Home / Mojave Preserve and Desert bikepacking trips / 2009, Spring: Mojave National Preserve / Day 13: Copper World Mine day hike from Pachalka Spring, Mojave National Preserve 44
Copper World Mine is one of three hiking routes from Pachalka Spring that I pre-recorded in my GPS, but I'll probably only have time to do two of them. 2090 feet of elevation gain (and drop) over 7.4 miles with an average grade of ten percent during 4.5 hours.
- Strong winds roll my tent over at Pachalka Spring just as I'm thinking perhaps I should put some rocks inside to weight it down
It was quite windy overnight and I had strange dreams before finally getting up around 10h. The wind has been keeping the tent cool inside despite the morning sun trying to heat it up. I have my usual breakfast of granola, nuts, dried fruit, a small pot of tea, and an electrolyte-replacer drink. - I've learned my lesson and walk around looking for large rocks to put inside my tent
It's ironic that it actually takes some time in such rocky surroundings to find rocks of just the right size to go in the tent: not too big, not too small. - My backpack is prepared for the day and waits for me to take it on a hike over the hills to the old Copper World Mine area
I bring 4.5 litres of water, three energy bars, a bag of almonds, a sweater, a flashlight, batteries, my GPS, a couple of maps, and EpiPens in case of yellowjacket sting. - Pachalka Spring Road drops down into a gravelly wash that drains from the Clark Mountain area in the background
I'm not going all the way up to the Clark Mountain summit; I would need to start that hike earlier in the day than this. I passed through this wash yesterday on the way here. - I start the one-mile climb up the hills ahead on the way to Copper World Mine
I'll gain 800 feet elevation during that mile, so it's fairly steep, especially at the top. If it's too slippery for me up there, I may have to turn around and walk the long way to Copper World Mine, around the hills instead of straight over them. - Just as my route leaves the wash, I notice a bone fragment on the ground
I haven't seen any large mammals in the area yet, but it seems like the kind of place where bighorn sheep would live. I would expect to find deer and coyotes, and perhaps wild burros too. - My route up the hill is as steep as anticipated and has great views back down toward the wash
One of the rewards of climbing steep hills in open terrain is that the views change and improve quickly, reinforcing your sense of accomplishment. - A little higher up the hill, looking west toward Valley Wells, where I stopped at the store yesterday
Valley Wells should be that small spot in the valley in the distance, the one with the vertical line (a dirt road) sprouting out of it, about 5.5 miles away. The Sawtooth is visible in the distance just right of centre. - A northwest view beyond three agave stems toward Pachalka Spring, with Kingston Range in the distance at the right
Pachalka Spring is the larger of the two small green patches on the rippled plateau at the centre-right. - I've reached the top of the hill and Pachalka Spring's green spot is still in view at the centre-right
It has been a slow, careful climb, slippery with quite a bit of loose rock in places. I don't feel like I have much energy today, but I've made it this far with no real problems, so I guess I'm OK. - Up on the ridge, I find myself staring straight at Clark Mountain
I probably wouldn't have enough time to hike to Clark Mountain today, but the route along the ridge from here looks like it might be feasible for a cautious hiker (I'm not a mountain climber). - From the ridge, I look down into the steep canyon that descends from Clark Mountain
Prior to this trip, I plotted a route partway up that canyon in case I decided to do a hike toward the summit of Clark Mountain. - From the ridge, I'm now looking down the other side into the canyon and see the road that leads up to Copper World Mine
Now the question is how I will get down there. I plotted a route and recorded it in my Delorme GPS, but it looks pretty steep. - Looking south from the unnamed ridge above Copper World Mine toward Cima Dome on the horizon
Cima Dome is the gentle hump on the horizon. Teutonia Peak is the smaller outcrop just left of the hump's high point, while Kessler Peak, near which I camped two nights ago, is the larger rock structure further to the left. - I reach a steep slippery area on the ridge with a gnarled juniper while attempting to begin a descent toward Copper World Mine
I stop. Too slippery to descend. Great place for a break, but not a great place to break a leg. I munch on a Clif bar and consult my maps and GPS. I decide to turn back and instead try descending the slope that I pre-recorded on my GPS as a possible route down. It looks slightly less steep. - This downhill to Copper World Mine Road is also pretty steep, but it has a bit of a saddle on the way to ease the descent
The upper part of this route is particularly slippery and I occasionally grab onto a creosote bush for balance while I gingerly zigzag down the 20-55% slope. - On the saddle halfway down to Copper World Mine Road, someone has built a rock cairn
It feels as though I'm the only person who has ever walked down this remote hill, but that's obviously not true. - As I approach the bottom of the hill, I look up the road that leads to the old Copper World Mine site
I'm not quite down in the canyon yet, but the most challenging part of the downhill is behind me now. - There's a lot of interesting rock to look at on the way down the hill
... when I'm not busy keeping myself from slipping and falling, or watching for cactus thorns. - I reach the bottom of the hill and start walking up the road toward the Copper World Mine site
I pass by a tailings pile and other signs of civilization, such as fence posts. - On the half-mile walk up the old road to Copper World Mine, I notice a lonely old cabin nearby
I'll visit the cabin on my way back down the road. - A bit further up the Copper World Mine road, down in a gulley, is an old headframe
I keep walking up the road. - The road fizzles out and comes to an end at two big tailings piles at about 5400 feet elevation
I guess this is the main part of the Copper World Mine site. - A bright blue streak in the rock at bottom right, presumably copper
I could keep walking beyond the tailings, but I really want to go take a closer look at that cabin I passed a while ago. - The Copper World Mine cabin is quite modest, but has one luxurious feature for a desert dwelling
... a big front porch to provide shade. However, it's not providing a lot of shade at this time of day. - An old stove in the Copper World Mine cabin kept the occupants warm during cold weather
The cabin sits at about 5300 feet elevation, so below-freezing temperatures, and a bit of snow, would be common here in the winter. - The back side of the cabin near Copper World Mine
The metal sheets halfway up the wall look like they are possibly covering former window openings. - Just outside the cabin is what looks like the remains of a small dugout
This may have been the "refrigerator" for the cabin. - A view of the Copper World Mine cabin from the hill just above the dugout
The large tailings piles sit nearby in the background. - I return to the road and start walking down the canyon away from Copper World Mine
Scattered junipers and pinon pines grow in this canyon. - I take a look up the big hill that I climbed over to get here, but I'm going to return to camp on a longer, easier route
I'm taking the easier route down the canyon to the fan below because I'm lazy and don't feel like climbing the hill again, but also because I prefer to hike on different return routes when possible. - The road twists its way down the canyon away from the old Copper World Mine site
This is not in a federally designated Wilderness area, so motor vehicles are allowed to drive here. Tire tracks on the road tell us that the area does get visited occasionally. - The steep hills on each side of the canyon make it easy to forget that the road is descending fairly rapidly
Grades between five and 15 percent characterize the hike down the Copper World Mine canyon. - Striped rocks along the road leading down Copper World Mine canyon
Now several hundred feet below the mining area, creosote bushes are more common, while pines and junipers are relatively scarce. - A little over two miles down the canyon from Copper World Mine, the road exits the canyon onto the fan
If I were to continue walking down this road (westward), I'd reach Valley Wells after a few miles. - From the low point of today's hike at about 4350 feet elevation, I walk north across the fan for about a quarter of a mile
Patches of agaves grow on some of the higher mounds between drainage areas on the rocky fan. - I reach Pachalka Spring Road and return to camp on the same route that I took yesterday with the 10-ton bike
I also notice what appears to be a faint old alignment of Pachalka Spring Road arriving in from my left. - On the old Pachalka Spring Road surface might be a patch of ancient asphalt
But it's probably just well-eroded natural desert pavement. - I walk up Pachalka Spring Road toward the Clark Mountain Range and follow the road into the wash just south of Pachalka Spring
It has been a rather overcast day. Dark clouds linger over the mountains, but I'm standing in a sunny spot. The lighter hills to my right are the ones I hiked over earlier today on the way to Copper World Mine. - I follow the road up out of the wash and return to my tent near Pachalka Spring
It was quite windy up on the hills today, so I hope my tent is intact when I get there. - Not only is my tent intact when I return to Pachalka Spring, but it's suddenly a bright and sunny day
The almost-full moon rises and I take lots of pre-sunset photos in the perfect orange light, trying to catch the moon, which my cheap digital camera often "smartly" deletes. - Sunset at Pachalka Spring, Mojave National Preserve, with Kingston Range in the background
Tonight's awesome sunset at makes up for the lack of a sunset last night. The wind has calmed down, so everything is peaceful. Clucking quail around sunset add to the effect. - Tonight's awesome sunset at makes up for the lack of a sunset last night. The wind has calmed down, so everything is peaceful. Clucking quail around sunset add to the effect. Supper tonight is Mountain House Chicken and Rice, a yummy 800-calories, as well as some tamari almonds and Trader Joe's turkey jerky. And a few dried peaches for dessert. I'm full! The temperature drops during the evening and I have to put my sweater on, even while inside the tent. I stay up late again, reading more of Edward Abbey's "Desert Solitaire" after writing my journal entry for the day. - Copper World Mine hiking route from Pachalka Spring, Mojave National Preserve (Day 13)
Clockwise loop route: 2090 feet of elevation gain (and drop) over 7.4 miles with an average grade of ten percent. - Elevation profile of Copper World Mine hiking route from Pachalka Spring, Mojave National Preserve (Day 13)
2090 feet of elevation gain (and drop) over 7.4 miles with an average grade of ten percent.