Turtlehead
Mtn (6324'), 20 Mar 1992
When you look west from Las Vegas you
can see the deep red hues of Red Rock Canyon. The geologic feature of this area
is the Keystone Thrust Fault which appears as a gray limestone ridgeilne of the
Spring Mts capping the red and white sandstone. A paved scenic loop road from
Charleston Blvd was built by the Bureau of Land Management to view the
formations at close range and to reach popular rock climbing areas. Turtlehead
Mtn resembles a giant turtle's head rising from the desert in the foreground.
The Sandstone Quarry indicated on the Blue Diamond 15 quad is a trailhead
for local hikes. From here the base of the peak is reached after a mile along
the trail and up a dry wash. I climbed the broad west-side canyon to the
limestone ridge and followed upward through pinyon. Summit views ranged from
the colorful western escarpment and Charleston Pk to the hazy and impacted
desert of the ever-expanding Las Vegas 'burbs. This short climb is for anyone
who has a half day of free time while in Las Vegas. Stats: 2 mi to summit
one-way and 2000' of gain.
Ryan Mtn
(5461'), 4 April 1992
The choice of Joshua Tree for Andy's and
Wynne's wedding was perfect. Their vows were spoken in the style of the old
west, in the bright sun and with a backdrop of worn out granite boulders. The
preacher slung a six-shooter and was dressed in preacher-black as in a John
Wayne movie. In the morning before things got started Ron Young, Edna Erspamer,
and I decided to go up the Ryan Mtn trail from the wedding campsite at Sheep
Pass. We enjoyed the hike, done in traditional hiking attire with leather boots
while runners panted by wearing neon running garb and modern 7-oz running
shoes. Stats: 1 1/2 mi o.w., 900 ft. |
Harris Hill, (5738'),
29 Apr11 1992
This backpack up Marble Canyon in the northern
Panamint Range was Bob Greenawalt's Idea. He had earlier been to Goldbelt Spr
by a different route but wanted to explore the trail used by miners who
predated the Hunter Mtn vehicle road (Marble Cyn 15' quad). Henry Heusinkveld
and I rode in Bob's vintage Willys wagon to the end of the road at 2000 ft
elevation in the canyon. Packs were filled with water bottles and I carried 13
liters for the 3 days. We started up the easy trail in Marble Cyn at 4 pm.
After 3 hrs we were at the confluence with Dead Horse Cyn and here we made
camp.
An arrow points to Goldbelt Spr on a boulder at this confluence. The
trail remains well behaved and the rattlesnakes we met gave us plenty of
warning. At a later canyon junction Marble Cyn is the more prominent one going
to the right. We were elated when we arrived just after noon at the dirt road
at Harris Hill from below Goldbelt Spr. Bob and Henry checked out the wildrose-
overgrown spring and excavated a pool in the mud. We relaxed out of the wind at
one of the two cabins remaining there (elev. 4945'). When the sun was getting
low-it had a halo indicating an approaching weather front-we picked out a
campsite in the canyon. Henry quickly got a small sagebrush fire going to boil
the dark and suspect spring water which in time became clear except for a grimy
looking foam on top.
Harris Hill (5738') overlooks Marble Cyn and Shorty
Harris Cyn but dominates neither. It is merely a hill with a name for it, and
is in fact the lowest hill on its parent ridge. But it has a small mine, or
more likely only a prospect, which perhaps was dug by the man whose name has
been put on yet other landmarks in Death Valley. We climbed it via the obvious
trail to the prospect and then up the windy slope to the summit. A register
book had been placed there by an earlier DPS party of 3. |