Home / Mojave Preserve and Desert bikepacking trips / Spring 2011: Mojave National Preserve and area bicycle camping / Day 2: McCullough Mountains hike, South McCullough Mountains Wilderness, Nevada 79
Day hike into the McCullough Mountains to two unnamed peaks (6557 and 6425) from a campsite near Pine Spring. I was hoping to do this hike last spring, but ran out of time. 9.2 hiking miles plus about 2200 feet of elevation gain.
I'll drink a bit more than two litres of water, and see a bluejay, a few lizards, and a couple of jackrabbits. Otherwise, the day will be rather quiet critter-wise. I won't see any people today.
One nice thing about my Pine Spring campsite is a little sandy drainage area near my tent, perfect for a cat hole
Waking up after the first night of a camping trip is always special; I've finally arrived. It was chilly overnight and I'm feeling exhausted from yesterday. I was so tired that I didn't wake up once during the night. It always takes a few days to build u
Gold flowers growing in the gravel near my tent, which I think at first are goldfields (Lasthenia californica)
I start today's hike after a slow breakfast and notice an old coconut-juice can by Pine Spring Road
My energy is really low this morning as I start walking up the road toward the McCullough Mountains
There are also a few old pinyon pine trees along Pine Spring Rd: not a surprise given the name of this place
A few healthy barberry bushes grow along Pine Spring Road
I must be near Pine Spring; here's an old rusty tobacco can lid
I'm surprised to find a trough at Pine Spring, overflowing with water of decent quality; a few bees are living on the margins
The Pine Spring water trough is inside a corral, which is apparently still in use by cows
A bit beyond the Pine Spring corral is an old water trough and a rusty water tank
I've hiked two miles up Pine Spring Road, which ends here, so I climb a hill to get oriented for the day's off-trail hiking
From this hill above Pine Spring, I see a possible route to the McCullough Mountains ridgeline straight ahead, a bit to the left
Out of nowhere, a grasshopper pops into the air and lands nearby
A few mariposa lilies are blooming on this hill above Pine Spring
On the way down to the wash, a patch of ankle-high cacti requires careful avoidance hiking
I arrive in the sandy wash and prepare to climb the hill on my left, on my way toward one of the McCullough Mountains peaks
Diminutive chia sages grow in the wash here
Some larger desert sage bushes (probably Salvia dorrii) are also blooming in this wash
I take note of this light-pink Mojave Desert native thistle: Cirsium neomexicanum
I check my GPS again and begin the climb into the McCullough Mountains, straight up this hill
At the top of the blackbrush hill, I turn around for a moment to enjoy the views back down into Piute Valley
Atop the blackbrush hill, I check out the upward route ahead to the McCullough Mountains ridgeline
A rock outcrop atop the hill ahead is my next target
Nice views back down into Piute Valley from the rock outcrop
Now that I'm above the rock outcrop, I can see the next hill on my way up the McCullough Mountains
I walk past some banana yuccas and toward a stand of joshua trees on my way up this next McCullough Mountains hill
Time for another energy bar, already, on my way up into the McCullough Mountains
A few red penstemons are flowering today in the McCullough Mountains
This steep, rocky hillside in the McCullough Mountains provides good footing on the way up
A couple of claret-cup cacti are blooming on this McCullough Mountains hillside
Finally, I reach a point from which the remainder of my route uphill is visible, following the rising ridge at centre-left
OK, climb up that hill, now!
After climbing that last short steep hill... now the McCullough Mountains peak 6557 is right in front of me
Almost there... Peak 6557 is that hill ahead to my right
A pile of rocks sits upon McCullough Mountains unnamed peak 6557
I sit on McCullough Mountains Peak 6557 for a good 15 minutes and enjoy the views
Looking to my right, I see the high point of this range, McCullough Mountain, at just over 7000 feet
I bet the valley below, between here and the Lucy Gray Mountains in the middleground, would be an interesting place to explore
Looking way off into the distance, I can see a snow-capped mountain, which I presume is Charleston Peak near Las Vegas
I'm hoping to continue hiking along the ridge, but it looks like there may be a drop-off beyond those two junipers
It's quite steep, but I conclude that I should be able to wind my way down the hill safely, and stay on the ridge line
Once I get past the crazy, steep and rocky part at the beginning of the short descent, the rest is easy
Phlox, cacti and pinyon pines on the McCullough Mountains ridge line
I spy an old tree trunk on the McCullough Mountains ridge line
From this McCullough Mountains saddle, I can still see across the Lucy Gray Mountains to Ivanpah Dry lake and Clark Mountain
This banana yucca in the McCullough Mountains is getting ready to bloom
This McCullough Mountains saddle also has great views eastward down to the Piute Valley
From the saddle, I look back at McCullough Mountains Peak 6557
I stop to look at a cactus growing in an unusual horizontal habit, one pad at a time
Cacti and a few blue phacelia flowers enjoy the shade under this pinyon pine in the McCullough Mountains
I almost missed these claret-cup cacti flowers under an old juniper while walking past
The next marked point on my hike today will be McCullough Mountains unnamed peak 6425, the high point just ahead
On the way up to Peak 6425 in the McCullough Mountains are a few rock piles
I've seen this white flower before; I think it's Desert tobacco (Nicotiana obtusifolia)
One last little climb up to McCullough Mountains Peak 6425
From McCullough Mountains Peak 6425, I look back at where I was earlier, on Peak 6557, center
McCullough Mountains Peak 6425 also has great views eastward across the Piute Valley
I can still see a bit of the Ivanpah Dry Lake area from McCullough Mountains Peak 6425
McCullough Mountains Peak 6425 marks a decision point as far as route-following is concerned
I'll start the hike back to camp by hiking up the hill at centre-left, then following the ridge down to the hill in the middle
This is one of the more scraggly pinyon pines I've come across today in the McCullough Mountains
About 10 minutes later, I notice a hillside that might make for a good descent down to a wash
I climb carefully down the steep hill, past the bunch grasses, blackbrush, and the occasional banana yucca
I start hiking down the rock-strewn wash, which is like a staircase in a few places
It's dry right now, but I can imagine a rush of water being funneled down this drainage during the wet season
The wash begins to widen slightly, collecting sand that runs down from the McCullough Mountains
The wash continues to wind its way down from the McCullough Mountains
A primrose blooms in this McCullough Mountains wash near an old tree trunk
The star of most every desert-wilderness trip: the stray balloon
I'm seeing some footprints in the sand now as I get closer to the Pine Spring area
Another Palmer's penstemon starting to bloom
I'm surprised to notice a few barrel cacti along Pine Spring Road on my way back to the tent
I have an easy one-mile walk down Pine Spring Road to finish off the day's hike
And there it is, home again for the night near Pine Spring, with a flowering beavertail cactus along the way
Time to boil water for this evening's instant meal: Mountain House Rice with Chicken (yum)
After dark, I write notes in my journal and wind down as the evening gets progressively cooler
Elevation profile of McCullough Mountains hiking route from Pine Spring area
McCullough Mountains hike route from Pine Spring area