Home 7119
- I'm surprised when I find myself briefly hiking across a flat, prairie-like expanse in the Kelso Dunes Wilderness
- Zooming in, I can make out the tidbit of civilization that is Ludlow, California along old Route 66 and I-40
- Elevation profile of bicycle route from Ludlow to Bristol Mountains campsite
- Bicycle route from Ludlow to Bristol Mountains campsite
- Uh oh, another sandy area on the Bristol Mountains powerline road, and the sand looks deeper than anything I've seen today
- Well, it looks like almost a mile of this sand lies ahead of me, and it would take some time to push the bike through it all
- I start backtracking a little, looking for a good campsite here in the Bristol Mountains foothills
- I choose a spot about 150 feet in from the road; I don't like to be too close to the road in case visitors should pass by
- I go for a short walk around my campsite in the Bristol Mountains foothills to enjoy the glowing end-of-day light
- While walking around, I notice a lot of these small animal burrows around my campsite
- The end of sunset in the Bristol Mountains makes the creosote bushes appear in a darker, lusher green than usual
- The sun is setting here in the Bristol Mountains foothills, quickly
- After dark, the moon rises in the background and I boil water for tonight's add-water-to-bag meal
- Ugh, the Bristol Mountains powerline road is getting rather sandy!
- The Bristol Mountains powerline road splits here into a high road and low road, which rejoin each other beyond the hill
- I knew I'd find a happy-birthday balloon sooner or later out here in the wilderness...
- The Bristol Mountains low road has a nice coating of kitty litter on the surface in many places
- A wave of optimism strikes when I reach this rather smooth, and very ridable, stretch of the Bristol Mountains powerline road
- As I enter the Bristol Mountains foothills, I've been noticing swaths of a small brick-red plant
- It's time for an energy-bar break to power up for whatever might be ahead of me
- The Bristol Mounatins powerline road is looking good again, with a just bit of kitty litter on its surface
- After two miles on the unpaved Crucero Road, I arrive at a billboard advertising the Kelso Dunes Wilderness Area
- Something doesn't feel quite right on the 10-ton bike, so I pull over on the sandy power-line road for a moment
- I plow ahead on the powerline-pipeline road that separates the Kelso Dunes Wilderness from the Bristol Mountains Wilderness
- I look behind me to check my progress as I slowly ride up the Bristol Mountains powerline road into the foothills
- After a mile or so on Crucero Road, I notice a turn-out and decide to check it out
- I'm not disappointed by my leisurely breakfast at the Ludlow Café
- After I shower and repack my saddlebags, I quit the Ludlow Motel
- Before leaving Ludlow, I go for a short ride around the old Ludlow ghost town just south of the freeway
- This old car is parked permanently in old Ludlow, California
- I stop at the corner of Elliot and Main in old Ludlow to take in views of what's left of this town
- This old house along Ludlow's Route 66 still stands, but for how much longer?
- Almost all of the buildings on old Route 66 east of the Ludlow Café are abandoned
- Old Ludlow's commercial strip consists of three buildings today, all abandoned
- This old house in old Ludlow on Route 66 is almost hidden by the surrounding athel trees, presumably planted as a wind break
- After my brief tour around old Ludlow, I stop at the gas station store to pick up a couple more bottles of water
- After riding under the freeway at Ludlow, I pass "the other gas station," which also houses the Dairy Queen
- No more pavement for me today, nor tomorrow!
- I pass a "Limited Use Area" sign on Crucero Road shortly after leaving pavement
- I'm up early (for me) and walk over to the Ludlow Café next door to the motel for breakfast
- Barstow to Ludlow bicycle route elevation and speed profile
- Barstow to Ludlow bicycle route on old Route 66
- I enter Interstate 40 eastbound, riding on the shoulder of course
- I check in at the Ludlow Motel: bland, but cleaner and more spacious than last night's accommodations in Barstow (and $10 more)
- The sun fades away as old Route 66 crosses the train tracks at-grade near Pisgah siding
- Well, I can't deny any longer that it's about to get dark here on Route 66
- I pedal the final 10 miles to Ludlow in darkness, quite enjoyable with the almost-full moon peering through the clouds
- The water-stained menu in my room at the Ludlow Motel advertises the offerings of the Ludlow Café next door
- Route 66 in Newberry Springs sports a number of old buildings, some abandoned, some not: welcome to "The Barn"
- Riding down Route 66 through Newberry Springs, a tour bus that just passed me has pulled over on the side of the road
- As I pass the little crowd of people by the tour bus, I realize that the thing they are photographing is me
- Next to the Bagdad Café in Newberry Springs is the abandoned Henning Motel
- I stop to take a quick look at an abandoned gas station in Newberry Springs, which also once housed a restaurant
- Newberry Springs has a lot of abandoned houses, but the presence of many newer houses shows that the town is not dead
- Just east of Newberry Springs are several dry lakes with white minerals coming up to the surface
- Route 66's road surface gets really rough east of Newberry Springs; I'm glad I'm riding a mountain bike with suspension!
- It looks like these two abandoned and semi-demolished trailers near Route 66 east of Newberry Springs have been visited often
- Route 66 closely parallels the I-40 freeway the rest of the way to Ludlow, my destination today
- The clouds to my right and behind me are picking up some nice lighting as the sun starts to set on Route 66
- Before leaving Barstow, I make a quick stop at Food For Less to buy a couple of propane bottles
- I ride back to Barstow's Route 66 through residential areas and coast down a nice hill on my way out of town
- On the outskirts of Barstow, the road dead-ends at a Marine Corps base, so I turn back and get on the freeway for a few miles
- After approximately 2.5 miles on the freeway, I reach Nebo Street and one of those "bicycles must exit" signs
- As I approach the Daggett area, I notice this crumbling concrete structure not far from old Route 66
- Mugwumps? I pass a former old gas station labeled "Mugwumps," near Daggett's stop sign
- Route 66 reaches a stop sign as it passes through the little town of Daggett, California
- While riding through Daggett, I stop to check out the old sign for the now-defunct Sportsmans Club
- Although it's mostly sunny, some dark clouds are still floating around and mistly lightly upon me from time to time
- Also on Route 66 near Daggett is an old California Agricultural Inspection Station, long abandoned
- Riding east on Route 66 away from Daggett, one of many long freight trains passes by
- After several long, straight miles, old Route 66 curves and ducks under the freeway as it enters Newberry Springs
- I take advantage of the gas-station store at Newberry Springs for welcome a caffeine boost: a can of Mountain Dew
- I stop in at Barstow's Mojave River Museum for a quick visit before riding on toward Ludlow
- The Amtrak bus deposited me yesterday at Barstow Station, just before sunset
- My cabin room at the Route 66 Motel is small and a bit run-down, but the round bed adds unique character
- Route 66 Motel, Barstow, California
- Several old cars and other antique Route 66 paraphenalia decorate the grounds of Barstow's Route 66 Motel
- Another old car in the courtyard of Barstow's Route 66 Motel
- Among the many antiques on the Route 66 Motel property is this cigarette machine
- Barstow's downtown area has many older, modest dwellings built along desert hillsides
- A 24-hour donut shop on Barstow's Route 66 is closed due to the water contamination
- El Rancho Barstow is one of many older motels along Route 66 in central Barstow
- I grab some breakfast at Barstow's Village Café, which is probably cooking with the bad city water, since they're still open
- Bummer, no Chinese breakfast on the menu (who would order such "weird stuff"?), so I order scrambled eggs and bacon
- The rain stopped, the sun shining, I leave Route 66 Motel and detour a mile up Barstow Rd to the Mojave River Museum
- Outside the Mojave River Museum in Barstow is an old exterior cage-style jail cell
- Yesterday, I took the Amtrak San Joaquin train with my bicycle down California's Central Valley
- Elevation profile of bicycle route from Brant Hills to Baker via old Mojave Road, Mojave National Preserve
- Bicycle route from Brant Hills to Baker via old Mojave Road, Mojave National Preserve
- I stop briefly at Kelbaker Road's 10-mile curve, which means just 10 more miles until I reach Baker
- From Kelbaker Road's 10-mile curve, the town of Baker doesn't look like it's still 10 miles away
- On the way to Baker, I look back at the cinder cones and the Kelbaker Hills several times
- There it is: Baker, California, the end (and beginning) of this trip
- I pass lots of desert senna flowers exuding their sweet scent as I ride down Kelbaker Road
- I zoom in across an expanse of yellow creosote-bush blooms to one of the nearby cinder cones
- I reach the junction of Aiken Mine Road, ending the enjoyable ride down the old Mojave Road
- Scattered lava rock, sand, and washboard texture define the half-mile-long ride on Aiken Mine Road, my final unpaved road
- I take an energy-bar break when I reach the pavement of Kelbaker Road at 3000 feet elevation
- I arrive at the famous Mojave Road mailbox in the middle of nowhere and sign its guest book
- I pull out the guest book from the Mojave Road mailbox and sign in
- The old Mojave Road gets a bit more sandy as I head westward (and downward) after my stop at the Mojave Road mailbox
- I like the occasional rocky stretches on the old Mojave Road because they add traction to the sandy road
- A few purple sages bloom on this part of the old Mojave Road amongst the yellow flowers
- I pause when I cross the junction of Rainbow Wells Road to enjoy the view across to the Providence Mountains
- I take a break near the Mojave Road junction for an energy bar, water, and to apply more sunscreen
- I turn here and begin the short climb up to the summit of the old Mojave Road, after which the big downhill of the day begins
- From the summit of the Mojave Road at about 4550 feet, I have a nice view across the Marl Mountains to the Kelso Dunes
- Nice view across the flank of Cima Dome and the powerline road that I just finished riding, from the summit of the Mojave Road
- I'm ready to start the Mojave Road downhill ahead of me
- The old Mojave Road heads briefly southwest; I'm heading toward the Old Dad Mountain area for a short while
- Parts of the old Mojave Road are like a roller coaster, rising and falling gently over the desert terrain
- Up, down, up, down, on the old Mojave Road; my fat tires hiss in the sand
- The old Mojave Road continues rolling onward downhill; the loose sand on the road surface makes it feel a bit like skiing
- One of several primroses blooms on the shoulder of Cima Road
- Before turning off at the unpaved powerline road, I take a look behind me back down toward Cima
- I start riding up the powerline road, pass an electrical substation, then reach a closed gate
- The powerline road starts out evenly, but I run into a short steep hill, as expected
- The power lines here add extra height to the joshua-tree forest
- I'm high enough now on the flank of Cima Dome that I can see across Kelso Valley to the Granite Mountains
- I zoom in past the transmission tower for a closer view of the Kelso Dunes
- To the east I can see Macedonia Canyon Road climbing the fan out of Kelso Valley into the Mid Hills
- I've crossed the high point of the powerline road and now have a bit of downhill ahead of me; this will be a fun change
- A handmade sign warns of the dangers of the Mojave Green rattlesnake
- Across upper Ivanpah Valley is the summit of Cima Dome, so subtle that it can only be perceived from a distance
- Roughly two miles before Cima, I cross an intersection with an unsigned dirt road to my right; I continue straight ahead
- Nice to see a few cheerful orange desert-mallow flowers again, this time framing my glance toward Butcher Knife Canyon
- The double culvert under this trestle along Brant Road near Cima bears two different date inscriptions
- As I approach Cima, another freight train churns by, a few feet away from me as I ride along Brant Road
- Several of the tanks whooshing by me are labelled as "corn sweetener"
- I reach the end of the unpaved Brant Road and rejoin asphalt near the three-way stop at Cima, and automobile traffic
- I take a break at the Cima Store; it's open!
- I start the 1.5-mile ride up Cima Road to the powerline road, passing an abandoned house on the way out of "town"
- Despite the fairly high elevation (over 4000 feet here), Cima Road is apparently subject to flash floods during heavy rains
- Approaching the power lines that cross Cima Road, I start looking for the dirt road that I'll follow somewhere at my left
- I look across the train tracks from Brant Road toward the Sacaton Spring area
- Brant Road hugs the train track as it curves to follow the route toward Cima, Mojave National Preserve
- The conductor of an oncoming train toots his horn and waves at me at Joshua siding, Mojave National Preserve
- The 10-ton bike hides in the shade of the trestle at Joshua siding while a freight train rumbles overhead
- This is a pensive, scenic ride on Brant Road toward Cima
- I ride through the sandy area at the end of the road and arrive at the train tracks in Ivanpah Valley
- Several of the rail supports are crooked and one has cracked
- The 10-ton bike breaks briefly under the train trestle at Brant Road
- I start riding up lonesome Brant Road toward Cima, my next stop, and a train passes
- I slam on the brakes while coasting down to a wash crossing on Brant Road, due to a "special rock" in the road
- The tortoise appears to see me approaching
- Close up, I notice that the tortoise is pinkish around his mouth, and it doesn't look like part of his natural complexion
- Tortoises shouldn't be touched, but they also shouldn't be left in a rocky road where a passing car might inadvertently crush it
- I pick up the tortoise and put him down amidst some flowers, encelias perhaps, off the road
- A bit further up Brant Road, I stop to look across the tortoise's habitat, and down toward Ivanpah Dry Lake
- Brant Road dips down again to cross a wash, with the adjacent train tracks crossing the wash on an old concrete bridge
- I finally get past the rocky part of the road to a more ridable stretch
- As I approach the bottom of the road, I look back up toward the New York Mountains and the area where I camped last night
- I zoom in for a closer look at the New York Mountains
- The 10-ton bike packed up, off I go down the hill toward Ivanpah Valley
- The old road doesn't stand out much as it crawls down the fan toward the Ivanpah Valley train tracks
- On my way back to the tent after brushing my teeth, a yucca spine impales the tube of toothpaste protruding from my pocket
- The job is almost done: tent disassembled, my supplies hop into my saddlebags one item at a time
- I enjoy cold coffee and eat breakfast while packing up to leave Ivanpah Valley
- I wake up early and look outside to another warm sunny day: sadly, the final morning of this trip
- The first major task of the day is to fix my flat front tire, so I can actually go somewhere
- A colourful and very long freight train crosses the Ivanpah Valley a couple of miles down the fan from my tent
- Something seems to have bitten my leg yesterday, but I don't remember it happening
- Elevation profile of bicycle route from Nipton to Brant Hills
- Bicycle route from Nipton to Brant Hills
- I pause to take a look at a mature pinon pine along the old road
- I walk down the old road, enjoying the sunset
- A fire ring exists for those who come up here to camp
- I look back up the dry creek bed and at the hills behind collecting the sunset
- I pass the last of the pinnacles as I descend down the fan toward my campsite perched above Ivanpah Valley
- A few barrel cacti grow in the transition zone here between creosote-bush desert and the woodlands of the New York Mountains
- A Wilderness marker blocks an old road on the way back to my campsite above Ivanpah Valley
- I make it back to my tent overlooking Ivanpah Valley just before dusk
- The final moments of sunset cast red across the New York Mountains hilltops
- This crossing of the old road over the stream is still in really good condition
- Water trickling down the rocks creates a small brook
- I notice another small, clean pool of water in the rock just below
- An even larger pool of water sits in the shade a little higher up
- A long freight train slowly crosses the Ivanpah Valley below
- I look at these rocky hills and think it would be fun to climb one of them during the brief time I'm here
- Sunset is approaching, so it's time to turn around and start the mile-long walk back to the tent
- I continue my walk up the old road, which is increasingly grown-in
- Lo and behold, a pool of water!
- Actually, a couple of pools of water remain in the rocks
- The old road winds across the fan, then turns sharply left to begin its climb into the New York Mountains
- The road is discernable, but obviously not used very often
- The uphill road isn't steep, but it's too rocky for me to ride on the 10-ton bike, so I get off and walk
- On the way up the hill, my front tire goes flat despite my Slime-filled inner tube
- Finding a campsite is tricky in this area above Ivanpah Valley because there are hardly any open spaces between plants
- After a short rest in the tent and an energy bar, it's time for a walk up into the nearby New York Mountains foothills
- Some pinnacles and rock piles make for another classic New York Mountains landscape
- An interesting find is this old rock wall
- The top of this rock pile reminds me of a vulture's head
- I walk around the old rock wall and look down across the Ivanpah Valley
- Upon further inspection, a scrubby shrub looks like it might be some kind of oak tree
- Someone lost a hubcap here on Brant Road
- I reach the first of two roads that lead up toward the New York Mountains off Brant Road
- I continue riding up the road toward Brant siding, where there is supposed to be another road leading up into the hills
- I reach what is indicated on my maps and GPS as Brant siding, but find no road crossing over or under the tracks
- I discover an old structure and corral on the other side of the tracks at Brant siding
- Scattered old trash is also found on the other side of the tracks at Brant siding