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Home / Mojave Preserve and Desert bikepacking trips / 2009, Fall: Mojave National Preserve / Day 2: Old Dad Mountain Canyon and Idora Mine Canyon day hike, Mojave National Preserve 67

Mojave National Preserve is largely a land of nameless canyons waiting to be discovered.

Two unnamed canyons east of Devil's Playground off Old Kelso Road once sustained minor mining activity and have been on my list to visit for some time; today I'll hike them both. I'll call them "Old Dad Canyon" (the canyon north and east of Old Dad Mountain) and "Idora Mine Canyon" (the east-west canyon that leads up to a mining claim owned by Idora Silver Mine).

13.4 hiking miles and 3325 feet elevation gain. I'll eat 3 Clif bars and drink 2.25 litres of water. This is less water than I'm used to consuming, but I often hike in much hotter weather than this.

Temperatures recorded in nearby Baker, CA today are a high of 66F and a low of 39F.