Trekking Through Desert Ghost Towns and Dunes

[bearthedog]

For years I have traveled through the deserts of California, Nevada, and Arizona. In all my years I have never seen the Calico Ghost Town or the Dunes of Kelso. I’ve been working pretty hard lately and thought I would take a few days off and get out into the great wide open, the desert.
Calico Ghost Town is a ghost town, and former Mining town, located in the Calico Mountains of the Mojave Desert region of Southern California.

Founded in 1881 as a silver mining town, shortly after it was founded, Calico had a population of 1,200 people and over 500 silver mines. Besides the usual assortment of bars, brothels, gambling halls and a few churches, Calico also supported a newspaper, the Calico Print. In the mid 1890s the price of silver dropped and Calico's silver mines were no longer economically viable. With the end of borax mining in the region in 1907 the town was completely abandoned. The last original inhabitant of Calico before it was abandoned, Mrs. Lucy Bell Lane, died in the 1960s. Her house remains as the main museum in town.

Got to have a knife traveling through the desert

Mines

 

[bearthedog]

Blacksmith Shop

Kelso Dunes

This unique and isolated dune system rises more than 600 feet above the desert floor. The dunes were created by southeast winds blowing finely grained residual sand from the Mojave River sink, which lies to the northwest. The dunes' color is created from many golden rose quartz particles. When the dry sand grains slide down the steep upper slopes, a notable booming sound is produced. In some years, the dunes offer a nice spring wildflower display. The Kelso Dune sands remained a mystery until very recently.

By studying the mineral composition and shapes of sand grains that make up Kelso Dunes, we know that most of the sand has traveled all the way from the Mojave River sink east of Afton Canyon (map). Wind blowing from the northwest gradually carried the sand southeastward. In the path of the prevailing winds lie the Providence Mountains and the pink pinnacles of the Granite Mountains. The rocky crags and sloping fans of the two ranges block the moving sand. Sand piles up at the base of the mountains and along their flanks, forming dunes and sand sheets.

Where the sand piles up researchers found that the dunes are actually made up of several sets of dunes, stacked one on top of another. Each set formed in response to some past climate change! The Kelso Dunes depend upon times when the sand grain (sediment) supply is enhanced. This happens whenever the climate is dry enough to expose the raw material of dunes, sand, to the wind. In fact, most of the eastern part of the Kelso Dunes formed when water-filled Soda Lake and Silver Lake dried up, exposing the lake bottom sediment. The entire dune system was stacked up in five major pulses over the past 25,000 years.

At a distance, the Kelso Dunes

Strange things along the way

 

[bearthedog]

Approaching the Dunes

Climbing the Dunes caused this

Finally…the top!

Thanks Trace

 

[Rockywolf]

Very nice! Thanks for sharing another fun adventure.

 

[Wanderlust]

As always Bear some beautiful pictures, thanks for taking us along on the trip.

 

[milmak]

thanks for the great images!

What's this knife?

 

[bearthedog]

thanks for the great images!

What's this knife?

It's a trail snack!
-RB

Trace Rinaldi S.Y.N.K.

 

[stjones]

Great pics bear!!!!
Thanks for sharing. :thumbup:

 

[milmak]

thanks.

Like the pry on the end.

checked out his site, quite a range of "flavours" ;-)

 

[jforbush]

Those pictures are fantastic!! Thanks for sharing. Looks like a great little get-a-way!

 

[Stump_250]

AWESOME pictures bear! Looking at those was a great escape from the corporate world for a few minutes.

 

[legion681]

Thanks for the story, interesting history facts and the nice pics!

 

[martineden]

Awesome! Where exactely is this area? Thanks, Alfredo

 

[MikePerrin]

I see a book coming with your photos and writing. Seriously. Professional stuff.
But....where is the girl?

 

[texastonydobbs]

Great pics !

 

[eisman]

Have you been to "the towers" out by Trona? r "the Racetrace" north of Death Valley? Or Rainbow Basin out by Baker? Have you stood on a ledge in the Panamints and watched the fighters raise a bubble of sand in front of them as they race down th valley to China Lake?

There's so much to the Mojave that most folks will never know...

Thanks for the photos. Brought back a lot of memories...

 

[333rm]

What great pics! I'm with Mike, I could see a book in your future...

 

[bearthedog]

I see a book coming with your photos and writing. Seriously. Professional stuff.
But....where is the girl?

 

[oruacat2]

I hate sand. I hate heat.
I think I have grit in my drawers just from looking at those pictures. lol

 

[Expatriated]

It's cool being a federal fugitive, always on the run. Look at all the cool trips you get to go on. Right, Reuben?

If I could offer a suggestion from a former semi-pro photog: Less sand, more chick.