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CA Western and Central Mojave

Day Break Camp

I met up with Dan in 2006 and we headed out into the great Mojave Desert to try and find an old little-known camp called Day Break.

The camp, also known as Five Points, dates from the 1880s but was most active in the early 1910s. Unfortunately, not much remains today.

Soldered food can

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Barker Dam

Barker Dam

It goes without saying that water is important in the desert and in Joshua Tree that is no different. A rancher by the name of C.O. Barker built the dam around 1902 to improve the natural tank here for his cattle. Along with the nearby Cow Camp reservoir, it

Wall Street Mill

Wall Street Mill

The Wall Street Mill is Joshua Tree National Park’s most intact remaining historic gold stamp mill. Finding a stamp mill like this is rare these days. I’m thankful the NPS has preserved it. Once owned and operated by renowned prospector and rancher Bill Keys, this two-stamp mill was

Surprise Tank Petroglyphs

Surprise Tank Petroglyphs

We first visited the Surprise Tank Petroglyphs out in the Mojave Desert in 1998. We’ve stopped by a few times since then but didn’t really photograph the site again until 2009. We re-visited the site in 2013, 2018, and 2020. I wanted to get a few more photos