Valley of Fire - October 2019

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Pacific Gas & Electric Company sent us on another unplanned adventure

The house went dark Friday night. With this wind event predicted to have higher wind speeds than the previous event, we decided to stay in case of issues developing here at home. The wind blew Saturday. Its only effect here was to dump bushels of pine needles on the ground. We departed Monday morning as power was predicted to remain off for several more days. The winds had subsided.

Our escape route across Nevada's midsection took us the length of Nevada State Route 375, the infamous Extraterrestrial Highway.

We reached our dispersed camping spot south of Rachel shortly before dusk. A simple dinner satisfied and we walked down to the highway pavement after dark. The stars shone brightly above. We again tempted fate.

"Fresh meat down here on the highway!" I said, turning my gaze and voice to the sky and stars.

"Come and get us!" the Lady called out.

"Take the bait, aliens!" I added. "You know you want it!"

Nothing. The night was quiet.

"Do you think we'll ever get to see extraterrestrials?" the Lady whispered her question.

"I think we have a billion times better chance of getting struck by lightning," I answered.

"But there's not a cloud in the sky."

"Yup, not good odds at all. Anyway, the Extrees don't have interest in us," I added and received a quizzical look from the Lady.

"Think about it," I explained my view. "If there are creatures out there so advanced and capable of interstellar travel, they would have absolutely no interest in a couple of inconsequential humans. And, especially no interest at all in what is in my lower digestive system."

"At least we might hear coyotes break out in song around us tonight. I hope so," the Lady said as we walked back to camp, holding my arm and snuggling close.

Coyotes 2, Aliens 0.

The "Campground Full" sign looks like a permanent addition to the sign at the entrance to Atlatl Rock Campground in Nevada's Valley of Fire State Park.

We found one of our favorite campsites empty. Four bighorn rams welcomed us.

After a leisurely lunch we hiked the half mile or so to the Pinnacles trailhead.

Here is a link to a map of the Valley of Fire hiking trails -

Valley of Fire Hiking Map

The red rock outcropping called the Pinnacles is visible to park visitors only by hiking. It is tucked behind a wall of mountains. It was exciting to see as it came into view, especially with the fall afternoon light.

We climbed up into the high central area of the outcropping and then dropped out an alternate drainage.

Are you curious where we were? Here's the exact location. Only additional information you need is this - Mount Diablo Baseline and Principal meridian.

We thoroughly enjoyed the hike back to the campground in the late afternoon light.

We woke up to 32° Wednesday morning along with a stiff cold wind. The early morning light was dramatic.

In a small slot canyon behind our camper I found glowing walls with reflected light from the surrounding sun drenched red rock.

Our campsite was guarded by a petrified giant knight.

We spent the day hiking the Prospect Trail to the White Domes area and back. The wind chill was very noticeable. The route took us over a high pass and then down a long wash to White Domes. There were many fun short scrambles.

The rock was amazing.

We came upon two rams around one corner.

They quickly dropped out of our sight but then surprised us as they crossed the wash in front of us and climbed the opposite side of the canyon.

The largest ram was curious and stopped for a hidden glance back at us.

The canyon narrowed with many really fun sections.

At the location where The Professionals, a classic 1960's western, was filmed, we found shelter from the wind in a sunny spot at the base of a towering buttress of sandstone.

We soaked in the sun's warmth, snacked, and people watched. Valley of Fire is close to Las Vegas so people watching can be quite entertaining. Have you seen a fur coat and high heels out on a trail? We have.

We returned to the intersection with the Prospect Trail and left all others behind. The 6.5 miles back was pleasant as the cold wind had dropped in speed and we were alone.

Thursday morning was warmer. The air was still. A ram walked past me as I circled through the campground. A nice way to start the day.

We left the park and drove to a new area for us to explore called Buffington Pockets, an area of tinajas and colorful sandstone. A rugged but not technical 4x4 low range road led into the area.

We were saddened by the abuse this area has endured by careless motorized use. Tire tracks showed extensive driving off the designated route. The campsites we looked at had half burned trash in the fire ring, spent shell casings and broken glass all around from target shooting. Most shocking to us were the areas of smooth desert varnish - possible ancient rock art sites - visible from these camps that were obliterated with bullet pock marks. "Shot to shit," several of my more blunt friends would say.

Unfortunately evidence consistently shows that many backcountry motorized users - especially where heavy use occurs closer to urban areas - are not favorable examples of caring outdoor stewardship. "Dumb and lazy," several of my blunt speaking friends would say. As is usually the case, conditions improved dramatically with the distance we put between us and the road corridor.

It was an amazing place to explore. We first climbed high to get a feel for the complicated terrain. We dropped down into a larger drainage and followed the water course.

Up canyon we found the signs of ancient habitation and use of this area that we were searching for.

We continued to explore, climbing up and down and all around.

We entered an area of spectacular vividly colored sandstone.

Around a corner in a wash we found blood spatter and a blood trail.

The blood was dry but not black. It still held on to red tones. We followed the blood looking for a beginning or end to the trail. Nothing was evident, including any discernible tracks or ground disturbance that indicated a struggle. We found no gut pile from a hunter killed big game animal. The carcass of a lion kill bighorn was nearby but not related to this blood trail, in our judgment. With a chill we thought about our closeness to Las Vegas and mob hits and body dumps. Know of anyone recently gone missing?

 

We wandered on our way and returned to our truck.

We had a few hours of daylight remaining so we drove out to the trailhead for the fire wave.

This area holds so many stunning rock patterns, colors, and textures.

"Will you take our picture for us?" one of four young women asked as she handed her phone toward me.

"Of course," I answered. I took directions on operating the camera function, and then suggested lighting angles and poses. They were a happy group and this was fun. I asked them to check the shots and I'd be happy to reshoot.

"Would you like me to take a picture of you with your wife up there?" the woman asked with a smile as we finished.

"Okay, what did she climb while my back was turned?" I asked.

The woman pointed behind me.

We followed the sandstone.

Each night we stayed at Atlatl Rock, we took a long walk in the night away from the campground. With the new moon, the sky was brilliant with stars. Each night we enjoyed owl's hoots and coyote's songs. We forgot all about the power outage at home.

We packed up Friday morning as the stream of new arrivals circled the campground watching and waiting for vacancies. 

We did not leave Valley of Fire State Park after pulling out of the campground. We had one more hike to do - Natural Arches Trail.

The route led up a wide sandy wash for a mile before entering the canyon.

Wind eroded arches in the sandstone were all about.

The canyon narrowed with fun passages and scrambles and deep sand.

After a few miles, we pulled over, consulted our topo map, ate, and visually explored the rock around us.

I turned my back for a minute.........................

We climbed north and out of the canyon onto more open ground. We saw now close we were to Silica Dome - the place where Captain James T. Kirk died.

We found an interesting cave along the wash.

It was time to head back to the truck and start the drive home. The canyon was just as much fun descending as it was ascending.Ours were the only tracks in the upper section.

We drove to Cathedral Gorge and camped for the night. No crowds, lots of empty campsites - we like this small park.

Saturday was easy and uneventful as we completed the drive home. Power was on at home. We restocked the refrigerator.

Curious about more power shut offs? I'm trying hard to get this posted before we go dark once again. We received our second warning notice -

Public Safety Power Shutoff Notifications

Second Alert: November 19, 2019 12:51 PM

Within the next 24 to 36 hours, power may be turned off

Where should we go?