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Mojave Trails

Mojave Trails National Monument, Old Woman Mountains, Turtle Mountains, and the surrounding region in California.

9 posts

Pinyon Pine and Goldstar Mine Cabins

Pinyon Pine and Goldstar Mine Cabins

On the eastern slope of the rugged Old Woman Mountains are the remains of two weather-beaten cabins. Unlike the area's earlier gold and silver prospects, these mines targeted barite, a mineral primarily used in oil drilling. Barite (or Baryte) is a mineral consisting of barium sulfate, generally

Lady Jeanne Mine

Lady Jeanne Mine

Nestled in the Old Woman Mountains Wilderness, the remote Lady Jeanne Mine is a challenging trek for those seeking beautiful scenery, solitude, and mining history. Surprisingly, I couldn't find any history on this gold and silver prospect. One wonders who Lady Jeanne was. Up at the mine itself

Gold Butte Mine (Mojave)

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 much

Railroad Tie Cabin (Old Womans)

Railroad Tie Cabin (Old Womans)

Back in the winter of 2019, my friend JP and I took a hike to a forgotten cabin on the northern end of the Old Woman Mountains out in the Mojave Desert of California. The cabin is inside the Old Woman Wilderness, but isn't a hard hike. It

Virginia May Mine

Virginia May Mine

The Virginia May Mine (also known as the Horn Mine) had been on my "To Do" list for years. It was never a high priority, but its remoteness called to me. Located in the southern Turtle Mountains of California, it is out in the middle of nowhere, and

Peg Leg Smith’s Inscription

Peg Leg Smith’s Inscription

Sometimes, in the desert, you can find what you are looking for. It was already dark by the time we started our drive out into the desert. The sky was completely overcast, and the wind was howling. And after a few hours of driving on the highway, it started to

Chalcedony Cabin

Chalcedony Cabin

On a scorching late spring day in 2015, we journeyed out to a lonely cabin in the central heart of the Mojave Desert. This is a barren landscape of sand and lava. Any roads that once traversed this wasteland were wiped out by monsoonal thunderstorms long ago. Interestingly, there are