Home / Mojave Preserve and Desert bikepacking trips / Spring 2011: Mojave National Preserve and area bicycle camping / Day 5: Castle Peaks hike, New York Mountains, Mojave National Preserve 76
Perfect weather. First, I'll hike over to Indian Spring, hoping to find water so I can spend an extra day here. Then I'll hike around a few of the Castle Peaks pinnacles. I'll see no people today. 10.1 hiking miles and about 2300 feet of elevation gain.
- Morning at Castle Peaks Road means I get to try out the deluxe facilities while listening to the quail; it works well!
I woke up several times overnight to hide my head further in my sleeping bag against the cold air, but otherwise slept so soundly that I wake up feeling like I have a hangover. I finally wake up around 9h, suddenly hot from the morning sun on my tent. - I notice bird activity near my tent and locate a nearly invisible bird's nest in an elbow of this joshua tree at centre-right
Breakfast is the usual granola, dried apricots and pineapple, vitamin C drink, plus two cold coffees. Enjoying the Starbucks' Tribute Blend and feeling somewhat refreshed this morning. It's now day 5 of this trip, and my strength is starting to build up. - I start today's hike by climbing up a hill and looking down at my tent in the little valley at the end of Castle Peaks Road
Nice view of the New York Mountains high peaks poking up above the hills. I'll hike over in that area next week. - Someone has a nest here sheltered against a boulder on top of the hill above my tent
Packrats? Crap, I forgot to bring my lip balm with me today. This is one mistake I usually make only once on each of Mojave trips. - I pass a few brilliant Indian paintbrush plants as I further climb the hills above my tent
Joshua trees are scattered, but not dense here. - I'm now at one of the high points of this ridge in the Castle Peaks area, at about 5225 feet elevation
Great views in all directions and some interesting cement-like rock formations. I'm about 250 feet above my tent here. - Good views over to the New York Mountains peaks from this Castle Peaks ridge
The two joshua trees here lend some scale to the size of the rock outcrops and the vastness of the area. I linger here for a few minutes to enjoy it. - From this ridge, the only way is down, so I continue eastward down into the canyon below
I'll drop about 200 feet in elevation here. It's a bit steep in places, but open enough that cross-country hiking and obstacle avoidance is easy. - To my surprise, I find a small stream in this unnamed Castle Peaks canyon
No spring is marked on my maps at this location, so I wasn't expecting to find any water between my tent and Indian Spring, my destination, on the other side of Castle Peaks. The water is clean and some bees are enjoying the stream's periphery. - I climb up the next hill and down into a juniper-studded valley
I'm enjoying my random up-and-down cross-country route, but it's certainly not the most efficient route. - I encounter a nice patch of Mojave asters on the way down into the valley below Castle Peaks
I'm a little late this year: many of the Mojave asters I've been seeing are near the end of their flowering season, unlike this one. - In this little valley below Castle Peaks, I reach an old closed road, a perfect trail after a bit of cross-country hiking
I check my maps and, yes, this is the same closed road that I saw while riding the Barnwell-Searchlight railway grade yesterday. It's the only one in this area. - The cool rocks formations in the Castle Peaks area are endless; this one harbors a small natural arch
... so I have to make a short detour to check it out. - I crouch and walk through this little rock arch in the Castle Peaks area
How long did it take for this hole in the rock to erode? - On the other side of this Castle Peaks arch is a rock formation that looks like a tortoise, with its head extended
This rock tortoise (or is it a lizard?) even has an eye! - I climb over the next hill (a 75-foot rise), upon which I find a boulder with a tuft of cactus on its head
Now I'll drop down into a wash below where those joshua trees ahead look so distant. - I find a few Gooding's verbenas blooming in the wash
Sometimes these are quite abundant in the Mojave Desert highlands, but I haven't seen many yet on this trip; I'm probably a bit late in the season. - Now that I'm in a smooth-bottomed wash in the Castle Peaks area, my hiking speed is picking up a little
I've been hiking randomly up and down hills to explore the area, with no real route other than hiking in the general direction of Indian Spring, where I'll hopefully get some more water. - In this Castle Peaks wash, I encounter my first stray balloon of the day, trapped in a desert sage bush
Will I encounter more of these today? I stuff this one in my backpack for later disposal. - In this Castle Peaks wash is the most lush Desert four o'clock (Mirabilis multiflora) that I've seen so far on this trip
Many of these that I've seen so far are nearing the end of their flowering season. - Six minutes after my first balloon discovery, I stumble across a second one in the same Castle Peaks wash
This one is impaled on a cactus, so I decide not to collect it to throw in the trash later. It can stay here! - Hiking down this Castle Peaks wash is fun (it's a bit downhill), and then I reach this fairly recent barbed-wire fence
This might be the Mojave National Preserve boundary. There's plenty of room for me to crawl under the fence, so I do. I just hope it will be as easy to cross when I encounter it again in a short while. - A nice juxtaposition of pink cactus flowers and orange desert mallows in this Castle Peaks wash
Is there anything pinker than these cactus flowers? - Yellow Eriophyllum wallacei flowers are scattered intermittently in this Castle Peaks wash
I often mistake these for goldfields flowers. - A few stretches of this Castle Peaks wash have a lot of thorny Catclaw acacia bushes to avoid
Catclaw acacia are those grey leafless bushes that look dead. They are just beginning to sprout leaves at this time of year. I always gets hooked and stabbed by this plant if my hiking gets careless in areas like this! - A few rather large Chia sages grow in this Castle Peaks wash
This part of the wash is quite open, with fewer catclaw acacia bushes to watch out for: easy hiking. - I climb out of the wash and crawl under the barbed-wire fence again, in order to continue hiking toward Indian Spring
The wash below is starting to veer away from my desired direction. If I were to continue hiking in it, I'd eventually end up down around Walking Box Ranch Road. It would be an interesting hike, but it's not on today's route. - Near the barbed-wire fence is the brightest blooming desert sage I've seen yet on this trip
I lightly brush my hand against it to catch its wonderful aroma. - I drop down into the next wash that my route randomly crosses
A few milkweeds grow in this wash, not flowering yet. - I continue hiking more or less along the barbed-wire fence
... but I will soon need to veer off to my left to stay on track for my Indian Spring destination, regardless of any hills that may be in the way. - I climb over several low hills on my cross-country route toward Indian Spring
There's no easier way to cross this area except to go up and down against the topography. I'm enjoying the barrel cacti around here. - I notice a nice little "pineapple cactus" on my cross-country trek over the low hills
It would be easy to carelessly walk on this pile of thorns if it didn't have a protruding flower. - As I drop down into yet another wash, I realize I'm quite close to Taylor Spring (dry), where I hiked last year
If I were to turn around and hike down this wash in the downhill direction, I'd be at the Taylor Spring site in less than a 1/4 mile. - I climb up another hill on the way to Indian Spring and recognize the valley of junipers and joshua trees in front of me
I hiked there last year, and around Malpais Spring in front of those rocky hills. - My cross-country hiking ends temporarily when I hit the old closed road to Indian Spring, which serves as a nice trail
I have about a quarter mile to go until I reach Indian Spring. I try my cell phone since I remember having reception in some of this area, but it doesn't work right here. - As I approach Indian Spring, I notice a balloon fragment tangled in a catclaw bush
That's balloon #3 for today! I see a few doves and hope that's a sign that Indian Spring is full of water like it was last year. - Well, here I am at Indian Spring, New York Mountains, Mojave National Preserve
... not to be confused with the Indian Springs near Kelbaker Road. The water in the trough looks a bit greener than I remember from last year's visit to Indian Spring. Those grasses weren't growing in the trough last year. - Just like last year, bees are buzzing around the shallow water where it overflows from the Indian Spring trough
An overflowing water trough in the dry Mojave Desert: nice! But I'll stay away from this end of the tub! - I leisurely filter 3 1.5-litre bottles of that greenish water from the Indian Spring tub and it tastes pretty good
The water tastes better than the tap water I brought with me from the motel in Searchlight. In fact, it's the best water I've had so far on this trip. My MSR water filter is acting a bit erratic and I hope it's not about to fail. - I leave Indian Spring and start my way cross-country up to a saddle between two sets of pinnacles in the Castle Peaks
I stared at these pinnacles a lot while hiking in this area last year, but didn't do the climb up to the saddle. - The climb up to this Castle Peaks saddle is about 500 feet elevation in about 3/4 mile from Indian Spring down below
I'm rising quickly toward the saddle, and the cool breeze is making the uphill hike easier than I expected. - I'm almost there; just a little further and I'll be on that saddle between the two Castle Peaks pinnacle `groups`
The juniper trees provide a sense of scale as to how large these pinnacles are. - Great views back down into the valley behind me from this Castle Peaks saddle
I especially enjoyed hiking through the band of barrel cacti just below here. - Arrived! I sit here on the Castle Peaks saddle for a good 15 minutes, with pinnacles in front of me, and behind me
I eat an energy bar, take lots of photos, send a few texts and check phone messages (my cell phone works up here, as I thought it might). I'm at about 5475 feet elevation here. - From the Castle Peaks saddle, I can zoom in across the valley and just barely make out the Searchlight area
It's fun to just sit here and stare into the distance. - As I plot the continuation of my hike, I look down into a secluded valley on the other (west) side of the Castle Peaks saddle
Since I don't have a predetermined route today, I'm checking my GPS for route options. I'm not ready to drop back down into the wash just yet. - Instead of dropping down into the valley, I decide to skirt along this hill and hike over to the next Castle Peaks saddle
I'll hike carefully along this slope over to the slot between the hills straight ahead. I will need to descend a bit in order to avoid the steepest part of the slope ahead. - I get close to the slot in the hills and will hike up to the little pass between them at upper-right
It's slow hiking along here due to some loose rock and somewhat steep grade in places. - Looking to the south, I'm now in the upper part of that small valley between two Castle Peaks pinnacle `groups`
Not a lot of wildflowers here, but this white Mojave thistle (Cirsium neomexicana) is doing fine. - I walk up a boulder-strewn drainage area toward that pass in the Castle Peaks
What will I see up there? - The views behind me, toward Walking Box Ranch Road to the south, are striking in the late-day sunlight
There must be birds' nests up in that inaccessible pinnacle... - I reach this pass in the Castle Peaks and have an unexpected view to the north across the Ivanpah Valley
I'll continue hiking to my left here, up to the next Castle Peaks pinnacle area. - One short, steep hill and I'll be up at the next Castle Peaks pinnacles
It's fun navigating out here with a general direction, but without a precisely predetermined route. However, I have to keep checking my GPS and maps to make sure I don't end up on a slope that's a bit too steep to hike safely. I get vertigo easily. - To the west, I get a view I haven't seen before, with the New York Mountains peaks at upper-left
I keep staring at the distant set of pinnacles at upper-right beyond the juniper-studded hills, wondering exactly where they are. I think I'll be in that area on tomorrow's hike. - Phlox flowers on the north side of the Castle Peaks hills
Even small amounts of pink like this jump out against the green and grey Mojave Desert landscape. - My hike up to the pinnacles quickly gets a bit steep and slippery due to loose rock, so I veer to the right a little
I see a flatter patch of land just ahead. - I'm happy to reach the top of the hill; it's pretty steep here
Vertigo is starting to set in (I wish it wouldn't). - This Castle Peaks set of pinnacles is just as awesome as the last one; the one in front of me is Dove Peak
This is my high point for the day, around 5525 feet elevation. I take a short break here to enjoy it all. - Well, I guess I'll drop down into the valley between these Castle Peaks hills and start heading back to my campsite
I always hate to leave the high-elevation point of any hike, but Mojave Desert washes are just as much fun to explore as the high points. - I notice a natural arch in the Castle Peaks pinnacles as I start my way down the hill
The arch looks big enough that I might be able to climb up there and crawl through it, but I'm fixated on my downhill hike right now. - A few nice rock outcrops dot the hike down the wash into the valley below the Castle Peaks
It's an easy downhill, but I do have to zigzag a little to avoid rocks and thorny plants, as usual. - Oh, another little hole in the Castle Peaks rocks
I'm not sure this qualifies as a "natural arch," but the Broadwell Natural Arch that I visited last fall in the Kelso Dunes Wilderness is not much bigger than this. - I take a look behind me as I walk down the hill away from the Castle Peaks
I think that's the pinnacle I looked at from the other side a little while ago. Or is it? - A fallen joshua tree lays in this wash below the Castle Peaks
I'm getting really close to a wash that I hiked earlier today. - This pinnacle in the Castle Peaks is rather phallic
It would be interesting to see a time-lapse of how all the pinnacles here eroded slowly over time. - Oh, that barbed-wire fence; I forgot I might encounter this again
It's easy to crawl under, again, fortunately. I'll make a right turn in front of that hill ahead and hike up the wash there. - I'm now walking up a wash that I hiked down earlier today, but this time I'll go all the way to the crest ahead
Earlier, I climbed over the hills on my left to get here, but I want to join up with the old Castle Peaks road higher up the hill for the final walk back to camp. - The sandy wash radiates from the golden end-of-day sunlight
I find a few of my footprints from my hike here earlier today, but none from anybody else. - After another 20 minutes, I reach the top of the wash and locate the old Castle Peaks road
At a junction of two old, closed roads here, I start walking down the wrong one, but turn around after about 30 seconds when I realize the scenery is wrong. This point is at about 5175 feet elevation here. - The old Castle Peaks road leaves the pinnacles area and dips down between rolling hills on the way back to my campsite
The high peaks of the New York Mountains jut up in the distance. - Some stretches of the old, closed Castle Peaks road are quite eroded
... which is not really a surprise, since this appears to be a natural drainage corridor from the Castle Peaks area. A deer jumps out from nowhere and darts across the road. Just one deer? Where is the rest of the family? - Erosion is so severe in a few spots on the old Castle Peaks road that the roadbed is almost unrecognizable
I can see why the road is closed to vehicles beyond my campsite, since spots like this are impassible to most vehicles. It still makes for a nice trail. - I reach the Wilderness boundary and exit onto the part of Castle Peaks Road that is still open to vehicles
This has been such an enjoyable hike that I hate to see it come to an end. My strength has been building up over the past few days, so I feel good after hiking 10 miles: a bit tired of course, but not exhausted. - Home for the night at the Castle Peaks trailhead
I have worked up an appetite and looking forward to my next add-boiling-water-to-bag meal: Mountain House Beef Stew, always a favourite. I only ate one Clif bar, some chocolate and some dried pineapple during today's hike, which wasn't quite enough. - I don't get sunset between these hills near Castle Peaks, but I do see good sunset colors on the clouds
With almost no wind, the sky is a quiet, blinding black from dusk until the full moon rises later. A few birds chatter, then go to sleep; a few insects flit against my tent like rain sprinkles until the night gets chillier. It's still sweater weather. Looking forward to a great sleep, and I don't think I'll sleep cold again tonight. - Elevation profile of Castle Peaks hiking route, Mojave National Preserve
10.1 hiking miles and about 2300 feet of elevation gain.