Geer Camp is one of my favorite places in the Mojave National Preserve. It is a small and cozy cabin with a great view and makes for an ideal place to camp if you are in the area.
History
Robert R. Geer built the small, one-room cabin in 1940 as a base of operations for his prospecting in the local Standard Mining District. Geer was born in Indiana in 1904 and moved extensively throughout the country as a child before settling in Los Angeles, where he worked as an accountant and salesman in the 1920s and 30s.
Geer was also an experienced mining engineer. He began staking claims in the eastern Mojave in 1928 and is documented teaching fellow prospector J. Riley Bembry (of Riley's Camp) geology and mining safety. They co-claimed the Boston Mine Nos. 1 and 2 together. Over his decades-long prospecting career, Geer staked over 20 claims in the area, including Standard Mine No. 2. He continued to prospect until his death in 1988.
Geer's wife, Zella, recounted that the couple lived intermittently at the small cabin for over sixty years. The cabin originally had three windows and a south-facing door. At an unknown later date, they added a kitchen addition and changed the windows.
These days, volunteers and NPS staff have restored this cabin. The main room has a wood-burning stove, table, and bed. The addition is a small kitchen with a sink.
Not far from the cabin is a rock shelter with a few faint abstract petroglyphs and pictographs. I won't reveal the location, but it is an easy find with a short walk. Please respect it.
You are welcome to spend the night in the cabin on a first-come, first-served basis. Please keep it clean and leave it better than you found it. Follow Backcountry Cabin Etiquette while you are there.
My photos are from trips in 2016 and 2023.
