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Mojave Desert March 16-22, 2016
Randsburg
Randsburg was pretty much shut down on a Wednesday when I went through. A semi Ghost Town Tourist Trap. The nearby Yellow Aster Gold Mine was the richest in Kern County and was still running when I got into the area in the mid 90s. Randsburg was named after the Rand Mining district in South Africa. Other neighboring mining claim towns are Red Mountain and Johannesburg. They had to give up their claims and become a tax paying part of the county a while back. Nobody was mining and they had a tax free land status on their old claims.
Marble Mountains (Trilobite Wilderness)
Shaft with tubs around the Iron Hat Mine
I had no real idea where I was going, took a rough dirt road to the edge of the wilderness near the Iron Hat Mine. Took a hike with the dog to the mine area. Don't know what part of the Marble Mountains are supposed to contain Trilobites. I took the Cardiz Road south to get to Desert Center and the Eagle Mountain area.
Cardiz Road
Cardiz Farm Office (Land Office) in Chambless in front of the Marble Mountains	Siding near or in Cardiz with the Marble Mountains in the background
About a 50 mile un-maintained road which follows a high pressure gas line which pretty much follows the railroad route. Cardiz seems to be a railroad siding adjacent to private land which looks like a large citrus farm. (Posted so I didn't check it out)
The road to Cadiz Sand Dunes has no spurs, it ends at the dunes with a small turn around large enough for two camps if they are close friends. (It was occupied) The soft sand makes 4 wheel drive mandatory and also makes it hard to pull off the road.
Ruins near Chubbuck (What was it?)
After  3 1/2 hours of following the tracks I finally saw a train. I had never seen Arizona & California before Most the lines in the Mojave have trains by much more often.
Eagle Mountain
Massive tailing piles from the Eagle Mountain Mine behind the California Colorado Aquaduct.
If you take the Eagle Mountain exit off I-10 you can only go a few miles before you are stopped by a gate at the California Colorado River Aqueduct pumping station. You can get around that by going through Desert Center and past Lake Tamarisk on Kaiser Road. Turns out the town of Eagle Mountain and the mine are gated off by Kaiser. Spent the night next to the aqueduct. Not sure why this section is not covered by video surveillance and gates like the pump reservoir and station. The open water is fenced off, guess they are worried about someone damaging the pump station.
Needles area
The Colorado River at Needles
Went through Quartzite and up 95. Wanted to check out the three Arizona State Park campgrounds along the Colorado River. They were full. but I wouldn't stay if they were empty. Just RV parking lots.
Hover Dam
The backside of Hoover Dam
I wanted to see the new bridge from below  (I need to walk it someday, you can't see anything driving over it)	The ring around the bathtub
The last time I was at Boulder Dam (AKA Hoover, Mount McKinley is now Denali maybe we can get rid of the political Hoover in favor of the original name Boulder) the bridge wasn't built and you went across the dam on US93. (After 911 they wouldn't let semis across, but after inspecting the interior allowed me to drive my camper across the dam) Now you can drive across the dam from the Nevada side but have to come back out the same way. (Still no semis, but no need for them they can use the bridge)
2016	2001
Death Valley
Hole in the Wall
Hiking from camp towards Hole in The Wall
There is a six mile Jeep road which takes you a few miles past Hole in the Wall. You can camp anywhere after the first mile but no fires.
Fading yellow flower carpet between Furnace Creek and Scotty's cutoff
Panamint Valley and Telescope Peak from Father Crowley Viewpoint (dust storm in the valley)
Chimney Creek Campground
Some of the bloom along Nine Mile Canyon heading to Chimney Peak area.
I decided I needed to try and get out of the wind so I went up Nine Mile Canyon and down to Chimney Creek Campground. I wanted to cook up a steak I had been carrying around with me and also wanted a second fire on the trip. Managed both but it was still a little windy and it got below freezing at night. (Barely) My three favorite sites were occupied, the only three in the campground besides myself. Of the five previous nights the coldest had been about 50 with daytime highs upper 80s to lower 90s. It was only windy the last day and no precipitation. Overall nice weather especially compared to what it would be like latter when summer turned up the heat another 20 degrees or more.
6 Camps	Route
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