Riding and Hiking Trail (Part 3) - Keys View Road to Geology Tour Road
The California Riding and Hiking Trail runs 36 miles from the Black Rock Campground to the Twentynine Palms Visitor Center. It can take several days to travel the entire route, and there are many excellent places to camp in the backcountry.
On October 19 1996, my brother-in-law, Carl and I set out on the final section
of the Riding and Hiking Trail, from Ryan Campground to the Park's East
Entrance. I hid more water along the trail, as I did for our hike back in May.
(Water is marked by blue squares on the maps)
Riding and Hiking Trail (Part 3) - Keys View Road to Geology Tour Road
At 7:00 am, we start off from the Juniper Flats Backcountry Board and head up the trail
to Ryan Campground. ("Hey, weren't we just here?")
Ryan is a good place to camp, and its central location makes it a good 'base'
from which to explore the park. It has fire pits and toilets.
Carl has all new hiking shoes and special double lined socks,
(Mr. High Tech!), and is confident that at least he will be
comfortable on this hike. The trail crosses between a couple of hills and
is a little rocky at this point.
Directly south of Ryan Mountain we stopped to check out a mine shaft which is
just off the trail. Next to the trail you can see the remains of the miner's
camp, (old cans and other "historic litter").
This stretch of the trail is nice and easy. (Just the way we like it!) There
are some great views here and lots of good places to camp.
We make good time and reach the Geology Tour Road Backcountry Board right
on schedule.
(Geology Tour Road heads south from Park Route #12, and is a good dirt road to
take your mountain bike on. It turns into the Geology Tour Loop, which is a
one-way road past a lot of interesting mines and rock formations. A 4-wheel
drive is recommended for the loop.)
Riding and Hiking Trail (Part 4) - Geology Tour Road to Park Route #11
At about 12:45 pm I check the map at the Geology Tour Backcountry Board and we
start off down the trail to where our first cache of water is. Since it is a lot cooler on this
trip, we aren't using as much water as last time. This section of trail slopes
downhill, and is the shortest and easiest part of the California Riding & Hiking
Trail.
"He's dead again!"
Carl always finds a
good spot to catch a nap. Meanwhile, I scout out our water and we refill our
canteens.
This spot is south-west of Crown Prince Lookout, and is very
popular for backcountry camping.
We pass just south of Crown Prince Lookout. This would make an interesting side
trip, but we want to get to Twin Tanks and set up our camp before dark.
"You can see the Pinto Basin and the Coxcomb Mountains from here!"
This is where we left the Riding & Hiking Trail and cut cross country one mile
to Twin Tanks.
The Twin Tanks area is named for the two main tanks, or dams, built around the
turn of the century by cowboys to hold water for cattle. It is a great place
for camping and exploring.
This is a narrow path up to one of the tanks. There are some BIG quartz boulders
here, and one of the landmarks to find this spot is a spire of white quartz
that rises right above here.
An easy scramble leads you right up to the actual dam. There are five tanks in
this area. Two man-made, and three natural 'pot hole' tanks.
We manage to set up the camp before dark and Carl is looking forward to
our 'Bag-o-Dinner'.
We have plenty of water this time, so no more crunchy chicken & rice for us.
"Hey! It even comes with cheesecake!"
The sun went down and it started getting COLD! Soon we were more interested in
hot coffee than in dessert.
Riding and Hiking Trail (Part 5) - Park Route #11 to North Entrance
"Arrgh! It's morning already..."
We headed due east down the wash, and it was real easy going all the way to
the Twin Tanks Backcountry Board except for a few gullys at the end. I even
found a few pieces of indian pottery while walking in this wash.
The trail is very easy at this point, and passes by some great rock formations
as you pass behind Belle Campground. We saw lots of rabbits, quail, and even
a coyote.
It is a straight walk down to the North Entrance Backcountry Board. The trail
is sometimes hard to follow, but it is a very easy walk. It is also very easy
to miss the markers, but if you stick to the wash, you will pick them up again.
Be sure to keep an eye on your map.
"There's the car, right where we left it!" When leaving a car at a backcountry
board, make sure that you are parked in the right spot. You need to register on
one of the yellow tickets and deposit the stub into the slot on the board.
Parking in the wrong area could get you a $50
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