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Panamint Valley December 26, 2017 - January 9, 2018
The burros in the area aren't afraid of dogs and will walk right into camp. When Mya tries to chase them off they will charge her. If she tries to approach from the rear they will throw a kick with one of their back legs. While down towards Indian Ranch one walked up to within a few feet of my eleven year old grandson, freaked him out a little. I think he was considering hiding in the Jeep. Mya managed to chase it a little until it took a stand and became aggressive. A few days before New Years they disappeared. I don't know where they went. There are more people out that way each New Years and I don't think the burros like fireworks. I never saw another burro for the week I was out there after their initial disappearance. After I left the dog home for the last few days a kangaroo rat came around the trailer. It liked spaghetti and Rice Krispies. I only saw it one night so it couldn't have liked them that much. I had set up my back packing expedition tent to label the poles for easier assembly. A praying mantis moved in.
Happy Canyon
Scot coming down the lower falls. Upper Falls and Austin at the base of the upper falls in Happy Canyon.
I hadn't hiked back into Happy Canyon in a dozen years or so. It is closed to vehicular traffic and I know why. You can't drive it. There are no traces of the old road and the vegetation had chocked off even foot traffic above the second falls. (You would have to bore anchor holes and winch up the falls like they used to do in Surprise Canyon before the government closed it off)  Dave and I hiked into the upper reaches from the Porter Mine Road off Pleasant Canyon. Our five mile round trip wasn't bothered by vegetation because we were above the springs and the Happy Fire of 2000 had removed most the sparse vegetation of pinion pines.
Westin Cabin
About an eight hour day counting the four wheeling to get to the cabin
Not sure what it was, not far from the cabin      http://www.web-centric.net/phil/hendy.html
Death Valley
Since the Trona - Wildrose Road was completely open for the first time in probably going on ten years, I decided to make the loop through Stove-pipe Wells. They had only had to do a minimum amount of work on it and it easily could have been opened way before now. From Ridgecrest where I live it is now forty miles shorter to get up to the Wildrose Charcoal Kilns and the trailhead for Telescope Peak. (10 miles to Wildrose from Indian Ranch Rd  instead of 61 miles)
Stove-pipe Wells campground reminds me of a drive in movie. It needs a screen and speakers.	The Emigrant campground doesn't allow trailers.
Rain
The last couple days were mostly intermittent  light rain or drizzle, the first of the season for that part of the Mojave Desert. It helped settle the disturbed earth broken up by off road vehicles but instead of freshening the air it made it smell musty. It reminded me of  dank abandoned cabin smell fueled by rodent feces. There were a lot of burro, rodent droppings and urine that became odiferous with the addition of the rain water. I had left the dog home when I had gone back home for a night so I didn't have to deal with a wet dog smell.
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