Home / Mojave Preserve and Desert bikepacking trips / 2007: Henry Coe State Park Mountain-Bike Camping / Day 6: Jackrabbit Lake to Pacheco Camp 23
Another day of solitude. A very enjoyable 11-mile ride from Jackrabbit Lake (1300 feet) down Orestimba Creek Road (1080 feet), up over Mississippi Ridge (1950 feet), down into Mississipi Creek canyon (1600 feet), Pacheco Ridge (1950 feet), then Pacheco Creek canyon (Pacheco Camp) at 1689 feet.
I am expecting significant uphill segments to be unridable, but they turn out to be few and far between, so the trip doesn't take nearly as long as expected.
These trips are always much better after the first few days. One becomes much stronger and comfortable after several days of living outdoors.
However, I do get a bit of a scare when I have a crash on Orestimba Creek Road.
- Jackrabbit Lake campsite, morning. Time to get out the iodine tablets.
The original plan was to stay here one more night, but due to my water problem, I'm heading on to Pacheco Camp today since it's on the way back to Park Headquarters. I'm rarely awake so early, but I don't want to leave too late in case I take forever getting up the hill on County Line Road. It's nice to be up before the sun starts cooking everything. A few clouds keep the early sun cool and, incredibly, it rains ever so lightly for about one minute, not even enough for anything to get wet. For breakfast, I start by drinking the small pot of water that I boiled late last night and which cooled down overnight. There's a bit of grey clay sediment at the bottom of the pot; positively delicious! Then I boil water (for coffee and miso soup, two cups of each), and eat granola, dried apricots and tamari almonds. Reality sets in after breakfast when I have no untreated water left of any kind. I fill my water bag and Camelbak with lake water and add iodine tablets. I wait half an hour as per the instructions. I take a mouthful, then gag and feel like I might vomit or have a panic attack, but luckily I don't. This stuff tastes like poison. Is it really better than drinking untreated water? By the time I'm all packed up and ready to leave camp, I'm used to the terrible taste. Sort of. - The Orestimba Creek Trail veers off the Orestimba Creek Road to the right. I'll stay on the road.
I left Jackrabbit Lake around 11h. To get up that short, steep crazy hill near Jackrabbit Lake, I had to take the 22-pound water bag off the bike and bring it up the hill separately. Now I'm enjoying backtracking on sometimes-rocky Orestimba Creek Road on the same route I took to get to Jackrabbit Lake. It is very warm today again. The gravel in the creek bed hasn't heated up much yet, which makes for a more pleasant ride than two afternoons ago in the late-afternoon sun and 100-degree air. Orestimba Creek Trail veers off to the right and looks enticing, but I stay on the road because it will probably be more ridable, and thus quicker. - Aha, here's the trail to Kingbird Pond.
I didn't see this trail when I passed by on the way to Jackrabbit Lake even though I intended to take a look at it. The fact that I'm this far down Orestimba Creek Road means that I missed the Mustang Pond Trail on the way (again), which I was also going to look at. - I walk a few hundred feet up the Kingbird Pond Trail.
This could be a future camping destination. I walk past the first bend in the trail to see if the lake is visible, but it isn't. The trail to Kingbird Pond is only half a mile long, but I don't feel like interrupting my bike ride with a one-mile-long walk right now, so I turn back to the road and remount the 10-ton bike. - A bit further up Orestimba Creek Road, I notice Will's Pond.
Will's Pond is really drying up! This pond is a few hundred feet from the road and I didn't notice it on the way to Jackrabbit Lake. - Taking a breather at the Orestimba Corral to assess our condition after crashing on the way down the hill from Will's Pond.
I'm a little shaken up right now, but trying not to be. A few minutes ago, on the way down the (not very steep) hill from Will's Pond, I was thrown off the 10-ton bike when it fishtailed upon hitting some powdered clay, and I couldn't regain control. The oak trees heard me land chest-first on the road with a thud. I immediately jumped up, just to prove to myself that I could, that I wasn't hurt. Somehow, the front wheel of the bike ended up turning 180 degrees and just needed to be turned back. Amazingly, neither of us seems to be seriously injured. The layer of clay dust on the road seems to have prevented me from getting road rash. One leg feels quite bruised and I'm hoping that those sore ribs are just bruised too. The 10-ton bike also seems to have survived despite the force of the fall. The only damage that I've noted so far is that the overloaded rear rack bent just a little. Kudos to Old Man Mountain for making tough racks, and to Trek for making a tough bike. I try to make this a normal break by taking a few photos, eating a Clif bar, and sucking back more of my disgusting iodine-infused water, which is quite warm now. I'm very lucky. I haven't seen anyone in four days. - Heading up the County Line Road grade toward Mississippi Ridge, stopping by a trap for wild pigs.
After my break at Orestimba Corral, I decide that I might as well start the climb up County Line Road; about 500 feet elevation gain in a mile, from 1450 feet to 1950 feet. I'm a bit sore, but I think I'm mostly OK (still not sure about my ribs). There are quite a few of these pig traps in the park, but I've never seen one yet with a pig in it. There's a fair amount of dappled shade on this road, which makes the hot sun more manageable. The real surprise is that I'm actually riding up a lot of this road ad building up some momentum here and there, rather than dragging the bike as expected. This gets me wondering if I could have ridden this road uphill on day one of the trip. A person gains strength day-by-day on demanding trips like these. Additionally, I've consumed some of my supplies, so the load I'm carrying is a little bit lighter.After my break at Orestimba Corral, I decide that I might as well start the climb up County Line Road; about 500 feet elevation gain in a mile, from 1450 feet to 1950 feet. I'm a bit sore, but I think I'm mostly OK (still not sure about my ribs). There are quite a few of these pig traps in the park, but I've never seen one yet with a pig in it. There's a fair amount of dappled shade on this road, which makes the hot sun more manageable. The real surprise is that I'm actually riding up a lot of this road ad building up some momentum here and there, rather than dragging the bike as expected. This gets me wondering if I could have ridden this road uphill on day one of the trip. A person gains strength day-by-day on demanding trips like these. Additionally, I've consumed some of my supplies, so the load I'm carrying is a little bit lighter. - At the top of the County Line Road grade, it's time to begin the short descent down Coit Road into the Mississippi Creek canyon.
Wow, it only took me a little over an hour to make it up the County Line Road grade to 1950 feet here! I have one more ridge to climb over today (Pacheco Ridge), with a small canyon between here and there: Mississippi Creek canyon. That means I drop down to about 1600 feet, then rise back up to about 1950 feet, all in 1.8 miles. I haven't been down into this area of the Park before, so hopefully the road out of the canyon won't be too steep for the 10-ton bike. It looks reasonable on the map, but I've made map-reading mistakes many times. It would be nice to take a break now, but there's no shade in the chamise chapparal here and the downhill ahead of me will be fun! - After climbing out of Mississippi Creek canyon to Pacheco Ridge, I look down into the canyon that will be home tonight.
Great, it only took me an hour to go down into the canyon and come up the other side. I was able to ride the 10-ton bike almost all the way up the hill, with practically no bike dragging. The hot weather isn't bothering me at all. I stop for a few minutes at the top of Pacheco Ridge to enjoy the views and look down at the road in the canyon below, where I'll soon be. - At the bottom of the canyon, I arrive at Pacheco Camp, at 1689 feet elevation.
A really nice spot. A quaint old cabin that Park volunteers have been keeping up (not open to campers), decorated by a number of huge old oak trees. For some reason, I wasn't expecting such a picturesque place. There are several picnic tables and a horse camp here. This location is used sometimes as a home base for volunteer projects. Ahhh, shade!!! - There's even a "shower building" at Pacheco Camp.
No hot water here of course, but there is water to this building piped in from a spring. The outdoor sink is a nice touch. The garden hose can be pulled into the shelter and used as a shower, or brought out to the sink as a "kitchen tap." - Will I get clean at Pacheco Camp?
I'm really dirty from my crash on Orestimba Creek Road a couple of hours ago, so that shower building sure looks enticing. Actually, the real reason that I want a shower is because I haven't had one six days. Given the 90+ degree temperatures this week, a significant residue of grime, sweat, salt and sunscreen wants to be washed off! But first, I should unpack the bike and set up the tent (or maybe that's not important right now). - I walk up to the shower building to check it out.
Is it a mirage? Will I really get to be clean again? Oh, there's a clock-style thermometer mounted on the wall to the left of the door. - The seat in the shower.
Hmmm, there's a car seat in the shower. It has a lot of spider webs on it. I don't need to sit on it, but it serves nicely as a bench on which to rest things. - The shower hose can be suspended from a pully and then raised or lowered.
The system seems to work fairly well, but I'm too lazy to fiddle with it and just get the hose into one position and leave it there. - Sheesh, I was getting excited about standing under a steady stream of water, but the water is so cold!
I'm in disbelief that on such a hot day with the sun shining on me through the screens on the shower building, the water is still too cold! OK, so I just hose myself down little-by-little and it's still wonderful. I feel like I'm shedding a layer of skin. It's fun watching brownish water roll down my legs. - Pacheco Camp buildings as seen from just above on Coit Road.
After my shower, I soak some of my dirty clothes in the sink and go for a walk around the camp. View from the outhouse, just a bit up the hill from the other Pacheco Camp buildings. My tent is invisible in the photo, but it's under that big oak tree to the left. - Time to throw out the iodine-tainted Jackrabbit Lake water that I've been drinking all day.
... and perhaps throw caution to the wind as well. Hurray! The spring water here at Pacheco Camp tastes great, better than San José tap water, and it's cold. Of course, I have no way to know if it's truly safe to drink without filtering. I'm so sick of the iodine odour on my breath that I've gotten used to from drinking more a gallon of that water today. It still tastes like poison to me. I convince myself that if I'm going to get sick from untreated water, it will be from the grey water that I drank yesterday at Paradise Lake and Jackrabbit Lake. The Jackrabbit Lake water was greyish to begin with, but the addition of iodine makes it look like toilet water. Eau de toilette, anyone? - The sign on Coit Road near the Pacheco Camp cabin says that it's 16 miles to Park Headquarters.
I'm feeling more comfortable about my water situation now, even though I might be fooling myself. I really like it here, so I think I'll stay tomorrow night as well, instead of fleeing toward Park Headquarters due to lack of water. - Pacheco Horse Camp.
Not far behind my tent is the Pacheco Horse Camp. There's a spring tub there, but the water in it looks stagnant; it's best left for the deer. The road that goes behind the horse camp is Pacheco Creek Trail. I'll study my map tonight and possibly go for a hike or bike ride up that way tomorrow. - 92 degrees in the shade, according to the thermometer on the side of the shower house.
No wonder it feels so hot today. It must have been close to 100 degrees when I was up on the ridges earlier today. The thermometer is marked, "Donated by Mike." - The modern, concrete, wheelchair-accessible outhouse just up the hill from the Pacheco Camp buildings.
The fake-wood texturing on the concrete adds character, I suppose. It gets incredibly hot inside from the sun shining on it all day long. The "Pack it in/pack it out" sign might come as a surprise to folks who aren't used to wilderness parks. There simply aren't garbage-collection services everywhere in the world. It's not a lot of fun to carry one's garbage around while backpacking or bikepacking or horsepacking, but it's better than throwing it on the ground and hoping it blows away or dissolves. It also makes you very conscious of how much garbage you make. - The tent hides under one of the huge oak trees at Pacheco Camp.
Before setting up camp in that spot, I took a good look at that tree to see if anything looks loose. I hope not to be killed by a falling branch. This evening I brave the gnats and make my instant supper before the sun has completely disappeared: Mountain House Oriental-style Chicken, followed by some beef jerky. Excellent. I haven't seen another person for four days now. I start wondering if maybe there will be people around here tonight or tomorrow. I remember reading that this location is sometimes used for group activities, which would be most likely to take place on a long weekend like this, I would think. This is Friday night, the beginning of this year's Labour Day long weekend. But the night remains quiet, except for some unidentified critters passing through. Despite the hot day, it cools down considerably in the evening, almost, but not quite, to the point that I would need to put on a sweater. My coolest night so far, and I sleep really well.