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- Ice in my water bottles this morning at Indian Springs!
- Root system
- I spot a larger cave in the Cady Mountains next to the smaller one I saw earlier, on my way up the saddle
- Before packing up, I head back up to Indian Springs 1/2 mile up the road to refill my drinking-water supply
- I ride away from the campsite up Kelso Dunes Road toward the Providence Mountains
- Elderly sagebrush survivors
- I take a short walk to warm up and get used to today's surroundings (it was dark when I got here last night)
- Snake #1
- Pond at Wagon Road/Phegley junction
- A car passes while I descend Kelbaker Road toward Kelso Depot
- The start of Jackass Canyon Road
- Near those crumbling rock walls is a hole in the hillside
- Entwined Joshua tree
- Upward
- Ah, my 12-mile climb up to the Kelbaker Road summit ends just ahead at the power lines...
- Walk of giants
- Awake, I peer out the back of my tent to see a sunny day, Kelso Dunes, and a creosote bush poking me in the face
- Small ruts on the uppermost part of Jackass Canyon Road
- Afternoon haze
- Juxtaposition
- Slaughterhouse Spring hills hike, elevation profile
- Hmmm... it's extremely sandy on this part of Jackass Canyon Road
- A couple of miles down from my tent, a branch in the road to the left will take me to Sands
- Cady Mountains hike elevation profile
- Sand platform
- Social distancing for plants
- Looking back down to my campsite from my outhouse with a view
- My pile of supplies and gear dumped in the spare bedroom the night before leaving home
- Storm clouds
- Returning to the main road, I decide to call it a day and set up camp by the power lines around 18h30
- Dismantling the tent; time to move on and continue my bikepacking trip
- Creosote bush family
- Fluffy in the breeze
- Smoke in the Monument Peak area, August 2020
- My scenic morning cat hole with Soda Lake in the background
- I refill my two-litre Camelbak and an empty 1.5-litre bottle with water from Indian Springs
- Smoke over San Francisco Bay, August 2020
- The colourful yellow lichen on these rocks is quite painterly
- Burned conifers, Stanislaus National Forest, 2020
- On the last few miles before Kelso Depot, the wind is so strong that I can barely maintain 7 miles per hour
- Erosion, Death Valley National Park, Fall 2020
- All bundled up, I go for a short walk around the campsite in the cold sun to warm up a little
- The 10-ton bike is packed up and ready to go to Mojave National Preserve on Xmas day
- An hour later, I step outside for a short walk around my new surroundings at Devil's Playground
- Webs
- With no set destination, I start walking up the wash past Indian Springs and notice some intriguing rock layers
- Looking back down the Indian Springs wash toward my campsite
- At the end of Kelso Dunes Road, I rejoin the pavement of Kelbaker Road
- Breaking camp on the final morning of a trip produces mixed emotions
- The first thing I do upon waking up is peer outside to see where I am, without leaving the comfort of my hooded sleeping bag
- Joshua tree on a smoky afternoon
- Heading down Jackass Canyon Road, it's not as nearly as steep as I was expecting, at least not yet
- Bone scatter
- Downfall
- Nice, almost warm morning near Slaughterhouse Spring; I wake up baking in my tent around 8h30
- The soft sand on this road results in my walking the bike for about a mile, leaving nice tire tracks behind
- Hiding petroglyphs
- Sundown at a tiny dry lake in the Death Valley backcountry
- The Boulder
- Fire ring at a roadside campsite on Jackass Canyon Road about 1.75 miles in from Kelbaker Road
- "Painted-dot" rock
- Round-trip bicycle route, Piute Gorge to Hackberry Spring via Rattlesnake Mine
- Snow up above, sand down below, at Eureka Dunes
- Unexploded ordnance
- A little further up Indian Springs wash, I come across another seep and a bit of ice that today's sun hasn't reached, and melted
- Fading petroglyphs
- After a couple of miles on the power-line road, I locate the nearly invisible road that leaves on my right toward Coyote Springs
- The 10-ton bike has been rebuilt and is ready to leave Kelso Dunes
- I complete my seven-mile climb up Kelbaker Road and reach the junction of Aiken Mine Road and Jackass Canyon Road
- I reach heavy sand a quarter mile down the road and a pile of paint cans that were recently dumped here
- I see just one extant structure at Sands: a shed next to what looks like part of an old water tower
- Warm sunshine ahead
- The little town of Kelso is now visible down in the valley below, as are the low mountains beyond that I will ride over later
- Bigger sandy drainages cross Jackass Canyon Road on the way down
- Enjoying desert gold as the mud flats go dry
- At another junction on the way to Coyote Springs, I pull out my map to look for this fork in the road
- Hillside cactus garden at Indian Springs, Mojave National Preserve
- Creosote bush family
- This four-wheel drive sign is the first sign I've seen on Jackass Canyon Road
- Leaving my campsite at the bottom of Jackass Canyon to ride across Devil's Playground over to Sands
- Desert abronia
- Morning, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest
- Tic tac toe
- A cholla cactus watches me from a safe distance, Death Valley National Park
- Wallflower, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest
- Wry Canyon smiles back at me, Death Valley National Park.
- Curves, points and clouds
- Map of Mojave National Preserve bicycle and hiking routes
- The pretty ceiling above the shower stall in tonight's room at the Royal Hawaiian invites me to step inside and get clean
- Avian desert-hiker tracks
- Indian Springs Road: the road surface is a bit rough and rocky
- The sun sets on me at Indian Springs
- Elderly juniper tree, Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest
- Eastbound on the power-line road toward Providence Mountains, I see that somebody suffered a tire blow-out here
- Bright sunshine and a bit of smoke in the air as I look down toward "The Racetrack" in Death Valley National Park
- Hmmm... a rubber glove near Mail Spring
- Wow, there's a trickle of water here at Indian Springs
- Back at my campsite near Kelso Dunes for a few minutes, I stuff a few items in my saddlebags for the ride to Coyote Springs
- Ring of rocks
- Approaching the top of Kelso Dunes, this final stretch is the steepest part
- Baker's "world's tallest thermometer" says that it's 50 degrees F this morning
- This sandy road-in-a-wash ends after a couple of miles and the rest of it ahead is blocked Wilderness barrier posts
- Back on the pavement of Kelbaker Road, I begin the slow, easy climb up toward Jackass Canyon Road
- A happy-Mother's-Day balloon rests deflated near the road
- After 13 miles, I reach the little dirt road to Indian Springs and turn off here
- At the stone ruins off Indian Springs Road
- Barrel cacti catching the last light of day on the hill above Indian Springs
- I begin the hike down to Piute Spring by walking over to the trail sign at campsite #2
- I mount the bike and ride the 1/4-mile shortcut at the end of Kelso Dunes Road to the nearby power-line road
- Desert rock garden, after the snow
- Turquoise veins in rock at Trio Mine, Mojave National Preserve: copper, presumably
- About eight miles down from the summit, I fly around the curve near the Kelbaker Road lava flows
- I'm seeing animal tracks all over the place
- Dodder and desert primrose
- Baker, California: 23 miles and 2900 feet below the Kelbaker Road summit
- Desert holly bushes attempt camouflage amidst white rock scatter
- And away we go toward Sands down the power-line road...
- In the last vestiges of daylight, I rattle four miles down the Kelso Dunes Road washboard back to my tent
- I take a look into the hole that goes into the hillside
- I cross through some of the riparian brush at Piute Creek
- Some of the old pavement on the power-line road still functions as originally intended
- Large dry clumps of animal dung are everywhere around my tent
- I take a quick break at the Kelbaker Road summit to put on my winter jacket and scarf in preparation for the downhill ahead
- Mining claim in a bottle
- Whatever this was, there's practically no mortar left at all between the stones
- The heat feels great, but it's time to let the fire burn out and prepare for sleeping
- The road to Coyote Springs ends at a cul-de-sac, a small stone fire ring, and Wilderness-barrier posts
- Near the Kelso Dunes trailhead, I pass an unoccupied roadside campsite
- Crossing a dry mud flat near Sands on the way back across Devil's Playground
- A drainage rut across Indian Springs Road
- Bla, I can't ride through this deep kitty litter, it's getting dark, and I'm not down at Devil's Playground yet
- Pedalling down past those famous Mojave National Preserve cinder cones
- The Kelso Dunes sand is soft, and one does sink in with each footstep, but it's not as difficult as I thought it might be
- The first ten miles of Kelbaker Road into Mojave National Preserve out of Baker looks flat, but it actually climbs 1000 feet
- Around 13h, I ride down Indian Springs wash, away from my quiet campsite of the past two nights
- I ride back up the road 1.25 miles to the Kelso Dunes trailhead
- A mile or so down Indian Springs Road, I stop to look at some stone ruins in a hillside on the north side of the road
- This final piece of the road to Coyote Springs is a little rocky, but has fresh tire tracks
- On the way to Sands is the remains of an old plank road, built ages ago to provide "permanent" traction in the sand
- Poor little cactus!
- The road belongs to me; I've only seen two cars since starting down from the summit
- Staircase
- A windmill, a defunct wilderness camera and a dry cistern all sit at the old Lecyr Well site, Mojave National Preserve
- There are a number of people hiking Kelso Dunes today
- My focus cuts across the slanted world of motion to the hills behind the Indian Springs area, where I camped the first two night
- After about three miles, Indian Springs Road turns toward the hills up a sandy wash
- Sometimes, the colors in the desert all run together
- Heading up this sandy road, I notice a plastic pipe along the shoulder
- Erosion along the walls of Indian Springs wash
- The deep glow of sunset intensifies with the passing of each minute
- Next stop on today's hike is the old Trio Mine site
- Leaving Baker on Kelbaker Road and crossing the Interstate 15 freeway to enter Mojave National Preserve
- Damage to the corner of one of the motel units
- The strong wind pushes my empty sardine can around while I eat lunch outside Kelso Depot
- This rock formation immediately catches my attention
- Excellent perspectives of the surrounding mountains come into view as one climbs higher up Kelso Dunes
- A little further beyond Indian Springs, I notice a side wash that looks interesting
- Today's Mojave National Preserve festival of pink, purple and orange is probably the best I've experienced on this trip
- The 10-ton bike waits for me back on Indian Springs Road
- Shadow and stripe
- I wake up in the Mail Spring area of Mojave National Preserve and realize I'm still alive after yesterday's hot bicycle ride
- After refilling my water, I notice a faint road rising slowly to the right of a hill ahead of me
- A hiker atop the Phegley Ridge Trail "wall"
- Heading back up to the ridgetop for a moment
- Uh oh, a fork in the power-line road; I have to make a choice that I didn't realize I'd have to make
- Nice views across the next valley toward the Dead Mountains Wilderness area, outside Mojave National Preserve
- The old Coyote Springs Road obviously continues beyond the Wilderness-barrier posts, so I park my bike here and walk onward
- I notice several hawks and ravens flying around as I continue hiking up the wash toward Hyten Spring
- I've settled in with a full tummy and celebrate by catching up on my travelogue notes, drinking beer, and watching some TV
- Dusk is closing in here in Eyeball Rock Wash
- After supper, at 21h50, it's time to start my Indian Springs Xmas campfire
- And here it is: Hyten Spring, Bristol Mountains, Kelso Dunes Wilderness
- Distant dunes
- A nice touch at the Kelso Dunes trailhead is a modern outhouse that's even equipped with toilet paper
- Redfern Pond
- I lock the bike to the fence at the Kelso Dunes trailhead
- Here's an old rusty lid from a tobacco tin, perhaps Copenhagen snuff
- About a quarter mile before the end of Indian Springs Road, I notice a fire ring and a possible campsite
- Just beyond Cane Spring, I come across more surface ice
- I begin the walk toward Kelso Dunes
- The tip of one of the old lava flows lies a short distance ahead
- Another trickle of water
- Snowfall on the Saline Range
- I decide I don't feeling like riding up Ivanpah Road any further and look for a campsite on adjacent Slaughterhouse Spring Road
- After ten miles, Kelbaker Road bends sharply away from civilization
- I reach the main dirt road from Primm to Nipton, often called Nipton-Desert Road, and note that I'm 10.5 miles from my next stop
- Desert rock garden
- Rollin' down the river
- Heading up Jackass Canyon Road, I see a car coming toward me!
- 2.5 miles up Kelbaker Road, I make a brief stop at Black Tank Wash to remove my scarf and winter jacket
- OK, I admit it--I'm lost, but not totally
- This little hill provides expansive views across the Devil's Playground
- On the other side of the corral crumbles part of an old wall
- The wash forks and gets narrower, then I stumble across these bones
- I leave the Coyote Springs stream and climb up one of the low rocky hills along the old road on the way back to my bike
- Rock layers in Indian Springs wash
- I stop just before starting the ride across Broadwell Dry Lake to check out a couple of big mushrooms
- Back down in the Jackass Canyon Road wash, I resign myself to walking the bike through the kitty litter for a while
- I continue up Indian Springs wash
- Freeway traffic behind me now, I enter Mojave National Preserve