Home / Mojave Preserve and Desert bikepacking trips / 2010, Mojave National Preserve / Day 5: Woods Wash mountain-bike ride via Gold Valley from Mid Hills campground, Mojave National Preserve 73
Today I finally ride a few of the old dirt roads that cross the Gold Valley area of Mojave National Preserve. Excellent mountain biking. 35.4 round-trip bicycle miles from Mid Hills campground plus two hiking miles.
- After sleeping in a bit, and eating breakfast, I pack up and leave the tent for today's ride across Gold Valley to Woods Wash
On this cool morning, the sun on my tent feels good, not hot; so I sleep in some. I woke up to loud screeching during the night, perhaps a screech owl. Breakfast is the usual dried fruit, granola, nuts, cold coffee and vitamin C drink. - A quarter mile down the road from my campsite at Mid Hills campground, I turn right on Wild Horse Canyon Road
Behind the sign is the start of the Mid-Hills to-Hole-in-the-Wall hiking-only trail. The first leg of today's route will roughly parallel that trail. - About two miles down Wild Horse Canyon Road, I reach my next turn, an unnamed road that I'll call Gold Valley Mine Road
Numerous back roads crisscross the area between Wild Horse Canyon Road and Black Canyon Road. I haven't tried riding any of them yet, so I'm looking forward to today's ride. - Gold Valley Mine Road passes briefly through a patch of juniper and sagebrush that escaped the 2005 brush fires
The high-desert greenery here provides a glimpse of what the Mid Hills area was like prior to the 2005 fires. - Gold Valley Mine Road rolls over a series of natural drainages as it climbs gently up the hill
The road is rough in places and makes for a great mountain-bike trail. - I ride up a few unevenly banked segments on Gold Valley Road
Probably not the best road for a low-clearance vehicle... - I reach a crest on Gold Valley Mine Road and try my cell phone: it works!
Since there is very little cell-phone reception here in the Mid Hills, I take advantage of the moment to send a few text messages. I also change the outgoing message on my phone to indicate where I am. - I pass through an old ranch fence and a sign marking the adjacent hiking trail
The Mid-Hills-to-Hole-in-the-Wall hiking trail is not all that visible. Perhaps it stood out more before the 2005 brush fires razed much of the plant life. - After a short climb to a crest at about 5440 feet elevation, Gold Valley Mine Road begins heading downhill
I'm enjoying the straight-on view of Wild Horse Mesa (the flat-topped highlands ahead), which I hiked during last spring's Mojave National Preserve trip. Usually I'm somewhere down below, looking up to it. - The scenic views, hills and rock piles on upper Gold Valley Mine Road would make it a good place to camp
The old road here does get used, but it is too difficult to invite much random traffic. - Views toward Wild Horse Mesa on the way down Gold Valley Mine Road
Signs here indicate another crossing of the Mid-Hills-to-Hole-in-the-Wall hiking trail. - I whoosh down Gold Valley Mine Road, toward Gold Valley itself
A fun, sustained downhill. Hold on tightly, stay in control of the bike, and don't crash on any of the rutted or sandy stretches! - I reach the old Gold Valley Mine site and stop for a tourist break
Hmmm... what is there to see here? - The windmill at the Gold Valley Mine site is from the American West Windmill Company in Amarillo, Texas
Most of the windmills I've run across are by Aermotor. - A full water trough at Gold Valley Mine
Presumably, the water comes from a windmill-powered well nearby. - An old sink (pierced by bullets, of course) at Gold Valley Mine, Mojave National Preserve
Table Mountain and Twin Buttes sit in the background on the far side of Gold Valley. - I stand on a small tailings pile at Gold Valley Mine and look down at an old pit
It doesn't look like much mining activity took place here. - Close-up of the pit at Gold Valley Mine, Mojave National Preserve
A clump of orange desert-mallow flowers seems to be climbing out of the pit. - I drop another 400 feet of elevation as I ride down the bottom of Gold Valley Mine Road
The road is getting a bit sandier and the temperature is slowly increasing. The breezes I was experiencing up on the hills behind me are fading out. - The lower part of Gold Valley Mine Road passes through a sandy area
I have to dismount and walk the bike through parts of this, even though I'm still headed slightly downhill. - Lots of bright yellow flowers near the lower part of Gold Valley Mine Road
Perhaps these are Snakeweed. - I take a detour and visit the Hole-in-the-Wall Visitor Centre to refill my water bottles from its outdoor tap
Hole-in-the-Wall is a really scenic area, but I rarely camp at its bland RV-friendly campground. I enjoy the shade of the porch at the visitor centre (closed today) while drinking some cold water and eating an energy bar. - A poster at Hole-in-the-Wall visitor centre warns of possible mountain lions in the Mid Hills area, where I'm camping
Oddly, this poster doesn't appear on the entrance kiosk at Mid Hills campground, where the mountain lions are presumed to lurk. - After my break at Hole-in-the-Wall, I make my way over to the dirt road that will take me to Woods Wash after 7 miles or so
While cutting across Black Canyon Road, I meet a French couple exploring the area and have a fun chat, in French. - After 1.5 miles on Woods Wash Road is government property, probably a residence for Preserve staff
The do-not-disturb sign is amply clear, though it uses different words. - Woods Wash Road makes a two-mile U-shaped detour around the government property
Here, the road runs eastward along an old fence with Twin Buttes in the background. - East of the government-owned house, Woods Wash Road passes through gentle hills
With easy ups and down so far, and no traffic, this is proving to be a good mountain-biking route. - Ah, a gate to pass through!
This one is particularly rickety, and doesn't fit the opening of the fence. - I pass an abandoned corral, with the Woods Mountains in the background
The old "fence posts" are made of branches instead of hewed wood posts. - Another fence boundary to pass through as I ride down to Woods Wash
This was ranching country (and some it still is). - The last couple of miles toward Woods Wash are a bit sandy in places, but rough enough to provide traction for a mountain bike
This is turning out better than expected. Many unmaintained desert roads become a big sand trap once they hit a wash area, but this one only gets bad at the very end. My fat 2.3" tires do help on roads like this! - I arrive at the Woods Wash Wilderness boundary, stash my bicycle behind a bush and convert from biker to hiker
The backpack, water and epipens (in case of yellowjacket sting) come out of my saddlebags, and I begin the short hike beyond the Wilderness boundary (mechanized travel not allowed). A few recent tire tracks, but nobody around anywhere. - Indian paintbrush blooming in Woods Wash
Not many other flowers adorn the mile-long hike down Woods Wash. There are, however, quite a few thorny catclaw Acacia bushes to avoid. - I reach the lava flows of the historic Woods Wash area
It's noticeably warmer down here than it was where I left my bike. The dark rock here has been absorbing the hot sun's heat all day long. - Yucca spines
Woods Wash, Mojave National Preserve. - White thistle growing in Woods Wash
A few white buckwheat flowers bloom around the base of the thistle. - I climb a hill and get a glimpse of Woods Wash northward toward Twin Buttes
The dark rock here is so hot that my hands almost burn when I touch it! - Barrel cactus, cholla cactus, and white buckwheat blossoms in Woods Wash
I can feel heat radiating from those rocks, and am starting to imagine how hot it must be here in mid-July. - I walk across to the other side of Woods Wash and note some pink cactus blooms
It's amazing that a plant can survive in this rock so hot that it almost burns my hand when I touch it. - It's even hotter on this hill than it was on the hill behind me on the other side of Woods Wash
Backlit cholla cactus, do not touch. - Yuccas in Woods Wash near the exposed rock
The heat radiating from all the rock here, coupled with the lack of a breeze in this sheltered wash, is starting to get to me. - I climb down the hill for the hike back up Woods Wash (to my right), but the canyon ahead into the Woods Mtns gets my attention
I would expect few, if any, human footsteps in that canyon in the Woods Mountains. With more time and a bit of planning, I think I'd hike up that canyon now instead of returning to my bike right away. - As I hike back up Woods Wash to my bicycle, I try my cell phone, and it works
The reception here is weak, but I guess I'm just close enough to Interstate 40 to send a text message. - Back at Woods Wash Road, my backpack goes back into my saddlebags and I start the ride back to Mid Hills campground
- Abandoned cistern in Woods Wash
The texture on the exterior concrete appears to imitate brick. - As the road rises slowly out of Woods Wash, it heads toward Table Mountain for a while, then turns left (west)
I typically don't choose rides that require me to return on the same route, but since this part of Mojave Preserve is new to me, it doesn't look the same on the return trip. - As the road rolls over the hills, I'm sometimes looking straight at the Woods Mountains
Earlier, while down in Woods Wash, I was looking up a canyon in the Woods Mountains there, thinking that it would make an interesting hiking destination. - At other moments, the road heads straight toward the Twin Buttes
The spring up on Twin Buttes might even contain water, though I wouldn't count on it. - After passing the southern tip of Twin Buttes, I open and close the old gate again
This might a good place to start a hike up Twin Buttes, someday. - With Wild Horse Mesa in the backgound, I spot an oversized and eroded old tire along Woods Wash Road
This obviously belonged to something bigger than a passenger car. - "For flat base truck rim only"
Rayon. Dipped. - I decide to try a possible shortcut road that veers north (the right fork) off Woods Wash Road
My official Mojave National Preserve map shows that I should be able to reach Black Canyon Road this way, but it doesn't look like it's used often. I'll try it anyway. - The shortcut road enters a sandy area, which I eventually forces me to dismount and walk the bike a bit
Looking back at the Woods Mountains and my tire tracks in the sand, I say to myself, "No wonder hardly anyone uses this road!" - The road pops out of the sandy wash briefly, and I arrive at the remains of an old cabin in Gold Valley
Time to go for a short walk and check out the site! - I peek inside the one-room Gold Valley cabin
An old table remains. With its weak structure that resembles a fence more than a house, the cabin was not built to last. - The rear (west side) of the Gold Valley cabin has a window
On the front side of the cabin is a view of Table Mountain and a juniper tree. I wonder if the view was appreciated by the cabin's residents. - The stucco exterior on the south exterior wall of the Gold Valley cabin is peeling off
The roof has already collapsed and the cabin is leaning. How much longer before the whole structure falls over with a big bang? Will anyone be around to hear the noise? - I take one last look at the Gold Valley cabin, with the Woods Mountains in the background
I hop on my bike and start riding up the sandy road. - A half mile further up this unnamed Gold Valley road, I encounter a fence (or is it a locked gate?)
I see no way to get past this fence, even though the route is not marked as blocked on my Mojave National Preserve map. Rather than risk trespassing on private property here, I turn around and head back to my original route on Woods Wash Road. - I ride back down the 1.3 miles of this road in Gold Valley, passing the cabin again on the way
I'll lose 250 feet in elevation during this stretch, so I'll enjoy the downhill while I can. - The sandy part of this road is hard to ride, even in the downhill direction!
I don't see any fresh tracks on this road other than mine. Seeing that it's a dead-end, I now know why. However, discovering the old cabin made the detour a worthwhile diversion. - Back on Woods Wash Road and approaching the government-owned residence, I notice a "No-hunting zone" sign
Yes, hunting is allowed in this national park, which is why it's called Mojave National Preserve, and not Mojave National Park. - Back on "the good part" of Woods Wash Road, the final 1.5 miles to Black Canyon Road rides smoothly
The warm glow of sunset is setting in. After the warm day, it's a great time of day to be outside in the desert. - Pink Desert four o'clock flowers and the yellow blooms of Snakeweed(?) pick up the sunset glow nicely
In the background, Table Mountain (centre) and the Twin Buttes (right) soak up the end-of-day rays. - Table Mountain and Twin Buttes take on a postcard-photo aura as I ride slowly up Black Canyon Road
The 8-mile ride from the Hole-in-the-Wall area back to Mid Hills campground is all uphill, but mostly not steep. Pedaling contemplatively is a good way to enjoy the sunset. - I look back regularly while climbing Black Canyon Road to take in the purple haze in the warmer areas south of Mojave Preserve
My original plan for this trip included visiting some of those warmer areas down there, but it got postponed by a month, and then hotter weather set in. In late May, I'm happier up here in the highlands! - At sunset on Black Canyon Road, I pass the Gold Valley Ranch
Ranching and cattle grazing continues in many parts of Mojave National Preserve, although some grazing allotments have been purchased and retired. - Just north of Gold Valley Ranch, Black Canyon Road is signed as a four-wheel drive road
The road does become rougher and more washboarded, and it has more surface sand from this point onward, but I wouldn't call it a 4WD road as the sign implies. Willingness to drive slowly should get a 2WD passenger car through here quite well. - Bumpy, bumpy, slowly uphill pedaling on the upper part of Black Canyon Road
I'm getting tired, going down with the sun. The peace and quiet is most enjoyable; I haven't seen a motor vehicle since meeting the French tourists before getting on the dirt road to Woods Wash. - My headlight goes on as Black Canyon Road turns black
Just a few more uphill miles to Mid Hills campground. I've eaten enough energy bars today and am now running on endorphins. - After the four short hills on Wild Horse Canyon Road, I reach the entrance kiosk at Mid Hills campground
From here I ride the final 0.6 miles to my campsite. What a great ride today... - Mountain-bike route elevation profile across Gold Valley, Mojave National Preserve, from Mid Hills campground to Woods Wash
35.4 bicycle miles, over 3000 feet elevation gain - Mountain-bike route across Gold Valley, Mojave National Preserve, from Mid Hills campground to Woods Wash
35.4 bicycle miles with over 3000 feet elevation gain, plus plus 2 hiking miles.