December 2022 News
Well, it's the end of the year and I haven't gone out this year nearly as much as I would have hoped but I guess that is to be expected. I always want to be out more than I am! I have however done a lot
Hensen Well and the Pinyon Mine
This hike is an adventurous cross-country ramble exploring a few historic mining ruins in the seldom-visited Pinyon Mesa country at the end of Geology Tour Road in Joshua Tree. Few people venture out here, which is a shame as it is a neat area.
The mines below were at the
Gold Butte Mine (Mojave)
Recently, I had a request to post my photos of this mine and camp out near Goffs in the Mojave Desert. I had forgotten all about it. I originally went out and visited the site in 2014. I found a few empty cabins and old cars in camp - not
Halloran Spring Petroglyphs
Surprisingly, just off the I-15 freeway northeast of Baker in the Mojave Desert of California are four or five groups of rock art scattered across small basalt hills and along a sandy wash.
Outlaw Mine
The Outlaw Mine is one of those places that beckons to the adventurous explorer, not for what remains, but for its sheer remoteness. I knew there wouldn't be much left at the site, but the allure of visiting one of Joshua Tree's most isolated mines was
John's Camp and the Boulder Cabin
In 1929, the Gold Hill Mine, comprised of five claims about a mile west of the Pinto Wye Arrastra in Joshua Tree National Park, was owned by C.H. Wiser and Anvil B. Johns of Rialto, California, and J.A. Johns of San Bernardino. To support their mining endeavors, they
Porcupine Wash and Ruby Lee Millsite
Down in the southern reaches of Joshua Tree National Park are Porcupine Wash and the Ruby Lee Millsite.
History
The Park Service says the mill dates back to the 1870s. They probably know something I don't. I could only find evidence that the mill site dates from the