Jan 17, 2021
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With: | Tom Becht |
Iris Ma | |
Tom Grundy |
Unlike the first, our second day on the Mojave Trail saw us doing more than a just a few miles of the Mojave Trail, an historic route first pioneered by the native americans, then converted to a wagon road before the Civil War, now a recreational OHV route across the Mojave Desert. We'd camped just west of Afton Canyon, the narrowest section of the Mojave River where bedrock brings water to the surface that normally flows underground. A Union Pacific rail line runs through the canyon as well, taking in the same sights of crumbling cliffs, badlands and raparian woodlands, unusual in a desert setting. The first part of the morning was spent driving and exploring on foot some of the interesting sights in Afton Canyon. There were water crossings, trains, bridges, slot canyons and more. One could easily spend days here without getting bored though we were through it in a little over an hour. For those with more time, there is a BLM campground in the canyon that can be more easily reached by high-clearance vehicles from the Afton Exit off Interstate 15.
We could plainly see the Mesquite Hills about 1.5mi to the southeast and a reasonable way to reach them via a sandy descent off the southeast side of Crucero Hill. We could see a couple of vehicles parked in the Mesquite Hills, offering an even shorter way to reach them. Deciding he'd probably pushed his foot as much as he dared, Tom decided to head back to the Jeep while I continued on foot to the Mesquite Hills. I gave Tom my key to allow him to drive the Jeep to meet me there. It took me less than 40min to cover the distance between the two summits, along an easy, but enjoyable route across the desert. The two vehicles we'd spotted had left before I had reached the base of the Mesquite Hills, leaving the place to myself. I was at the summit when I spotted my Jeep in the distance. I beat a hasty retreat off the mountain, aiming for the end of the road in the canyon below on the north side. We came to find someone's picnic site assembled here, complete with BBQ, picnic table and a view bench overlooking the desert to the west. After arriving at the end of the road, Tom brought up a couple of beers from the cooler and we sat at the table to enjoy the afternoon sunshine and take in the fine view. Not a bad way to finish the day.
After we'd finished our beverage and relaxed some, we returned to the Jeep and retraced the route back to Cave Mtn where we would retrieve our companions. They had made it to the summit of Cave Mtn, taking longer than we had expected - there would be no time or energy for the more ambitious traverse of the NE Ridge that I'd tried to sell them on. TomG and Iris were packed into Tom's Jeep for the drive back to the Harvard exit and home while I drove back to Baker (for dinner) and into the Soda Mtns where I would finish up the roadtrip the next day. I slept quite well that evening off Silver Lake Rd, no road noise to disturb my sleep this evening...
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This page last updated: Thu Jan 28 09:04:50 2021
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