Home / Tag Kelso Dunes Wilderness [106]

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I set up camp and settle in for the evening, looking forward to tomorrow
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I get on I-40, drive many miles, then exit on Crucero Road toward Broadwell Dry Lake
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Broadwell Dry Lake gets closer, the road rougher
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The FJ and I make a quick stop at Broadwell Dry Lake in front of the Bristol Mountains
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The FJ drives onward along Broadwell Dry Lake, wondering where it will camp tonight
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At this point, Crucero Road seems to head straight toward the Cady Mountains
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There is more sand on the road here, but it's not a cause for concern
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I turn onto the powerline road
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I plan to hike tomorrow over there in the Bristol Mountains, Kelso Dunes Wilderness
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A lot of rough spots on this powerline road...
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The sun is setting, let's look for a campsite
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Broadwell Dry Lake is wide open and fun to hike across in the dark, but not today
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Beautiful sunset as my excellent hike today ends, just 1.5 miles to go
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I start my hike up the wash into the Bristol Mountains in the Kelso Dunes Wilderness
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Here's a healthy Cholla cactus
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And here's a series of Bladderpod bushes sporting their yellow flowers, attracting many bees
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I look behind me and see the forest of Smoke trees I've started walking through
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There's something oddly picturesque about these Smoke trees
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Some of the Smoke trees have thick trunks and might be quite old
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I remember coming across Coyote melons when I hiked here in 2011 too
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These green Coyote melons look like you could bake them like a squash
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I pass more Smoke trees as I enter the Bristol Mountains
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I check my GPS as I slowly rise, though it's unlikely that I'm off-track
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Footprints, not mine
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Entering the gateway, I follow tire tracks that perhaps shouldn't be here
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Who lives up in that hole in the rock behind the Bladderpod flowers?
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A few Barrel cacti have taken root in crevices in the rock wall on the other side of the wash
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A plant I was not expecting to see today in the Bristol Mountains is this purple-flowering lupine
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Follow the tire tracks!
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The tire tracks do end at a guzzler, I remember stopping here in 2011
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Specifically, a nearby plaque tells me that it's the Lew Carpenter guzzler
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I walk on beyond the guzzler, up the little canyon I didn't explore when I was last here
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The drainage swirls around rocks and low hills
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I walk through a "mini-narrows" stretch
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A few really easy stairsteps to walk up...
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I pass some red rock
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And then a narrow curve
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A few volcanic rocks fall down from the hills above
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A few more stairsteps
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A statue standing in the middle of my trail gets my attention
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Few plants grow in this area, so this flowering Phacelia stands out
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Rocks guide me onward
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I see that water once pooled here, perhaps not long ago
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Greenish rock, blackish rock
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Blue sky, blue rock
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I arrive on the edge of the Broadwell Mesa formation
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Where to go from here, now that I've arrived at Broadwell Mesa?
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I've hiked parts of Broadwell Mesa from different sides, but never all together
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Over there is another drainage leading up to Broadwell Mesa, but I'll pass on that one for now
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Rocks tumble down from Broadwell Mesa
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I take a short break on a hill in the Broadwell Mesa area to savor the silent beauty of just being here
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More footprints not mine...
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I'll start walking over toward Hyten Spring now, over in those hills
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Through an opening in the Bristol Mountains, I can see across to the Providence Mountains
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I've arrived at the bottom of the canyon for the next part of my hike
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One last look across the sparse Broadwell Mesa area before heading up the canyon...
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I almost missed this little Claretcup cactus and its tiny burst of color
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Arriving Hyten Spring!
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The tank here at Hyten Spriing was apparently rebuilt in the 1990s
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It appears that water from nearby sources is drained into the tank for storage
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The water at Hyten Spring doesn't look very fresh and tasty
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Someone was here in 1908, 107 years ago
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U.S. Survey 1911
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I take a look around for other inscriptions in the rock that might be nearby
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Despite some catclaw growing in the wash, no bushwhacking is required
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Easy hiking between the rocks
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I can still see some of Broadwell Mesa when I turn to look back down the canyon
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Looks like a small dam was built here to collect water
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There's even a small pool of water remaining here in the rocks
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Water flowing down the canyon has polished the rock floor
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Out of the canyon, I enter an open area with more hiking choices
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Late-afternoon shadows begin early during the winter months
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It will be mostly downhill from here back to my campsite
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Today's hike wouldn't be complete without a balloon sighting!
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I follow the sunshine
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More coyote melons!
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I follow the trail of dried water around the bend
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And now I'm in the land of Smoke trees again
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I glow along with tips of the Bristol Mountains
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The Smoke trees prepare for the onset of evening
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Occasionally I like to stop walking so I can just focus on the sunset
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I've almost reached the end of the Smoke tree belt
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Map of Hyten Spring hike, Kelso Dunes Wilderness
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Elevation profile of Hyten Spring hike, Kelso Dunes Wilderness
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I rise up onto a plateau
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Someone lost something here, glad it's not me!
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Good morning from underneath the Mojave Desert power lines!
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I have over 25 miles of dirt road ahead 'til I reach the pavement of Kelbaker Road
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Ah, my first little hilly section of the morning
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The road flattens out again, for a while at least
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A morning pipe of Orlik Golden Slices softens the drive
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The powerline road is getting sandy as it heads toward the Kelso Mountains and Old Dad Mountain
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The sandy road curves to avoid a couple of hills
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We continue driving straight toward Old Dad Mountain
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A patch of yellow Desert marigolds blooms amidst a sparse creosote bush forest
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My road flattens out a little and has more residual pavement
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Desert primroses start to become common as I drive past the Bristol Mountains
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The road descends gently into the far west end of the Devil's Playground area
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So far, I'm finding the road to be in better condition than I expected
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I see a snake track in the road next to my footprints