Home / Mojave Preserve and Desert bikepacking trips / 2009, Spring: Mojave National Preserve / Day 11: Nipton to Sunrise Rock on Cima Dome, Mojave National Preserve 41
Bike ride to Cima Dome (Sunrise Rock) at 5000 feet from Nipton, back up Morning Star Mine Road, the same way I came down two days ago. 32 bicycle miles with 2630 feet elevation gain, average speed 6.8 miles per hour.
It's a warm morning down at Nipton (low 80s), so I'm looking forward to the cooler air higher up.
I leave Nipton with 12-13 litres of water: my four 1.5-litre water bottles and two-litre camelbak are full, and my 10-litre water bag is about half full.
I'm up early this morning to have breakfast at the Nipton café and pack up the tent
I walk over to the Nipton café and Bill cooks me another tasty omelet with Asian vegetables and shrimp
In front of the Nipton store is a Mojave National Preserve information kiosk; the Preserve begins just beyond the train tracks
I take a another shower before leaving Nipton (probably my last one for a week) and brush my teeth
After filling up my water supply and stopping at the store for a cold iced tea, I'm on my way down Nipton Road just after noon
I turn south on Ivanpah Road and am welcomed by this flash-flood warning sign
Also near the beginning of Ivanpah Road is one of those "entering Mojave National Preserve" monuments
I reach the junction of Morning Star Mine Road and turn right
OK, the long, slow, dreaded climb up Morning Star Mine Road is officially on
Morning Star Mine Road rises over 11.5 miles from 2750 feet elevation to about 4285 feet
After almost two hours of climbing, I reach the corral, my favourite landmark (one of the only ones) on Morning Star Mine Road
I go for a walk around the Morning Star Mine Road corral to cool down a little
Behind the Morning Star Mine Road corral is a dirt road that crosses the fan to the base of the New York Mountains
Onward and upward on the final three miles of climbing of Morning Star Mine Road
I divert my attention away from the climb by staring off into the distance at the Butcher Knife Canyon area of the Mid Hills
Finally I've made it to the top of Morning Star Mine Road
Two miles before the Cima store, Morning Star Road passes under one of the big power lines that cross the Mojave Desert
Oh well, Cima store is closed, but I wasn't really expecting it to be open
The 10-ton bike takes a short rest by the Cima store before the final six-mile ride up Cima Road to Cima Dome
On my way out of "town," I'll check out these collapsing old houses just up the road from the Cima store
An old stove is crushed beneath the collapsed roof of this house at Cima, Mojave National Preserve
Old hardwood-flooring slats peer out from beneath the debris of this abandoned house at Cima, Mojave National Preserve
It always amazes me that houses like this one at Cima can be left to decay literally to the point of collapsing
Old refigerator in the back porch of an abandoned house at Cima, Mojave National Preserve
Inside one of the rooms of the collapsing house at Cima
The front exterior of the collapsing house at Cima
I get back on the 10-ton bike and start riding up to the top of the Cima Dome hill
I turn around for a view back down to Cima while climbing up Cima Road
A little further up Cima Road is the Kessler Springs Ranch property, which is inhabited and off-limits to Preserve visitors
Across Cima Road from Kessler Springs Ranch is a dirt road that leads to Cut Spring
At the summit of Cima Road, I pull in at Sunrise Rock and go about selecting a campsite
I ride down the sandy road by Sunrise Rock to choose a campsite
A half a mile beyond Sunrise Rock, I choose a campsite next to a rock pile where I camped last year and set up my tent
Cool winds up here on Cima Dome at 5000 feet have dried my sweat; crunchy salt stains remain
From my tent on Cima Dome, I watch a jackrabbit hop around a lot, digging small holes along the way
I'm really hungry, so I get out my pot and propane burner, but decide to take sunset photos instead of cooking supper right away
I hop around the rocks that surround my Cima Dome campsite and catch the pre-dusk orange desert glow
When I think of the Cima Dome area, I think of gorgeous sunsets, and tonight is no exception
Sunset glows around the distant Clark Mountain range tonight
Nipton to Sunrise Rock (Cima Dome) bicycle route (Day 11)
Nipton to Sunrise Rock (Cima Dome) elevation profile (Day 11)