- 100' high which dropped
into a huge water eroded basin which I named "Chasm 2" since it was similar to
the No. 8 rappel in Keynot canyon which we had named "Chasm". Since flat room was limited, we camped in two groups above and below rappel No. 11 at 2,400' Saturday night. Sunday went fast with only a mile to cover but four more waterfalls requiring three rappels. Rappel No. 11 at 1,900' was quite impressive. A 200' long rock ledge extended out into the center of the canyon with two deeply entrenched waterfalls of both sides - we named it "The Tongue" and did a 80' rappel off the tip of the tongue. The last rappel was just inside the canyon entrance - 80' and then just a couple of minutes walk to the roadhead at 1,600'. There was a good surface water flow through about 75% of the canyon which adds to the aesthetics of having water flowing each of the waterfalls. While the water flow will lessen during the summer and fall, it appeared lush enough to provide a year round flow for hikers to use. The only previous evidence of descending the canyon was some pieces of climbing gear at the first and last waterfalls but nothing at the other 10 rappel points in between. Pat Keyes is the longest canyon and requires the most time to descend of any of the eastern side Inyo canyons due to its length, fairly heavy and lengthy brush segments and 12 rappels. As with all the other east side Inyo canyons, Pat Keyes is extremely rugged, scenic and provides a memorable canyon experience. -Steve- |
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Paul and I decided to attempt Potosi again over the weekend of 5/9-10, and all who had been on the previous climb were telephoned and invited. Kaye Rowley, Anne Marie Schober, and John Thomassen, accepted. Steve Durkee joined us. Having read in the "Desert Sage" about the Mad Greek Restaurant in Baker, some of us decided to have dinner there on Friday night. We discovered it to be a fast food place, with some of the popular traditional dishes not on the menu. Pahrump Pt: Car camp was set up off the Chicago Valley Road, .6 mi in from SR 178 (roadhead for Nopah) after having attempted in vain to find a superior site remembered from a Dale Van Dalsem list finisher trip. The next morning we drove back to SR 178, then the short distance to the roadhead for Pahrump. The Guide directions were clear and the route is well ducked, both of which helped the climb go smoothly. There was much variety on this short climb. Afterward, we drove to examine some historic ruins: miners habitats carved out of soft rock complete with metal chimneys thru the ceilings. There was a small boot hill nearby. At the DPS Banquet on May 6, slides had been shown of the site, which is visible about approximately one half mile west of the southern intersection of SR 127 and SR 178 in Shoshone. (The proximity of the old Mojave River Trail to the town of Tecopa was seen on another slide.) We then drove to Tecopa Hot Springs and from there again to the Saddle West Casino Restaurant in Pahrump, where this time the dinners were disappointing. Potosi Mtn: Sunday morning, we retraced our route up the chute from Potosi |
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