Home / Mojave Preserve and Desert bikepacking trips / 2007: Henry Coe State Park Mountain-Bike Camping / Day 4: Mississippi Lake to Jackrabbit Lake 30
Today's beautiful 13.8-mile ride is largely downhill or level (with numerous short uphills along the way): from Mississippi Lake at 2200 feet, down to 1080 feet on Orestimba Creek Road, then up to about 1300 feet at Jackrabbit Lake.
Highlights on this very hot day include spectacular views over the Orestimba Wilderness from above on County Line Road, and the idyllic, isolated feel of the Jackrabbit Lake area.
- I walk down to Mississippi Lake to see what the birds are doing.
Looking forward to today's ride to Jackrabbit Lake, I'm up early (9h is early for me). The sun heating up my tent has made it impossible to stay inside. It didn't cool down that much overnight and it's already a hot morning. All this plant material in Mississippi Lake is presumably why the lake water tastes green and muddy. - Close up of the plant life in Mississippi Lake.
Mississippi Lake water doesn't taste too terrible in the early morning when it's still somewhat cool. But as the day heats up, and the water temperature with it, the green-and-muddy taste and smell get amplified and becomes annoying after a while. I walk back to the campsite to get out of the sun and to prepare coffee and breakfast: two bowls of instant miso soup with seaweed, my last two Zen Bakery cinnamon rolls, a Granny Smith apple, plus a handful each of dried apricots and tamari-roasted almonds. A nice addition at Mississippi Lake this year is a garbage can. Most of Coe Park has no garbage collection, so you must pack out all your garbage, which isn't much fun to carry around. - Ready, the 10-ton bike waits for its chauffeur to drive it to Jackrabbit Lake, on the other side of the Orestimba Wilderness.
Packed up and leaving my campsite by 12h15 is pretty good by my standards. Since much of the trip is downhill or level, I should have plenty of time to cover the 12 miles from here to there, even if I run into a few surprises along the way. I was hoping to get out toward the Orestimba Wilderness as part of last summer's bike trip in Coe Park, but getting to Mississippi Lake took all my energy! - Rising up the end of Willow Ridge Road away from Mississippi Lake, to meet County Line Road on the ridge.
Wow, I've worked up a sweat already and I'm barely half a mile away from the campsite. Those greenish-reddish chamise bushes that are everywhere around here don't provide much shade, but sometimes one can sit on the ground and snuggle up to a patch of it to get out of the hot sun if need be. - Great views across the Orestimba Creek valley from County Line Road at the junction of Hartman Trail
Jackrabbit Lake, today's destination, is down in the valley below, roughly at the bottom left side of the photo. However, the Orestimba Wilderness, which is not open to bikes (or other mechanized transport), lies between here and there, so the bicycle route follows a V-shaped route that skirts the Wilderness boundary. I continue my ride down County Line Road, heading off to the right in the photo. - A little further down County Line Road, I reach the short dead-end trail to Board Spring (to the right).
The 0.3-mile-long trail to Board Spring edges its way down the steep hillside and provides more great views over the valley below. I will refill my water supply at Board Spring and then return here to continue the ride down County Line Road. - The trail to Board Spring starts out road-like, but it's rather grown-in as it approaches its end at the spring.
The Board Spring water tub is just barely visible in the centre of the photo at the end of the trail. Most of this trail is quite exposed to the hot sun, but there are a few oak trees along here that one can stand behind to get some shade. - Ready to pump some water at Board Spring.
The water at Board Spring is pretty good. The spring is still flowing a bit, and the basin doesn't have much algae in it. There are a few yellowjackets buzzing around the trickle of water entering the basin, so I pump my water from the other side. I fill up all my water containers: 10-litre water bag, two-litre Camelbak, 1.5 litre bottle, and a one-litre bottle. Suddenly the 10-ton bike and I are much heavier. Standing here pumping water makes me realize that it's even hotter today than yesterday, or maybe it just feels that way because this location is so exposed to the sun. I decide to cool down a little in the shade of a nearby oak before continuing my ride down County Line Road. - Back on County Line Road, still riding along the ridge, but descending slowly.
This part of County Line Road leaves chamise chaparral and passes through some pine and oak forest. - Still up on the ridge, County Line Road keeps providing great views of the valley.
My cell phone even works along here, so I check messages and change my outgoing message to indicate where I am. I get back on the 10-ton bike and continue the slow downhill. - County Line Road turns east and starts snaking down the steep hillside to Orestimba Creek.
With numerous switchbacks along the way, this one-mile segment of County Line Road drops down 500 feet in a mile, from about 1950 feet to 1450 feet. Hold on tightly! I'll be riding back up this road in a few days and hope that it won't be one of those impossibly difficult hills. - That was fun; I'm down in the valley now at Orestimba Creek and it only took 15 minutes to get down the hill.
At the bottom of County Line Road is the junction with Kaiser-Aetna Road and Orestimba Creek Road (I follow the latter). The trip down the hill was beautifully shaded (light dappled shade) much of the way and happened so quickly that I didn't get any good photos on the way down. It's 14h45 and I've got about 7 miles to go to reach Jackrabbit Lake, much of it flat. I can see from the sign here that I've come 4.2 miles so far since leaving Mississippi Lake. - Milkweed growing along Orestimba Creek Road (asclepias fascicularis?).
It's not a spectacular plant, but it's obviously a tough one with its little flower show at the hottest and driest part of the year. Something I should consider for my dry garden. - 3/4 mile down the road, I stop at the old Orestimba Corral for a Clif-bar-and-water break at the semi-shady picnic tables.
I'm surprised how sweaty I am because I haven't done any uphill riding for a while now. The temperature has definitely risen, or perhaps it's typically hotter down in this valley than up above. - I continue riding down Orestimba Creek Road.
Beautiful scenery here. A lot of these oak trees seem smaller than those in other areas of the Park. I wonder if that's because the trees simply don't grow that as big in this location, or if they are just younger. Even though Orestimba Creek Road generally follows the creek, segments of it take detours up (and then down) adjacent hills to avoid the creek bed. So my mostly flat ride down here actually has some little hills after all. There is also a parallel trail here that more closely follows the alignment of the creek bed, but it looks narrow. So I stay on the road for fear that the trail might be an excellent route for hikers, but difficult to traverse on a 10-ton bike. - One of several dry creek crossings on Orestimba Creek Road.
I've seen photos from travelogues of winter trips in this area where parts of the road are submerged underwater. When the road is in the creek bed, its surface ranges from gravelly to rocky, or a combination of both. It makes for slow riding that requires that much of the rider's attention be focused on the road surface, not the scenery. Though slow, it's not particularly difficult riding, and I enjoy the concentration that this kind of riding can induce. It reminds me of some desert roads that I've ridden on past trips, such as Gold Valley Road in Death Valley. - I stop on Orestimba Creek Road to check my map, thinking that I may have passed the road to Jackrabbit Lake.
I get out my map and leave the 10-ton bike in the middle of the road while I backtrack to inspect my surroundings. Indeed... I missed Long Ridge Road (the road to Jackrabbit Lake) when I passed it. It's about 1/3 mile behind me. Getting off the bike made me realize how hot it has become. The metal bike frame is hot. The semi-soft seat is hot. My brake levers have been hot for some time, but I've been so focused on riding that I was ignoring it. Likewise, my drinking water has been heating up gradually, and it's hot too; it's much warmer than luke-warm now. I touch myself and get strange feedback. My shorts are giving off heat and the shiny metal studs on my belt are quite hot to the touch. Hmmm... Shades of my Death Valley bicycle trip this past spring. - Before I remount the 10-ton bike and turn back, I snap a shot of us with the Rooster Comb in the background.
The Rooster Comb is that ridge of rock in the centre-right that crowns the steep grassy hill. I recognize it from photos that I've looked at and I know that I'm not supposed to be approaching it until tomorrow when I return to this area on a day trip. I can feel heat radiating off the gravel of the stream bed (or is it a road) and I've figured out that it's over 100 degrees F here because everything is hot, not just me. I'm overheating and need to sit down in some shade and take a break very soon. - After backtracking 1/3 mile, I locate the Long Ridge Road that I missed, my route to Jackrabbit Lake
When I passed here a while ago, I was focused on riding, and didn't think of watching for signs on the other side of the creek bed. I also missed signs on the way to my present location for Kingbird Pond, Mustang Pond and Red Creek Road. I must be having a good time! Oh great—Long Ridge Road rises up a hill right away. Where can I stop and take a break before going any further? Hey, that oak tree behind the sign is casting a stripe of shade across the road... - I hide in the shade of that oak at the bottom of Long Ridge Road, looking down at the gravel of Orestimba Creek Road.
I eat another energy bar and hide for 20-30 minutes in the shade to make sure that heat exhaustion doesn't set in. Fortunately, I'm reasonably well hydrated. I wish my water weren't so hot; I could really use something cool right now. I've done a bit of bicycle camping in 100+ degree temperatures in Death Valley, and enjoy the challenge. However, I was expecting today to be rather easy and wasn't mentally prepared for this! Just under two miles remains until I reach Jackrabbit Lake. Not far, but there will be a couple of hills along the way. I'll be taking this last short distance slowly to keep it enjoyable and to stay healthy. - A two-prong grey pine on Orestimba Creek Road.
While recuperating under the oak tree at the bottom of Long Ridge Road, my eyes keep getting drawn to this unusual grey pine down the creek. - Stunted oak tree on lower Long Ridge Road.
toward Jackrabbit Lake. I walk the steeper segments. This little plateau just above Orestimba Creek has several old oak trees like this one. It looks like the trees may have grown back from past fire damage. - More oaks on lower Long Ridge Road.
A little further up lower Long Ridge Road, the grove of old oaks thickens, but are still not as meaty as those seen in many other areas of the Park. - Rolling terrain on Long Ridge Road between Orestimba Creek and Jackrabbit Lake.
The road just came over that knoll in the background and crossed the creek at the bottom of it. I'm almost at the point where I turn off Long Ridge Road onto the Jackrabbit Lake Road. Clark Spring should be somewhere around here. - I set up camp just beyond Jackrabbit Lake.
The short road to Jackrabbit Lake goes past the lake and fizzles out in a flat oak-studded area. Looks like a good place to camp that will hopefully have a bit of morning shade. As I unpack my saddlebags, I can't believe how hot my belongings are. Opening the saddlebags is like opening a dryer and pulling out hot laundry. My metal tent poles are really hot! It's 18h, so I still have a little time left before sunset. I decide to go for a walk to find Clark Spring, which I missed on the way in, and refill my water supply. - Walking down to Clark Spring, I pass pristine Jackrabbit Lake and take a closer look.
Idyllic surroundings and there's nobody around. I haven't seen anyone since two days ago. There's not as much plant material in the water here as at Mississippi Lake. So perhaps the water here will taste good. I'll try the water from Clark Spring first. - Clark Spring looks like a slice of key-lime pie. Is it stagnant?
With the help of my map, I locate Clark Spring in a gulley along the dry creek not far from the junction of Long Ridge Road and Jackrabbit Lake Road. This spring is really, really green; is it stagnant? Maybe I'd be better off getting some water from Jackrabbit Lake instead. A number of yellowjackets buzz around to the left of the spring basin where a trickle of water is seeping out from underneath. For a moment I consider trying to filter water from that little underflow, which looks cleaner than the spring. - Clark Spring does not appear to be stagnant after all.
The Clark Spring basin is completely covered with miniscule greenish flower parts which produce the eerie key-lime-pie appearance from a distance. I get out my water filter and plunge it in to test the water. Fortunately, the yellowjackets don't seem to notice me here since I'm not interfering with their little trickle of water on the other end of the spring basin. - Gunk on my water filter intake tube from Clark Spring.
The flower bits wipe off easily from the filter's tube. Despite the mess, this water tastes pretty good. For one thing, it's a bit cooler than the air, so it feels really good when I drink it. Pumping was getting rather slow and tight, so I only partially filled my water bag. I guess the inside of the filter needs another brushing to clean it up. I'll try some Jackrabbit Lake water tomorrow once my filter has been cleaned. I walk back to the tent with my water bag slung over my shoulder. - Back at the hot tent, the sun begins to set on my little plateau above Jackrabbit Lake.
I take refuge in the tent from the annoying gnats that buzz around just before sunset. But it's hot inside and everything in my tent is giving off heat. I'm guessing that it won't cool down much tonight. After dark, the gnats subside and I step outside to boil water for tonight's meal, Mountain House Teriyaki Beef. Excellent. Interwined shadows from the slender oaks fall across the ground under the moonlight. I hear a few critters, probably small ones, but don't know what they are. With almost no breeze in the air, it's incredibly quiet. Except when a jet flies overhead... This location seems to be under a flight path and it's right about here that jets make a special grinding sound as they begin to decelerate on their approach to some local airport. If it weren't so quiet here, I might not notice. Wow, midnight approaches, and it's still hot in the tent.