Thanksgiving in Northern Mojave National Preserve
Thor the guard dog in our desert cabin
Inside the desert cabin
Morning view from camp
Thor enjoyed the place!
All the amenities
On Thanksgiving morning we set off to climb the high point of the Sheep Range just behind Jean, NV
The flats down below - a popular shooting location. We heard them all day.
Walking the ridge to the high point
Our first view of the high point - a relatively easy walk along the ridge.
Turkey Day summit!
The summit ahead
Part of the walk is across a nice gentle plateau
Jean Dry Lake in the distance
A windsock on the summit - a lot of people fly gliders around here.
Jean Dry Lake
A view in the other direction
Driving back to our mystery camp location. One of my favorite front seat views.
Thanksgiving prep in our cozy temporary home
Thanksgiving prep in our cozy temporary home
Turkey dinner!
It was about 20 degrees outside - we were very happy to have the cabin to keep us warm!
Dinner! And Thor. Who wants my dinner.
The next morning we went off to explore.
The terrain in this area is among my favorite kind of desert - rocks, a mix of cactus, lots of juniper.
We got some kevlar booties for Thor to protect his paws from the desert pokies. He is not a fan.
Northern Mojave NP
Northern Mojave NP
Northern Mojave NP. And Thor.
Hi Sooz!
This area is heavily prospected and we found a lot of claims.
The rocks in this area have a lot of little alcoves. We checked them all out for rock art but struck out this day.
Sooz!
One of the mines in the area - too sketchy looking to go in!
Cima Dome
A quartz vein we randomly came across
Another claim marker.
....Mrs Butterworth?
Yep, Mrs Butterworth.
Later, we came across this grave site.
This one seems to belong to a dog.
And it is next to one that appears to be a man
I asked around but I don't know the history of this site.
More exploring among rocks - we find more alcoves and caves and search for signs of native habitation
I found this one pottery shard in a shallow cave with a small pictograph (that didn't photograph well).
In a nearby arch we find a lot more art. I've processed these to enhance the art so the colors don't look very natural.
Enhanced pictographs in the northern Mojave
Enhanced pictographs in the northern Mojave