John Morrow
02-16-2015, 03:37 PM
Link to pics, chronological, with route explanations at bottom of text.
After the Muddy Mountains fine Peak scrambling I decided to seek some more aesthetic summit ascents. What I found was just that, plus: Pictographs, Petroglyphs, narrow canyons, joshua trees and cholla cactus, sunrises and sunsets, sweet camping, and finally summits of limestone, granite, and sand! Yes, even a sand summit. Mojave National Preserve has all this and much much more. It is a must visit!!!!!
On Fri Feb 6th I took my rental SUV up six miles of crappy powerline access road to a neat BLM picnic/camping area. This is the start for the Clark Mountain 7907' climb. It is just off of I-15 in California and a detached unit of Mojave National Preserve. I did it as a pseudo loop with the East Peak 7897'. This entailed going up one southern rib, crossing an exciting, impeccable solid limestone knife-edge traverse to connect the summits, followed by a descent of a more western southern rib. I include a map. 77942779437794477945779467794777948
Note my mistake, one must descend below the vertical limestone spine and not atop of it because there is not way off down below!
Evening drive to Cima and Hole in the Wall:
7794977950
Sat Feb 7th I did a big tour of the Preserve. That night I camped in Hole in the Wall Campground for a great night of stars, a bright moonrise, a fine sunrise, and moonset . Then I did the short Hole In the Wall Loop hike through volcanic tuff formations and petroglyphs.
779517795277953779547795577956
Afterwards I drove to Kelso Dunes for an interpretive walk and later summit bid of Kelso Dune 3114' which included my first ever barefoot descent run!
779577795877959
Then I did a sightseeing drive through lava flows and cinder cones until hiking up the granite landscape of Teutonia Peak 5755' near sunset. Bypass the north summit by walking that inviting tableland east of the ridge. Below the central summit look for a bouldery ramp trending NW. At the top of that go around the corner back to the SW and begin the final climb in back of the cul-de-sac. Some solid Class 3/4 friction-face gets near the top where a short jump over a gap leads to the summit.
What I remark as Class 4 on the north peak is probably more like 5.0 in that slanting crack and then a friction back across to get to the top of it from the north.
7796077961779627796377964779657796677967
Complete Set of Pictures, chronological and annotated,with a couple maps:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/23557848@N03/sets/72157650399628537/
After the Muddy Mountains fine Peak scrambling I decided to seek some more aesthetic summit ascents. What I found was just that, plus: Pictographs, Petroglyphs, narrow canyons, joshua trees and cholla cactus, sunrises and sunsets, sweet camping, and finally summits of limestone, granite, and sand! Yes, even a sand summit. Mojave National Preserve has all this and much much more. It is a must visit!!!!!
On Fri Feb 6th I took my rental SUV up six miles of crappy powerline access road to a neat BLM picnic/camping area. This is the start for the Clark Mountain 7907' climb. It is just off of I-15 in California and a detached unit of Mojave National Preserve. I did it as a pseudo loop with the East Peak 7897'. This entailed going up one southern rib, crossing an exciting, impeccable solid limestone knife-edge traverse to connect the summits, followed by a descent of a more western southern rib. I include a map. 77942779437794477945779467794777948
Note my mistake, one must descend below the vertical limestone spine and not atop of it because there is not way off down below!
Evening drive to Cima and Hole in the Wall:
7794977950
Sat Feb 7th I did a big tour of the Preserve. That night I camped in Hole in the Wall Campground for a great night of stars, a bright moonrise, a fine sunrise, and moonset . Then I did the short Hole In the Wall Loop hike through volcanic tuff formations and petroglyphs.
779517795277953779547795577956
Afterwards I drove to Kelso Dunes for an interpretive walk and later summit bid of Kelso Dune 3114' which included my first ever barefoot descent run!
779577795877959
Then I did a sightseeing drive through lava flows and cinder cones until hiking up the granite landscape of Teutonia Peak 5755' near sunset. Bypass the north summit by walking that inviting tableland east of the ridge. Below the central summit look for a bouldery ramp trending NW. At the top of that go around the corner back to the SW and begin the final climb in back of the cul-de-sac. Some solid Class 3/4 friction-face gets near the top where a short jump over a gap leads to the summit.
What I remark as Class 4 on the north peak is probably more like 5.0 in that slanting crack and then a friction back across to get to the top of it from the north.
7796077961779627796377964779657796677967
Complete Set of Pictures, chronological and annotated,with a couple maps:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/23557848@N03/sets/72157650399628537/