Mojave Preserve and Desert bikepacking trips / Fall 2012: Mojave National Preserve bicycle-camping and hiking, Lanfair Valley loop / Day 7: Crossing Lanfair Valley: Piute Gorge to Bathtub Spring by bicycle via Mojave Road and Ivanpah Road

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Home / Mojave Preserve and Desert bikepacking trips / Fall 2012: Mojave National Preserve bicycle-camping and hiking, Lanfair Valley loop / Day 7: Crossing Lanfair Valley: Piute Gorge to Bathtub Spring by bicycle via Mojave Road and Ivanpah Road 45

I ride (and walk) the bike over 10 miles on the Mojave Road and its sibling roads, and finish the day by riding up Ivanpah Road at sunset. Another perfectly sunny and warmish afternoon. High 75F, low 35F, at Lanfair. 26.3 bicycle miles and about 1500 feet of elevation gain.

I'm up bright and early this morning to pack up camp and catch some sunrise glow on the Piute Gorge hills
I hate packing up, but it's always fun to see all my stuff packed into the relatively small size of my saddlebags
I pack up and begin riding westward on the old Mojave Road from Piute Gorge
On some parts of the Mojave Road, I have nice views across Lanfair Valley to familiar areas like Table Mountain
I ride past one of the many cairns that mark the Mojave Road
I ride around a corner and discover more solid road surface on the old Mojave Road ahead
I like these little rollers on the Mojave Road
I make a stop at one of several junctions on the old Mojave Road, another decision point
A long straight segment of the road waits for me ahead
OK, I'm now officially on the sandy part of the road; time to get off the 10-ton bike and push it!
Oh, I like this: I get out of the sand for a short stretch
I arrive at another 4-way intersection, thinking it's the Mojave Road, but it isn't
I decide to try this rarely used road, but it quickly degenerates, so I turn back and decide to follow the main road again
I turn around for a moment to look at my tire and foot tracks in the sand
Vietnamese-deer-jerky break on the old Mojave Road
I stopped at this old corral when I rode past here a few nights ago
Here I pass the only motor vehicle I'll see between Piute Gorge and Ivanpah Road
I pass another intersection and I'm on the Mojave Road again (there's a bit of firm ground for me to ride on here)
I pass a few early Desert mallow flowers along the Mojave Road
A few segments of the Mojave Road, like this one, have essentially turned into a drainage channel
I arrive at the junction of Lanfair Buttes Road, ride it a little, then turn back as soon as I reach more sand
Another short break on the Mojave Road, to refill the water in my bottle
I know I'm getting close to Ivanpah Road when I can zoom in for a close-up of a nearby radio facility
I stop at the Mojave Road tollgate and deposit a few pennies
This stretch of the Mojave Road provides an off-camber driving experience
I take at break at the junction of the Mojave Road and Ivanpah Road
It's great to be riding up Ivanpah Road's smooth surface after walking the bike a few miles
It's always fun to pass by the old OX Ranch site on Ivanpah Road
I ride over to the old windmill and corral at the OX Ranch site and spend a moment looking around
Therapeutic repetitious motion: riding into the Joshua tree forest on Ivanpah Road
It's that great time of day in the desert when the sun starts to go down
I take a break here to watch the Joshua tree forest on Ivanpah Road turn orange
Looking behind me (south) on Ivanpah Road, the lighting is a bit pinker
The sunset colors change subtly, minute by minute, at this time of day
The orange light has just stopped lighting up the Joshua trees, but still casts a glow on the Castle Mountains over there
Two minutes later, the orange glow on the Castle Mountains is fading into pink as the belt of Venus forms
A lavender glow continues to illuminate the Castle Peaks for a few more minutes
On the Ivanpah Road, the belt of Venus has become the defining light
It's so quiet up here on Ivanpah Road at sunset; I'm hoping the quiet lasts the whole night
Five minutes later, the belt of Venus still persists, stolid, colorfast
I take one last look toward Hackberry Mountain into the fading sunset, put on my sweater, and ride away
In less than an hour, I complete the gentle climb to the top of Ivanpah Road (4900 ft elev.); I stop to change my GPS batteries
Almost 4 miles down Ivanpah Road, I pull into a wash and set up camp 1/10 mile in, concealed from the road; it's still cold here
Route: Piute Gorge to Bathtub Spring by bicycle via Mojave Road and Ivanpah Road
Elevation profile: Piute Gorge to Bathtub Spring by bicycle via Mojave Road and Ivanpah Road