Home / Mojave Preserve and Desert bikepacking trips / Spring 2012: Mojave National Preserve Bicycle-Camping and Hiking / Day 3: Lecyr Spring and Keystone Spring day hike, New York Mountains 53
More hot weather, with high temperatures recorded as 96F at Lanfair and 103F down at Nipton. I don't see any other humans today, like yesterday. 9.7 hiking miles and about 1200 feet of elevation gain.
A good day of backcountry camping usually begins with a roll of toilet paper and a 'sanitation trowel'
I leave the tent on today's Lecyr Spring and Keystone Spring hike before 10h30
I start the hike by walking down Mail Spring Road, seeing the road that I rode two nights ago by headlight
I think I remember pushing my bike up this little rocky hill a couple of nights ago, dazed in the dark
Straight ahead across the plain, halfway up the distant hill, is the old Trio Mine, today's first destination
While walking down Mail Spring Road, I recall good memories of last year's hikes in the distant hills
I walk past a rusty metal object on Mail Spring Road
When I reach the road to Lecyr Spring, I turn and hike up that way, with the New York Mountains peaks in the background
I arrive at the dry Lecyr Well site, with low-growing daturas in the foreground, Mojave National Preserve
These flowering mahonia (berberis) bushes are noisy at this time of year, attracting lots of buzzing bees
It's not just bees making noise: these mahonia (berberis) flowers also attract many large orange wasp-like insects
A windmill, a defunct wilderness camera and a dry cistern all sit at the old Lecyr Well site, Mojave National Preserve
Next stop on today's hike is the old Trio Mine site
I get closer to the tailings pile at the old Trio Mine site
I follow an old road briefly beyond the Trio Mine site to another old tailings pile
I take a peek at some excavations before walking over to the main Trio Mine area
Here's the old road leading up to the main Trio Mine tailings pile
From the Trio Mine site, a look across the valley sees a few houses over on the other side of the valley
Some debris from a former building at Trio Mine tumbles down the hill
I take a look at one of the major shafts at the Trio Mine site
A few Joshua trees are starting to grow atop the tailings pile at Trio Mine
A few grey Range ratany bushes on the Trio Mine tailings pile still sport a few magenta flowers
I climb up the hill a little further to get a better view of the main Trio Mine tailings pile
Turquoise veins in rock at Trio Mine, Mojave National Preserve: copper, presumably
Turquoise-coloured bits in tailings at Trio Mine, Mojave National Preserve
I start hiking down the hill from Trio Mine toward my next stop and come across an old balloon
A barren patch of earth catches my interest as I walk past
A former alignment of the old road has turned into a drainage gulley over the years, so a new road was built to the right of it
I arrive at a spot I'll call the Lecyr Overlook; my original plan was to hike down the canyon ahead
The views down Lecyr Canyon toward Ivanpah Valley are quite nice, with the Ivanpah and Clark Mountains in the background
Pinon pines, low banana yuccas and junipers grow in this area overlooking the Ivanpah Valley
I turn around to start my hike over to check out Lecyr Spring, and zoom in on the New York Mountains
An old road rises slowly toward Lecyr Spring
I'm just high enough now to have an expansive view across upper Lanfair Valley to the Castle Mountains
From here, I can also see beyond the hills to Ivanpah Dry Lake
Lecyr Spring should be just down there in that little canyon
I push through a few baccharis bushes, enjoying the shade of a pinyon pine, on my way to Lecyr Spring
Lecyr Spring, Mojave National Preserve
An old rock wall sits above Lecyr Spring
If you don't look closely while walking by, you might not even notice the old rock wall above Lecyr Spring
Despite today's hot weather in the 90s (F), the Lecyr Spring canyon looks rather green
Lots of hiking possibilities on steep, scenic hillsides around Lecyr Spring
While walking across the plain between Lecyr Spring and Keystone Canyon, I take a break under one of the big juniper trees
Pineapple cacti on the New York Mountains foothills, Mojave National Preserve
Taking a break in the shade in Keystone Canyon, Mojave National Preserve.
Hiking up the hill toward Keystone Spring, Mojave National Preserve
Arriving Keystone Spring, Mojave National Preserve: water!
I filter water again at Keystone Spring, Mojave National Preserve
On the way back down Keystone Canyon, I notice a few Scarlet gilias blooming
I hike across the New York Mountains foothills back to my tent, slowly, to preserve energy, Mojave National Preserve
Beautiful silence: sunset near Mail Spring, another hot day comes to an end
Hiking route: Mail Spring, Lecyr Spring and Keystone Spring, Mojave National Preserve
Elevation profile of hiking route: Mail Spring, Lecyr Spring and Keystone Spring, Mojave National Preserve