
- A few years ago (2008), my overloaded bike rack broke while riding on the washboarded road here on Ivanpah Road
- As the sun goes down on Ivanpah Road, I pull over to look at the Bathtub Spring Peaks area where I hiked last year
- The sunset light on upper Ivanpah Road is incredible; tired, I'm walking the bike sometimes, enjoying the colours
- Finally, I've reached the flatter, upper part of Ivanpah Road, still with blurry shadows due to the eclipse
- The sun goes down behind me with a nice belt-of-Venus over Ivanpah Valley below as I continue riding up Ivanpah Road
- Well after dark, I find a nice campsite along a road near Mail Spring, Mojave National Preserve, and set up for a couple of days
- I set up the tent and lay down, too tired to boil water for an instant meal tonight (I just eat a lot of roasted almonds)
- As I ride (and sometimes walk) the 10-ton bike up Ivanpah Road, I notice the light somehow seems a bit weird
- Scape sunscreen: I feel like a chemical test site: it's bubbling and foaming in the extreme heat (high 90s F), how weird
- Just ahead on the other side of the tracks is the old Ivanpah store, which means this segment of today's ride is ending
- Here in the Ivanpah area, I'm at about 3500 feet elevation, about 1000 feet above where I started down at Primm
- I'm back on pavement for a couple of miles and ride past the former Ivanpah store on Ivanpah Road
- Ivanpah Rd slowly climbs toward a pass in the New York Mountains: I look for another place to escape the sun for a few minutes
- I pull over for a heat-exhaustion break where the pavement ends on Ivanpah Road
- Hmm, there will surely be some shade over by that old building over there that was probably part of the Goldome Mine complex
- I'm hungry for shade right now, so I approach the old building as if it were a piece of food
- I take refuge from the hot sun on the shady side of the abandoned cinder-block building that I've been eyeing
- Someone has set up a fire ring in front of the old building
- Perhaps this old building once served as a kitchen or showers for the adjacent Goldome mine
- Large window openings open onto big views of the Ivanpah Mountains and the Clark Mountains in the distance
- Somewhat rejuvenated from my break in the shade, I return to the 10-ton bike to continue the ride (or walk) up Ivanpah Road
- This short stretch of Nipton-Moore Road is extremely sandy where it crosses a wash near the power lines
- I hide under the train tracks for a few minutes to get out of the hot sun
- Back on the road, I pedal onward, slowly, toward the New York Mountains
- I pass by a road leading down into the Ivanpah Valley toward private property
- Ooo, another railway undercrossing along Nipton-Moore Road; I think I should stop here for a moment to check it out
- I'm happy when I get past Desert siding, cross under the tracks, and reach some old pavement
- A few Coyote-melon vines extend out into the road along Nipton-Desert Road
- That patch of buildings ahead is Nipton; I'll take a break there in a few minutes
- Nipton, California, population 20; I take a half-hour break here
- After my break at Nipton, I return to the dirt road parallel to the train tracks for the next 10-mile segment
- 2.5 miles beyond Nipton, I'm feeling hot again and notice some potential shade as I cross under the power lines
- Sunscreen on, and the 10-ton bike packed up, I pull away from the hotel at Primm
- After my coffee and water stop at the gas station (I don't need gas), I leave pavement and ride down this dirt road out of Primm
- It's nice to see the I-15 freeway and its traffic getting smaller as I ride down the dirt road away from Primm
- I reach the main dirt road from Primm to Nipton, often called Nipton-Desert Road, and note that I'm 10.5 miles from my next stop
- I've got about 7 miles of bumpy dirt road to ride on the way to Nipton (the last 3 are old pavement)
- I pass a few old household items dumped along Nipton-Desert Road
- After almost an hour and a half in the heat, I'm already getting hot, and grab some shade under the railway tracks
- While taking my shade break under the train tracks, I notice a washed-out cattleguard on the old road to the Lucy Gray Mine area
- I spent last night at Whiskey Pete's Casino Hotel in Primm, NV and I'm more than ready to get going this morning
- Tomorrow morning, I look across the train tracks at Barstow Station toward old cabins while waiting for my Amtrak bus
- I'm always intrigued by the airplane graveyard here at Mojave, CA when the Amtrak bus drives by
- Bicycle route elevation from Cady Mountains to Barstow via Route 66
- I'm awake somewhat early this morning since I have the 45-mile ride back to Barstow today and I might have a big headwind
- This stretch of old Route 66, heading into Newberry Springs, parallels the I-40 freeway, clearly visible to my right
- A number of old trailers dot the outskirts of Newberry Springs along old Route 66
- I pass a lava field along old Route 66 east of Newberry Springs
- Near the lava field east of Newberry Springs is the end of Troy Dry Lake
- I take a very short break along the shores of Troy Dry Lake to enjoy the Mojave Desert scenery
- I pass another collection of old mobile homes along Route 66 east of Newberry Springs
- I enjoy looking at this well-kept property in Newberry Springs when I pass by; perhaps a former gas station
- Also in Newberry Springs is this abandoned A-frame building with a roof of wood shingles
- A playful, and perhaps vicious, group of dogs protect a former gas-station/restaurant property in Newberry Springs
- Another old Route 66 mobile home
- I arrive at the Route 66 Motel in Barstow and its collection of old cars 'n' such, and check in for another night
- I love the quirky old round beds at the Route 66 Motel in Barstow
- Junk plays on TV at my room at the Route 66 Motel in Barstow
- Next-door to the Bagdad Café is the old Henning Motel, with its metal roof being stripped by vandals
- I ride the 2.5-mile segment of the I-40 freeway where bicycles are allowed, since there is no practical alternate route
- Fast-food break! Subway restaurant at the Newberry Springs gas station at the I-40 freeway
- A short paved section of road passes under the I-40 freeway and connects me to old Route 66
- Back on old Route 66! Only another 40 miles or so until I reach Barstow, my destination for the day
- As I eat a quick dry breakfast and get ready to pack up, I notice a thorny cholla piece that I tracked into my tent
- The tent and all is packed up and I start riding the powerline road back down to old Route 66
- The Cady Mountains powerline road cuts a straight line across this part of the Mojave Desert
- I pass the Bagdad Café in Newberry Springs, famous for its appearance in the movie of the same name
- After I get off the freeway, I have another two miles to ride on a frontage road into Barstow, parallel to the I-40 freeway
- I'm having problems switching gears in Barstow, so I pull over to take a closer look
- After another 10 lonely miles riding old Route 66, I arrive at the village of Daggett and ride down some of the side streets
- I ride up a quiet residential street in the village of Daggett
- I still wonder about this former gas station fashioned into Mugwumps printing business at some point; I've noticed it before
- Abandoned something in Daggett, California
- Cady Mountains hike elevation profile
- And there it is, home for one last night on this trip, my tent
- The last light of the day in the Cady Mountains shines on the power lines, with the Sleeping Beauty peaks in the background
- Just after sunset, my cheap pocket Canon camera picks up the final glow of the day, and a crescent moon
- It wasn't an especially strenuous hike today, but I'm hungry, and boil water for my instant evening meal
- Many of the Smoke trees in the lower part of this Cady Mountains canyon look a bit dead (just dormant in the cold season?)
- Despite the many dead or dormant Smoke trees in the area, here's one with a bit of foliage
- I contemplate the views across Broadwell Dry Lake to the Bristol Mountains, past Hyten Spring, where I hiked a few days ago
- I hike cross-country in the Cady Mountains foothills one final mile to get back to my tent, avoiding the powerline road nearby
- Hmmm... here's a little yellow flower that I'm not familiar with
- The power lines crossing the pass in the Cady Mountains pick up the end-of-day sunlight quite sculpturally
- On my way down, I notice a solid way up the next hill, so up I go to reach my high point of the day in the Cady Mountains
- I'm already in the shade while climbing up this Cady Mountains hill after 14h in late November
- Now I'm really above Broadwell Dry Lake!
- I climb up the rock staircase to another Cady Mountains summit of sorts
- Awesome views everywhere; I decide to be content with my Cady Mountains summit of 4350 feet here today
- On the way back down the Cady Mountains, I notice a tiny hole in a shaded rock outcrop at my upper left
- I head back down from my Cady Mountains summit
- A few steps down that rock pile I climbed up earlier on the way up into the Cady Mountains
- As I head down the wide canyon in the Cady Mountains that I hiked up, I realize I gained more elevation here than I thought
- I pass an interesting "gravelslide" on the way back down my Cady Mountains canyon
- Nice blue shadows are being cast in the Sleeping Beauty peaks area as I hike down my Cady Mountains canyon
- I wonder about this U-shaped deposit of rock in the Cady Mountains as I walk past it
- I spot a larger cave in the Cady Mountains next to the smaller one I saw earlier, on my way up the saddle
- I return to the main canyon, looking for a better route up, and head straight toward the Cady Mountain peaks and a rock outcrop
- Great, the rocks look like a really easy step up to the next level of this Cady Mountains canyon
- A few steps up...
- I take a quick look back down beyond the rock pile I just climbed up
- Above the little dry waterfall is easy walking on gravel below the Cady Mountains peaks
- This climb right here is short and steep, but fairly easy, with mostly good footing
- Arriving at a saddle in the Cady Mountains, I notice a little cave
- I feel like I'm on top of the world as I arrive at a local summit in the Cady Mountains
- I take a nice water-and-energy-bar break up here on my Cady Mountains summit to enjoy the views
- I slowly climb back down the Cady Mountains gulley that I just came up
- Cady Peak, behind my hat, is not all that far away, but I'm not really on the route up to the peak
- I climb a short distance up and around this dry waterfall, but decide it's more slippery than I was hoping for
- This adjacent hill has good views of the hill I just climbed, but it too is quite slippery
- I notice several "Chinch weeds," if that's what they are, as I walk across the alluvial fan
- I've seen Brittlebrush a few times on this trip
- Big ant hill at the mouth of my chosen canyon in the Cady Mountains with a nice view of Broadwell Dry Lake
- As I hike up the canyon into the Cady Mountains, I come across a balloon stuck in the brush
- I keep walking up the Cady Mountain canyon, looking for possible easy routes up into the rocky hills
- Another beautiful morning, hot sun, cool air, and I'm ready for the last hike on this trip, into the Cady Mountains behind me
- I start walking up and down across the rocky fan and pass one of several jackrabbits that I'll see today
- Ludlow to Cady Mountains bicycle ride, elevation profile
- The morning after Thanksgiving, Ludlow Café is almost deserted, which is unusual
- Crap! I have the dreaded headwind while riding westward out of Ludlow alongside the I-40 freeway
- I take note of a makeshift land-for-sale sign while riding past Sleeping Beauty
- Here's one of those photos that I have to take each time I pass by here: Route 66 crosses the train tracks at Pisgah siding
- 5 miles later, it's time to cross I-40 again, this time by crossing under it
- This short worn-out paved road (perhaps once a part of Old Route 66?) has a gouge down the middle where the yellow line would be
- OK, the pavement has departed, and I'm headed up into the Cady Mountains on dirt and gravel
- More loose rock along the road as I slowly rise and enter the Cady Mountains
- As hoped, the road surface is firmer as I get higher into the Cady Mountains
- As I ride though Cady Mountains pass, I start looking more seriously for a campsite for the next two nights
- Morning at the Ludlow Motel is nice and quiet; I walk over to The Café next-door for a home-cooked breakfast
- Old Route 66 crosses over the I-40 freeway
- As I approach the Pisgah Crater area along Old Route 66, I take note of the many pink plants growing on the shoulder
- My gears are acting up still, so I pour more lubricant onto them
- I pause on the way up the gentle hill leading into the Cady Mountains to look back on the sandy road
- I check out the side roads as I ride through Cady Mountains pass and find a great campsite for two nights, before sunset even
- It gets slippery here and there on Crucero Road due to powdery surface sand
- Wheee, here we go riding straight ahead the 4.5-mile length of Broadwell Dry Lake!
- I take a break out in the middle of Broadwell Dry Lake to walk around and enjoy the expanse without the noise of my bicycle
- On the south end of Broadwell Dry Lake are scattered many small rocks which look like they may be volcanic in origin
- The dirt of Crucero Road comes to an end as I reach pavement at Ludlow and the I-40 freeway
- I've arrived early enough to have supper at the Ludlow Café.
- After Broadwell Dry Lake, I crawl up Crucero Road toward Ludlow, which is about 2 miles beyond the transmission tower
- I turn for a look across Crucero Valley as I stumble across the rocky landscape
- And here's one of those Goldfields-like flowers of which I saw several while hiking Sleeping Beauty a couple of days ago
- I think this is a little Claret-cup cactus sprouting an early blossom
- I pass through a forest of Smoke trees on the way up Hyten Spring Wash
- It's easy to miss little piles of cactus droppings like these as you walk over them in the Mojave Desert
- The Lewis (Lew) Carpenter Guzzler, Kelso Dunes Wilderness
- I follow the tire tracks a short distance off my Hyten Spring hiking route and find that they end at a guzzler
- I pass a deflated barrel cactus in Hyten Spring Wash that lost its footing on the steep adjacent hillside