Alone in the Mojave Desert Again - 2013

Man, great time for reports right now...wachs, Wans and now I find this little gem!!!

Thanks BMW-K.

Hey RRR. I was up to date with your thread. I now remember reading about your Mojave trip. It must've played some part, at least subconsciously, in my last minute decision on where to ride. I knew I was going on a ride, but didn't really know where to until a couple days before.

The battery was FUBAR and the bike was running like crap. I tried a couple other places with luck before limping into Carter Powersports.
The engine died and refused to start again. I coasted into the parking lot.


Spending ~$190 bucks on a new OEM battery sucks when I know...




The last one lasted 2 years and 3 months!:eek1 (I probably need to troubleshoot my charging system, huh?)





I swapped the batteries in the parking lot and let the dealership keep the old one. I wasn't attached to it.
I was happy to find the new battery, which ended all of the problems I was having.
By mid-afternoon I was headed out of town.





20 years ago I visited the desert southwest for the first time when Helen and I flew to Las Vegas.
As many tourists there do, we got out of town in a rental car to see sights such as Hoover Dam
and the Red Rock Canyon Scenic Drive.





I remember being thoroughly impressed with the scenery, but after all I've seen since, will I still be?
Nah. Just like I thought. Crowded with tourists in rental cars its claim to fame is undoubtedly being close to Las Vegas.
Only the first couple miles of the 13 mile scenic one-way loop road was scenic.
At least it was wide enough to pass the tourists driving 15 in a 35.





This rock is huge! For a sense of scale, try to find all of the people in this picture. I counted at least 24, but I had the advantage of the full-resolution photo.

Oh Man! Thanks for the heads up, larryboy. I obviously need to spend some quality time reading reports. I hadn't noticed those two yet.

HardWorkingDog too, I gotta get started on that one.




Desert=Dessert


On with the story!!

I finish up the "scenic loop" and stop near the exit. I need to determine where to next. I had done everything planned so far.
I had the rough idea of heading towards the Mojave National Preserve. I pull out the Atlas and notice a trail that will be a nice short-cut.




It starts as an easy graded road. Obviously this will be a fast short-cut.





Maybe not.





I climb out of the wash I was riding in to get this panoramic view behind me. You can even see Red Rock Canyon.
(You may need to scroll right.)




I had to remove some layers and change to my summer gloves here. Riding a rough trail is so much warmer than asphalt.

Great pics. I can's wait to see where you take us.

Ahh. The Mojave Desert. The old stomping grounds for 40+ years. Even before it became the exclusive play ground to the Environazi Government with all the road closures and wilderness designations.
Although I am without motorcycle for the first time in 45 years, I do enjoy coming back to lurk the pages of the wonderful world of Adventurers like you Dave. I get to see the great scenery that is familier to me but in a complete different perspective because of your ingenious ability to take a picture of the scenery and transform it into a magical place. Thanks for that.
I see you have not foresaken the majesty of the Eagle on your bike.
I hope to get busy with tours like this, albeit in a truck but it will be an exciting ride non the less.




Above the Rest.
Mil Thornton

Right on, Dave! Nice work with the new battery. Good that little deal didn't mess you up. Pushing a bike is no fun.

Ok, throw up some specifics on where you criss-crossed the Mojave. Always fun to ride along. Keep bringing it!

Great start Dave!
Super pictures.

The ride up the wash culminated with a short steep climb.






I made it up no problem, even though I worried about traction from the worn tires.






It should be all downhill from here to Goodsprings.





I was riding through the Red Rock Conservation Wild Horse and Burro Management Area when 6-7 horses crossed the road ahead.





This one remained on guard and seemed pretty nervous with my presence. He trotted up the ridge and kept watch.





The others quickly returned to grazing.





I walked up the hill some to get a better angle for the shots above.














I jumped back on my Black Stallion and headed off at a frisky pace.

The trail became fun with lots of dips and such. I caught a little air, which felt exhilarating. I felt as free as a wild horse!
I reined myself in and figured it would be prudent to slow down my heavily laden beast.

I suddenly heard a horn beeping behind me...






Dirk was out on his KTM and obviously running a little faster than me. We chatted for awhile. He was out on a day-ride from Vegas.





Dirk headed off and quickly left me behind.





I caught up at the asphalt near Goodsprings where he was airing up. Sweet KTM 950 SE!





We rode a few miles together before going opposite direction on I-15.





I noticed the shadows were getting longer, so I jumped off onto Nipton Road to find my residence for the evening.

I raced across the Ivanpah Valley and through Nipton.







Just after crossing back into Nevada I found a spot in the desert...





To set up camp about 3/4 of a mile from the highway.





There were beautiful views of the mountains...





and the entire Ivanpah Valley.





The powerlines crackled all night.





I enjoyed the sunset and crawled into the tent for a little reading.





Day 2 Stats

Thanks for following along again Bob!

Sweet Truck, Mil T! You should have a fun with that thing. Are you done with 2 wheels completely?

Airborne!

Thanks MM!



RRR, I'll post up my tracks near the end.

In the morning I took a stroll...






to warm up and check out my surroundings.

................




Then I made a hot breakfast and took my time packing up.





I took Nipton Road to Searchlight.





Searchlight, Nevada






I don't usually pick up hitchhikers...





But I made an exception this time.






I thought about heading west on the Mojave Road. I've heard this road has some super deep sand though...





So I did an old section of Route 66 to Goffs, CA.





I headed north into the preserve on Lanfair Road.





Did I mention it was cold in the desert?

Enjoy your RR and your creative photos
Thanks
Scub

I head west on Cedar Canyon RD. I planned to stop at the Hole-in-the-Rock Visitor Center.




Snow!





Joshua Tree





It was a fun and relaxing ride. I was out here all alone.





I stopped and took a picture of this intersection, but for some reason didn't think I needed to turn yet.
I rode Cedar Canyon Road all the way back into the Ivanpah Valley before I realized, "Hey, This looks familiar".









I back-tracked several miles to the intersection and headed south.

I used the clean restrooms at the Hole-in-the-Rock visitor center to clean up, refill my water bottles, and change into hiking clothes.
I decided to stretch my legs on the 1 mile Rings Loop Trail.





I found some petroglyphs near the trail.




It wasn't very scenic until I got close to the canyon.









Weird Rocks









There were a couple tight spots requiring a climb up the rings.










Since I had just ridden Cedar Canyon RD twice, and did Foshay Pass/Powerline Trail last time I was here, I decided to try a new route.
I took the sandy Mid Hills RD.
I kept seeing a couple fresh motorcycle tracks in the sand. I wasn't sure if I was following two motorcycles or one that had ridden both ways.





I hadn't noticed how parallel the tracks were. I chatted with this friendly hack rider. I don't think he had ever heard of advrider though.




Macedonia Canyon Trail

Macedonia Canyon Trail was a fun track down to the next valley ending at the Kelso/Cima RD.










With the recent damp weather the sand wasn't too bad.

By time I made it to the Kelso/Cima RD the wind had picked up and the valley was dusty.
I hoped to camp at the sand dunes, but the wind may make that miserable.




The Kelso Depot reopened in 2005 as a visitor center for the park.











I'll take two tickets for a black KTM fun machine.






There a lunch counter operating in the depot. I had the place to myself with the full attention of the friendly owners and staff.






I had two of these big chili dogs with lemonade. Yummy! I had worked up an appetite.