The Grand Canyon of the Mojave doesn't look like much until you drive 3 miles off the pavement.
It's easy to miss the nondescript offramp leading to "The Grand Canyon of the Mojave" driving between Barstow and Vegas. Just before you get to Baker, CA, Afton Road doesn't exactly beckon.
An inauspicious sign harkening thee into the sandwastes!
150,000 years ago, the Mojave Desert was not a desert at all, but a land of lakes. The San Bernardino Mountains shed a constant flow of fresh water into today's city of Barstow via the mighty Mojave River.
The ancient trade route through the Mojave Desert.
At first, the river filled a huge freshwater lake with several lobes sprawling all across today's desert basin: Lake Manix. During this time in the Pleistocene, horses, camels, bison, apex predators, thunderbirds, waterfowl, and more swarmed the lush shores of Lake Manix...
Until one day about 18,000 years ago!
A tectonic shift occured, rupturing the lake's natural dam. A cataclysmic flood violently sculpted Afton Canyon in a mere weekend! Sedimentary layers dating back to primordial slime became instantly exposed. The marine layer blew away into Kelso Dunes. The mineral bounty dangles to this day for rockhounds.
Group camping mesa.
Nowadays, anyone can visit the canyon and slip $6 into the lockbox for the privilege of spending the night in one of the very decent developed campsites. There's a spigot for campers to refill their water, vault toilets, shade structures , picnic tables, bbqs, and firepits for all. Also, a great view of trains lighting up the 1920's steel bridge at all hours of the night!
Ever since the earthquake punctured Lake Manix and ripped open Afton Canyon, the Mojave River has flowed east towards Soda Lake and Zyzzyx. It's the 5th largest river in the continental United States! Most of its length flows underground, earning it the moniker "The Inconstant River" by Mormon propheteer Jedediah Smith. At Afton Canyon, however, the great Mojave hits bedrock, and rises to greet the surface.
Train bridge over the "first crossing" of the Mojave River.
Explorers beware! Do not attempt this "first crossing" without assessing whether or not your vehicle is equipped to handle it! This trip scared us because the water went well up to the hood, and when the wheels spun to grab some riverbed, the traction control seemed to cut off the engine! Luckily, @mattlovell knew to switch off traction control, and we safely navigated the 3-foot-plus water.
Deceptively serene, this water crossing can bog street vehicles down, and there is zero cellphone service!
Shovel-nose tests the waters for himself.
It's just a short drive following the railroad tracks before we arrived at the second crossing.
We parked here and hiked upstream to visit "The Caves," a pair of caves that could once upon a time accommodate a horse drawn wagon.
Marshy conditions on the way to The Caves.
@mattlovell standing in the entrance to the first cave.
Room with a view.
Cave number two.
The second cave is the larger one, and would be fun to camp in!
If you continue in this direction, you can explore Pyramid Canyon with its grey cliffs.
Instead, we returned downstream to the crossing just as another train showed up for its photo op.
Wildflowers are scarce in the fall, but not absent!
Flirting with deez asters.
~2.jpg)
A tiny bloom on a raggedy succulent.
Afton Canyon opens up into a stately parade of majestic edifices.
The Short Slot
Dramatic red and black pinnacles.
Mineral-rich.
Mining ruins on a vein of magnesite.
Catclaw Acacia and Mesquite trees cluster where the water drains down from the cliffs.
Nature's palette.
A pageant of mountains.
Home for the night
It was awesome exploring this red slot canyon. Here is a 10 minute video.
The window in the rock fills me with awe.
The sunset was magnificent.
And we topped the evening off with campfire steaks under the Milky Way.
My dog and I took a little wander in the crisp dawn.
After we tore down camp and ensured we had left no trace, we traveled further down Afton Canyon to another slot, otherworldly with its contrasting black and white.
Black lava rock tops white marine sediment.
Blooming burro bush.
A fascinating little plant that reminds me of a miniature Mesquite.
I find the zigzagging path of slot canyons irresistible and compelling.
This one terminates abruptly.
Contrasting red in the distance.
Afton Canyon is a rockhounding dream!
Last time we visited Afton, we were lucky enough to see a lot of Bighorn Sheep. Here's a quick clip of some crossing the road right in front of us!
The third railroad bridge signals the end of Afton Canyon and the beginning of Mojave National Preserve.
The Mojave Road extends beyond, all the way to the Arizona border.
Thanks so much for joining me on a visit to this extraordinary geological jewel. #MyCalifornia. My Mojave Dream.
Love,cat
This place looks amazing @creationofcare! And I love your landscape photos with such beautiful skies!! It does look very quiet there isn't it? And the flowers are soo cute! The window in the rock is one of a kind. You literally brought us with you in this journey. Thank you for sharing this place with us! And it is so cool you caught a glimpse of the bighorns!
Thank you @marblely, I am very happy that you enjoyed it. I really appreciate your comment! I need to power back up
Happy weekend to you @creationofcare!
Hi creationofcare,
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Wow, thank you so much @curie!
Howdy from Texas creationofcare! wow this is a real feast for the eyes! I had no idea this park was even there in the Mojave and then it's like another planet almost with all the different colors and formations. You did a wonderful job on this post showing and explaining the diversity of the area so good for you and this was a well deserved curie!
Thanks!!!
I really loved this post! The desert landscape is probably what I have the least experience with, growing up in a temperate rainforest in Alaska and currently living in oregon - I am well versed in WET WET WET and not so much with the dry desert life. I have to say, you win the pun of the day award with "flirting with deez asters" I had to call my wife over to share that gem LOL. Really gorgeous landscape and flower pics and you have a great way with words. Love - Carl
I am so glad you enjoyed a bit of the Mojave dry air and my silly pun. At least you didn't have to hear me wailing "Wild Corndogs" to the tune of Rolling Stones' Wild Horses every time I laid eyes on a cattail stalk.
Much love!
It looks like a place I will love to camp, the serene looks really nice. Though you got me scared at the water side, because it's looks easy to cross but then you said its not.
Any ways looks like you and your dog enjoyed your adventure.
Hi there @peachyladiva :) The fall weather is so mild, perfect for camping in the desert. That water really does deceive, because people driving across have worn a pond into the middle of it. The river itself is mostly a trickle or marshland by the time it comes to the surface. There is another long way around to enter Afton without the water crossing: Basin Rd. Offramp from the I 15. 4wd still recommended due to sand dunes!
Ok
Thanks for the info
Thanks for sharing this! I'm central valley and so while we're technically a desert as well, it doesn't show as much. I've never really spent time in any desert climate either, so I echo @carlgnash's sentiment about how interesting it is to see it all laid out. I enjoyed reading this!
~ Mako
I am so pleased that you enjoyed my post. :) I have enjoyed the few times I've driven through your part of California. It's amazing how irrigation unlocks all that fertile soil.
I keep falling more in love with my Mojave, it has transformed so many times over the eons!
<3
Hah so what did Shovel say on the water? Cold? Hot? Or just ideal?
Man campfire steaks are a dream of mine. I've spent countless nights sleeping under the stars, hitchhiking, hiking in mountains etc etc...but never had a steak done on fire. All the various sausages, potatoes, apples, corn, etc etc....but never steak. Must be tasty as hell!
Greeting to Cali from Slovakia,Europe!
Thanks for showing us around and congratz to the curie upvote :)
Hehe, that silly beast loves jumping into any trail water he can get, especially after a long car ride!
omg, I do hope you get your wish for campfire steak! I have seen some breathtaking images of the forests of Slovakia, how amazing to explore!
Much love from Cali!
Oh yeah, that's what we really are proud of in Slovakia :) Forests and our mineral water. We have more than 50 unique spings. But on the other side, we don't have a Muscle beach and Venice haha :D
Thank you for taking into this trip to learn a new place, Afton canyon looks really amazing, it is interesting just when you see shield you do not have any mountainous are in sight but then there is a magnificent rocks with different colors due to minerals, I like that combination of red and white and the possibility to explore caves too. I believe some people probably stay in cave for a while or may be have a overnight stay too. Is it allowed? You dog looks like really enjoyed its freedom, the video with Bighorn sheep crossing the road, that was speedy ones, they even did not stop while running up the hill. Beautiful national treasure area.
Thank you so much for joining the ride! It makes so much sense how the land looks once I learned about Lake Manix. The basin of the desert really is flat as you'd expect the bottom of a lake to be. So when that sudden rush of water broke through, it caused such a cut through any earth in its way. Now, any time it rains, more of the mud cliffs melt away and the rocks tumble down.
People have lived here for thousands of years. There are lots of petroglyphs in this region, many of them celebrating those swift Bighorn Sheep which could feed the tribe.
I have so much more to learn!
<3
I am trying to imagine how that desert looked like from 150,000 years ago. It must have been a paradise.
It's kind of lovely to see asters and succulent as cute as those in the middle of a desert. It is not barren after all. 😊
That dinner looks more of a full meal at home and not in the middle of the desert. 😊 You really did camp there overnight. Did you camp in the cave? Isn't it too hot out there?
I get so caught up in daydreaming about those days when the desert was lush! A close look reveals lots of hints. For example, mesquite evolved for their seeds to be transferred by the megafauna eating them and planting new trees in their droppings. One of my favorite features in the Mojave are ancient rock art sites where the First People here drew Bighorns and shamanic symbols.
This time we camped at the red slot, not The Caves since we were car camping. You'd have a short backpacking walk to lug your stuff to The Caves.
Fall is perfect weather in the Mojave. It was mid80s in the day, and about 56f at night with clear skies!
Much love!
That made me searched the internet for shamanic symbols. Have you got the chance to see those?
That is a good timing then that you hiked the desert just before winter comes... By the way, aside from the few plants, how about signs of animals in the desert? I'm wondering about the big ones aside from crickets maybe...
Visiting petroglyphs is a passion of mine. Here is a post where I explore Black Mountain Wilderness petroglyphs, closer to Ridgecrest, CA. Part 2 here is where we enter the canyon, and part three is an album of petroglyphs. :) https://steemit.com/photography/@creationofcare/black-mountain-wilderness-entering-the-canyon
As for signs of life at Afton, it is known for its wildlife drawn to drinking water. On our previous visit, we also spotted a mountain lion pursuing a bighorn! This trip, all I got to see were pawprints and poop, lol. Here's what I think are bobcat or perhaps coyote prints stalking birds under the bushes near the marsh:
Bighorn scat:
Hehe yes, I do take pics of wild animal turds on the regular hahahha!
I have been wondering about and wishing to see wild animals in the wild and not in the zoo. That mountain lion eould be a good challenge to catch on camera. 😊 Or maybe snake as big as I am like the ones my elder brothers used to catch and bring home. I never had the chance to see them alive.
I have to admit the petroglyphs on your old post look like writings in modern times and not ancient. There is one photo there where you highlighted old writings. That seemed more "original" than the others.
Prints and poo... hhmmm.. That is an art to see the good in bad. I used to take photos of almost anything and everything until someone made a comment that made me conscious so I tried to be more picky. But I also came to the point when I thought what I should have taken would be useful "now". You'll never know... 😊
Hehe, take all the pics! Now that we have digital, there is no need to be ashamed. You can always delete them.
I would love to see the wilderness in the Philippines! Snakes as big as humans, terrifying yet wonderful! We have rattlesnakes as long as a man is tall, but they are slender.
I wish I could have captured an image of the hunting mountain lion, but I needed a telephoto lens I think. I am just an amateur with a cellphone. I do post about every wildlife encounter I have, and put any videos on my YouTube channel. My absolute favorite is of a bobcat my dog startled up a tree right next to us!
I get a feeling of awe when I meet my wild neighbors. I believe they all have a spiritual message.
Oh, regarding the petroglyphs, did you continue on to the next part https://steemit.com/photography/@creationofcare/inscription-canyon-jewel-of-black-mountain-wilderness because that post has the old ones with less interference from modern settlers.
If you ever come to California, I would love to take you on a tour!
Xoxo
Yeah, I thought I can delete them anyway after all. But then they are taking so much storage space. I got an external 1 TB hard drive and I dump everything in there for years. Now I am not able to clean up. Just keep dumping. 😊
I somehow carried a few snakes bigger than me, like this, but again, not in the wild. Those that I have somehow "played" with are sort of domesticated already.
Oh yes. I visited the other post and indeed, the petroglyphs look more ancient and original.
Wild neighbors? You mean you get bobcats regularly in your area? That's cool, huh! But are they not dangerous to be around?
Wow, I already got a host tour guide in California! Thank you very much! Who knows, I may really be dropping by there one day... 😊
Hi creationofcare,
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This is so amazing, thank you for the honor!!!
This post made me feel like when I was playing Fallout: New Vegas again, the arid landscapes and wide horizons, I loved the timelapse, such a cool post!
Those wide horizons remind me of how we are just one grain of sand each! Glad you enjoyed the timelapse. I have been practicing taking sequences so the gif animation comes out right. Happy gaming to you, and thanks for stopping by!
What an amazing place this is and thank you for showing it in such detail. Even though it "all looks the same" at first glance, taking this time to see it closely shows such variety.
During my time is SoCal I saw some of the desert landscape but was not brave enough to go off the beaten track. I'm happy to see what I missed.
I found you through the "mycalifornia" tag and so glad to see this taking off.
Hi there, thanks so much :)
It really does look like a beige blur as you drive through the Mojave at 65 mph. But if you can ever explore up close, it is always full of life and surprises. Cheers!
I was more south, and saw this to the east of San Diego and towards Borrego Springs, It was pretty when the flowers came out.
Yes the spring wildflowers are triumphant all over the socal deserts!
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