Home / Mojave Preserve and Desert bikepacking trips / Spring 2012: Mojave National Preserve Bicycle-Camping and Hiking / Day 14: Borrego Canyon hike, Mojave National Preserve 44
Another hot day (nearby Cima: high 98F, low 69F), so I decide on this shorter hike instead of a long bike ride through some lower, and thus hotter, territory to Foshay Pass and back that I've been considering. 4.6 hiking miles and 16.7 bicycle miles.
Breezes keep the tent somewhat cool after the hot sun wakes me at 7h30, then I ride over to Hole-in-the-Wall Visitor Centre
It's Saturday, so the Hole-in-the-wall Visitor Centre is open; this Say's Phoebe nest is nearby whether open or not
I stop briefly at a stand of Desert willows (Chilopsis) while riding almost 2 miles down the paved Black Canyon Rd
Here's one of the butterflies I see in the Desert willow (Chilopsis) flowers on Black Canyon Road: probably a Monarch butterfly
Desert willow (Chilopsis) flowers are also popular with hummingbirds, but I can't seem to catch one on camera here
I ride the 3/4-mile rough road into the mouth of Borrego Canyon off Black Canyon Road
I'm surprised to find a spring and water tank at the end of the road: it's not marked on my maps
A couple of bees are swimming (or are they drowning?) in the spring tub at the end of Borrego Canyon Road
I stash the bicycle behind some Catclaw bushes with fragrant flowers and begin the hike up Borrego Canyon.
I pass a few small stands of Desert senna flowers in lower Borrego Canyon
Borrego Canyon splits into a north and south fork; I choose to follow the south fork
I guess it's time to stumble upon a stray balloon, since I haven't seen one yet today here in Borrego Canyon
A closer look shows that the lost balloon blew in from a Red Robin restaurant
Borrego Canyon is quite rocky, making for slow hiking, as I thought might be the case
I like this stretch of Borrego Canyon because there isn't as much vegetation to avoid, due to the rocky floor
I see fragments of animal trails here and there in Borrego Canyon, probably created by animals like these cows
A couple of aggressive yellowjacket wasps follow me as I slowly rise up this part of Borrego Canyon
I sit down for a moment in the little bit of shade provided by this tree in Borrego Canyon
Much of Borrego Canyon is rocky and brushy like here, offering no obviously good hiking route up the canyon
Hiking up Borrego Canyon is getting slower and slower as I encounter obstacles like these large rocks with increasing frequency
Hmmm, my next few steps in Borrego Canyon will be climbing over that boulder at the left
I take a look behind me and realize I am slowly gaining elevation in Borrego Canyon
I arrive at a small dry waterfall in Borrego Canyon and ponder my next steps
I take a look up the dry waterfall in Borrego Canyon and the small boulders clogging the drainage
I decide that the dry waterfall is a good place to turn around and start heading back down Borrego Canyon
Hiking Borrego Canyon is a bit faster in the downhill direction
On the way back down Borrego Canyon, I climb up a hill on the side of canyon and take a look back
I pass a cavelet in the rocks on the way back down Borrego Canyon
On the way back down Borrego Canyon, I get a good view of some rock igloos a bit like the ones I saw near Cave Spring yesterday
As I pass the rock igloos in Borrego Canyon, I take a look back
I like this rock outcrop in Borrego Canyon because it briefly gives me a smooth surface to walk across, for a change
It's fun climbing down the rocks here at a small dry waterfall on the way back down Borrego Canyon
A typical moment while hiking in Borrego Canyon
Borrego Canyon hiking: climb over the rocks
I look back at the mouth of the south fork of Borrego Canyon across a field of dry grey-pink buckwheat twigs
I walked around this mini-mesa on the way up Borrego Canyon; now it's time to walk up it
Lots of shiny volcanic-looking rock and barrel cacti love the heat here on this little Borrego Canyon mesa
I pass some horizontal layers of rock on the way back to my bicycle parked near Borrego Canyon Road
Borrego Canyon is quite pristine, except for the cow grazing and this fresh roll of barbed wire
Just before I arrive at my bicycle at the end of Borrego Canyon Road, I run into a big herd of cows
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
One final quiet evening of solitude in Mojave National Preserve near Twin Buttes
Borrego Canyon hike route, Mojave National Preserve
Borrego Canyon hike route, Mojave National Preserve, elevation profile