Lost Palms Oasis, Moorten Mill Site, and Stirrup Tank

I left my housing shortly after 6:30am in hopes to beat the forecast heat. It's an hour and a half drive to the Lost Palms Oasis trailhead in Cottonwood, then I planned for a solid 6 hours, maybe more, to get to the Oasis, and then further yet to Victory Palms. The trail has a lot of up and down through a variety of landforms, which keeps it interesting. There are sweeping views across rolling hills, washes dense with brush, a narrow little canyon, glimpses of the Salton Sea, and then a difficult drop down into the oasis. It's a beautiful place, cool in the shadows of the palms, dense underbrush the blocks the view of the pools, large boulder piles, and a variety of plant life. A tighter canyon than I expected, giving me the sense of being enclosed in a secret place. While enjoying a rest part way up the largest boulder pile, I heard a few rocks fall just across from me, behind the palms. I figured it was something like a rabbit until a larger, clumsy sounding crashing erupted: something was coming down the canyon, but I couldn't see through the palms. Likely a big horn or mule deer, since cats are far too graceful to make that much ruckus, it still put my nerves a little on edge, and I decided to move on. My plan had been to continue up the canyon to Victory Palms, another mile up, but getting a first hand look at the lack of trail and large boulders and brush to navigate through the canyon, I decided against it. I would still like to get up there, but it would not be enjoyable to slog through that mess alone, particularly since the rattlesnakes have started coming out. Marking it down for another visit, when I can find someone willing to go.

The hike back was mostly uneventful, just hot and not very breezy. I met a foreign hiker who was very concerned about having encountered snakes in the canyon, ones that go "chh chh chh." Rattlesnakes. He thought they ought to be reported to the park so somebody can do something about it, it's a dangerous situation. I tried to explain that it's normal to see them out, this is their habitat, and shared what one should do to stay safe in an encounter. I'm not sure it helped.

After making it back to my car in about four hours, instead of my estimated 6+, I decided to try again to find nearby Moorten's Mill Site. I had tried last fall, but missed the pass to go oaver, ended up going down a dry falls, hiked the wrong side of the wash, and missed the ruins altogether. This time I made it, crossing over Little Chilcoot Pass and dropping down into the proper side of the wash. It was a neat little side trip.

I made a stop in the visitor's center to ask about Old Dale Road, which I plan to do another day, and in chatting with the rangers, decided to make a stop at Stirrup Tank on my way home. It had not registered that there was a place to go here, and I had some fun exploring around the boulders before driving home. Dinner, sorting photos, and some work finished the day. A great day, with a total of 10.6 miles of hiking.

Entering the park from Twentynine Palms

Cottonwood Spring

Starting the trail.

Lots of lizards out today.

Seeing the trail meander so far off in the distance is simultaneously comforting and frustrating.

Entering a little canyon.

Getting closer to this hill, which was still a ways from the oasis.

Looking back, better lighting in that direction gives a better sense of the coloring of the area.

Over that hill, and again the trail stretches on.

I finally caught one of these quick little squirrels, across the switchback from me.

Two things I love about this sign: it is sitting on the ground, leaning against its post, and the chalk-drawn arrow pointed out the faint path.

Looking down into the oasis, the first glimpses of palms.

This brush was higher than my head in places. I quickly scrambled up a boulder for a better view of the area.

cholla making a home on the granite, something I hadn't seen before.

Headed back.

Looks like this barrel cactus is taking advantage of some shelter.

Blooming ocotillo, check out those spines.

Back through the little canyon.

A wash filled with very tall brush.

A zebra trail. Love how they curl their trail when running.

An ocotillo with some leaves.

A lizard I have not seen before.

Another zebra tail

And back to Cottonwood Spring.

Such a lovely, towering stand of trees.

Headed down the wash to Moorten's Mill.

Little Chilcoot Pass.

Palo Verde in bloom.

Some old tanks at the mill site.

A large concrete pad.

The car was tough to find.

Passed this bedrock mortar on the hike out. These were created when Native Americans ground acorns and other local food sources into flour. The more they were used, the deeper they are. This one seems to have served a new function, that of fox toilet. At least I'm guessing it was a fox, it's the right size and shape, and they enjoy pooping in some strange places. I once watched a red fox in Alaksa poop right on top of a pile of grizzly scat, as if to one-up the bear.

Rocks at Stirrup Tank.

The park has an iconic boulder formation known as Skull Rock. Perhaps this should be Ghost Rock?

North View/Maze/Window Rock Loop

Today's hike brought me to an area I haven't spent time in yet: the Maze. So named for the maze of washes, ridges, boulders, and generally rough terrain. I know of two recent missing hiker incidents in this area, one search ended well, one not. As always, I have my map and compass and did proper reading about the route. I also have a couple nifty apps on my phone (they function off-line) that track your route, so it's easy to retrace your steps if you follow the wrong wash. It's a newer trail, offers some nice diversity, and really I didn't have any trouble staying on-trail. That said, it helps if one actually reads the sign. I headed down the wrong wash to start with, seeing the word "North" and not thinking twice about it saying North Canyon versus North View. Since I watch my route, it didn't take long to see that I was not following the correct trail. Back where I meant to be, the first quarter, maybe even third, of the hike has a lot of up and down as you wind your way high up in the mountains at the north edge of the park. There are some great views from this trail, in all directions.

Meeting up with the Maze Loop, I continued on that trail, down from the ridges, in and out of washes. It turned out to be a hot day, and those washes were stuffy hot with no breeze. It was a relief when the trail wound its way up through some boulder fields, eventually offering nice views of window rock. Past window rock, the trail works its way toward the road.

After an exhausting day, having logged 7 miles in the heat. I stopped for dinner at the Joshua Tree Saloon and used their wifi to work a little.