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Hey Onur: Did you cook dinner at Belmont? And if so what did you fix? I gotta start writing this s*** down 
Explore Nevada 2011
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Hey Onur: Did you cook dinner at Belmont? And if so what did you fix? I gotta start writing this s*** down
I did app's that night IIRC.
I helped Alvaro the night we were at the camp site where we crossed the small creek to get set up in the tall grass. We did showers that night....you did the epic margarita's!!
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- #24
Thursday June 16th:
I didn't write this stuff down and my memory is starting to get sketchy...must have been the 4-shots of tequila based liquor in each of those damn margaritas
. So this was the morning my nifty little mypressi nitrogen charged espresso press decided it wasn't going to get along for us the rest of the trip. s***. Well I carry a little Jetboil french (how appropriate since we have 3 frenchies in tow 
) press. Not the same to an espresso junkie but better than nada. And fortunately Gary brought his very simple but capable Presso espresso press that was pulled...pun intended ...into action.
So backing up to Wednesday. We spoke and/or texted with Alvaro and also with Sean throughout the day to narrow down when they might meet up with us and other pertinent data. Alvaro relayed to us Andy and Jeff were not going to make it back due to a recovery event they needed to tend to but much to our surprise the French guys, who we thought were going to end up twiddling their thumbs in Sacramento until their flights left on Sunday (or worse: Pulling the 2F from Andy's 40
), were coming back with himself and Steve.
And Sean has a problem with not being able to pass any motorist on the side of any road without stopping to assist if/as necessary. So he was, as he would later tell us, on one of two broken down vehicles in need of a good samaritan like Sean to assist with repairing their cars. Yes that would be plural.
So it was celebration time when Alvaro, Steve with the French dudes held prisoner rolled into our camp at Belmont CG on Wednesday night.
Back to Thursday morning: A few guys were starting to question me about what we'd do if Sean didn't show up. Now from our last communicae I knew he was finally within 30-miles or so. He had made the turn off to Manhattan and was on his way over. But without a GPS displaying gravel/dirt roads/topo data and the distinct possibility he'd come across yet another stranded motorist
flipoff2: Sean) I was starting to get concerned about what I'd do too!
But just as I was leading the group out of the campground we came bumper to bumper with Sean. This was fantastic timing! So the group, with the exception of Andy and Jeff, who also have issues with stopping to help folks in need of serious all things recovery, our group was finally together!
The plan was to roll south from Belmont and head up Hunt's Canyon for a little explore before heading over to the Hot Creek range. There's a cool little USFS outpost a few miles up a spur road just above Hunt's Ranch I opted to take the guys to. Once, apparently a long, long time ago...before Mother Nature reclaimed the trail...this trail went all the way through and up the canyon to Mud Spring. Last fall we walked it trying to see if there was a way to bushwack through but there was a deep wet muddy meadow between us and the canyon trail on the other end that made it all but impossible.
So we puttered around there, had lunch before heading back up to the top of McCann Summit/top of the Monitor range and on to the Hot Creek mountains. The Monitor range is one of if not my favorite mountain range in Nevada. And that's not a small statement given all of our beautiful mountain ranges we have here! But the Monitor range certainly is one of our longest ranges if not, at approximately 105 miles in length running from just north of Tonopah all the way to Hwy 50 just east of Austin, our state's longest mountain range!
Two years ago we saw nice groups of elk including six large bulls all velveted out in the same range apart of our Explore Nevada 2009; but our trip this year was more typical of Wapiti...the native American name for elk: "Ghosts of the forest"; we only saw hoof prints in the dried up mud from a couple weeks earlier...along with a few droppings here and there.
Once across and down the Monitor range we headed out over West Stone Creek Valley and then East Stone Creek Valley on our way to Kiln Canyon in the Hot Creek range. This super wide valley, about 10-miles in width, was incredibly green from all the moisture and cool weather we had this winter and spring. What an incredible valley!
As we got closer to Kiln Canyon the trail started to become apparently less travelled and more to my liking once again. Jack, Darcie and my nephew two years earlier had come down Kiln Canyon from Tybo so I was looking forward to driving up it this trip. For those of you not familiar with the kilns spread out over much of the Nevada mining country they were used to convert native wood, namely Pinyon Pine and Junper trees, to charcoal for fueling the numerous smelters being used to melt the precious metals at that time (mid to late 1800's).
Back in the 1870's there was, as I read on the following links (check out the links on the lower left of the linked page too), a contractor from Eureka that saw an opportunity to presumably make profit by building and operating up to 15 kilns spread throughout the Hot Creek range. Its a great read: Six Mile Canyon Lower Kilns on the Hot Creek Range Nevada ! Its hard to imagine, given each of the 14 or 15 kilns required 30-cords EACH of wood, how sooty the air was in the closed valleys where most of the kilns are located! Not to mention the denuded landscape from clear cutting! The kilns would need to 'smolder' the wood for 3-weeks before getting it to the charcoal stage when they were unloaded and hauled, presumably by horse or mule drawn wagons (and you think its rough going over these same trails in a Land Cruiser!) many miles to the mining camps that had ore smelters.
Along this trail, about 1/2 way to the top of the pass, you pass over an incredible Roman trail. Actually from the historical accounts I've read it should be more aptly called a Chinese trail since it was built by the same! The trail was built and supported by tens of thousands of relocated rocks forming a terraced trail to get back and forth from the kilns to the big, at that time, mining center town of Tybo. Here are a couple links Tom found with more details about Tybo and the surrounding area: Las Vegas Review Journal: LIFSTYLES :5012326
Tybo Nye County Nevada Ghost Towns
And as many of the trails have become, since the advent and incredible popularity of using ATV/"Quads" for getting around these remote trails today, the trail has become overgrown with Pinyon Pine and Juniper. Ahh heck Sean: It'll just buff right out!
First pic below is from the Hunt's Canyon Ranger Station
Second pic is looking east across East Stone Cabin Valley on the way to Kiln Canyon
Third pic was taken on Kiln Canyon
I didn't write this stuff down and my memory is starting to get sketchy...must have been the 4-shots of tequila based liquor in each of those damn margaritas
. So this was the morning my nifty little mypressi nitrogen charged espresso press decided it wasn't going to get along for us the rest of the trip. s***. Well I carry a little Jetboil french (how appropriate since we have 3 frenchies in tow ) press. Not the same to an espresso junkie but better than nada. And fortunately Gary brought his very simple but capable Presso espresso press that was pulled...pun intended ...into action.So backing up to Wednesday. We spoke and/or texted with Alvaro and also with Sean throughout the day to narrow down when they might meet up with us and other pertinent data. Alvaro relayed to us Andy and Jeff were not going to make it back due to a recovery event they needed to tend to but much to our surprise the French guys, who we thought were going to end up twiddling their thumbs in Sacramento until their flights left on Sunday (or worse: Pulling the 2F from Andy's 40
), were coming back with himself and Steve.And Sean has a problem with not being able to pass any motorist on the side of any road without stopping to assist if/as necessary. So he was, as he would later tell us, on one of two broken down vehicles in need of a good samaritan like Sean to assist with repairing their cars. Yes that would be plural
. So it was celebration time when Alvaro, Steve with the French dudes held prisoner rolled into our camp at Belmont CG on Wednesday night.
Back to Thursday morning: A few guys were starting to question me about what we'd do if Sean didn't show up. Now from our last communicae I knew he was finally within 30-miles or so. He had made the turn off to Manhattan and was on his way over. But without a GPS displaying gravel/dirt roads/topo data and the distinct possibility he'd come across yet another stranded motorist
flipoff2: Sean) I was starting to get concerned about what I'd do too!But just as I was leading the group out of the campground we came bumper to bumper with Sean. This was fantastic timing! So the group, with the exception of Andy and Jeff, who also have issues with stopping to help folks in need of serious all things recovery
, our group was finally together!The plan was to roll south from Belmont and head up Hunt's Canyon for a little explore before heading over to the Hot Creek range. There's a cool little USFS outpost a few miles up a spur road just above Hunt's Ranch I opted to take the guys to. Once, apparently a long, long time ago...before Mother Nature reclaimed the trail...this trail went all the way through and up the canyon to Mud Spring. Last fall we walked it trying to see if there was a way to bushwack through but there was a deep wet muddy meadow between us and the canyon trail on the other end that made it all but impossible.
So we puttered around there, had lunch before heading back up to the top of McCann Summit/top of the Monitor range and on to the Hot Creek mountains. The Monitor range is one of if not my favorite mountain range in Nevada. And that's not a small statement given all of our beautiful mountain ranges we have here! But the Monitor range certainly is one of our longest ranges if not, at approximately 105 miles in length running from just north of Tonopah all the way to Hwy 50 just east of Austin, our state's longest mountain range!
Two years ago we saw nice groups of elk including six large bulls all velveted out in the same range apart of our Explore Nevada 2009; but our trip this year was more typical of Wapiti...the native American name for elk: "Ghosts of the forest"; we only saw hoof prints in the dried up mud from a couple weeks earlier...along with a few droppings here and there.
Once across and down the Monitor range we headed out over West Stone Creek Valley and then East Stone Creek Valley on our way to Kiln Canyon in the Hot Creek range. This super wide valley, about 10-miles in width, was incredibly green from all the moisture and cool weather we had this winter and spring. What an incredible valley!
As we got closer to Kiln Canyon the trail started to become apparently less travelled and more to my liking once again
. Jack, Darcie and my nephew two years earlier had come down Kiln Canyon from Tybo so I was looking forward to driving up it this trip. For those of you not familiar with the kilns spread out over much of the Nevada mining country they were used to convert native wood, namely Pinyon Pine and Junper trees, to charcoal for fueling the numerous smelters being used to melt the precious metals at that time (mid to late 1800's). Back in the 1870's there was, as I read on the following links (check out the links on the lower left of the linked page too), a contractor from Eureka that saw an opportunity to presumably make profit by building and operating up to 15 kilns spread throughout the Hot Creek range. Its a great read: Six Mile Canyon Lower Kilns on the Hot Creek Range Nevada ! Its hard to imagine, given each of the 14 or 15 kilns required 30-cords EACH of wood, how sooty the air was in the closed valleys where most of the kilns are located! Not to mention the denuded landscape from clear cutting! The kilns would need to 'smolder' the wood for 3-weeks before getting it to the charcoal stage when they were unloaded and hauled, presumably by horse or mule drawn wagons (and you think its rough going over these same trails in a Land Cruiser!) many miles to the mining camps that had ore smelters.
Along this trail, about 1/2 way to the top of the pass, you pass over an incredible Roman trail. Actually from the historical accounts I've read it should be more aptly called a Chinese trail since it was built by the same! The trail was built and supported by tens of thousands of relocated rocks forming a terraced trail to get back and forth from the kilns to the big, at that time, mining center town of Tybo. Here are a couple links Tom found with more details about Tybo and the surrounding area: Las Vegas Review Journal: LIFSTYLES :5012326
Tybo Nye County Nevada Ghost Towns
And as many of the trails have become, since the advent and incredible popularity of using ATV/"Quads" for getting around these remote trails today, the trail has become overgrown with Pinyon Pine and Juniper. Ahh heck Sean: It'll just buff right out!
First pic below is from the Hunt's Canyon Ranger Station
Second pic is looking east across East Stone Cabin Valley on the way to Kiln Canyon
Third pic was taken on Kiln Canyon
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- #25
We spent some time combing around the 3 charcoal kilns on Kiln Canyon trail. A couple of the guys led by Onur drove down an even more overgrown trail spur to find yet more kilns.
Another great thing about exploring Nevada in the late spring/early summer: The vast variety of wildflowers on display. And this trip was no exception. Each species or set of species were blooming at their preferred elevation. So it was particularly interesting to see the same species of flowers blooming at their respective elevations all across our route!
Once over the top of the pass on Kiln Canyon trail we started to drop down towards the old, but still inhabited town of Tybo. I was out ahead 1/4 mile or more when they relayed James, the self professed Imelda Marcos of automobile tires (or maybe someone else so aptly gave him that name), had punctured a sidewall.
That gave the rest of us time to lounge around enjoying the environ and doing a little jawing too. Not to mention putting the tease on James and his tires.
Once James got tires swapped we were rolling again. I had been telling the guys about the very complete mine building, with intact diesel, trunnions, apparatus, etc. we saw 2-years ago in Tybo. The best example we've yet to come across. So you can imagine my dismay to find the roof had collapsed, the windows shattered and some of the artifacts from the 1800's we saw in 2009 gone.
But its still worth spending time looking at the incredible machinery used back in the day to pull rocks out of the ground a long way down!
First pic: Kiln Canyon trail
Second pic: Gary aka mudrak
Third pic: Peter das German
Another great thing about exploring Nevada in the late spring/early summer: The vast variety of wildflowers on display. And this trip was no exception. Each species or set of species were blooming at their preferred elevation. So it was particularly interesting to see the same species of flowers blooming at their respective elevations all across our route!
Once over the top of the pass on Kiln Canyon trail we started to drop down towards the old, but still inhabited town of Tybo. I was out ahead 1/4 mile or more when they relayed James, the self professed Imelda Marcos of automobile tires (or maybe someone else so aptly gave him that name
), had punctured a sidewall. That gave the rest of us time to lounge around enjoying the environ and doing a little jawing too. Not to mention putting the tease on James and his tires
.Once James got tires swapped we were rolling again. I had been telling the guys about the very complete mine building, with intact diesel, trunnions, apparatus, etc. we saw 2-years ago in Tybo. The best example we've yet to come across. So you can imagine my dismay to find the roof had collapsed, the windows shattered and some of the artifacts from the 1800's we saw in 2009 gone.
But its still worth spending time looking at the incredible machinery used back in the day to pull rocks out of the ground a long way down!
First pic: Kiln Canyon trail
Second pic: Gary aka mudrak
Third pic: Peter das German
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- #26
Pic one: The gang heckling James as he changed his tire
Pic two: James working on his tire
Pic three: Duncane
Pic two: James working on his tire
Pic three: Duncane
- Thread starter
- #27
James working on swapping a wheel and tire
Pointed down hill towards Tybo on Kiln Canyon trail
Pointed down hill towards Tybo on Kiln Canyon trail
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- #28
So...after how many thousands of folks have walked around the front of that mine in Tybo including a couple times for me now...Peter looks down and picks up a nice size gold ore laden rock! Too cool!
We rolled down to Hot Creek Valley onto Hot Creek Road and headed north for Six Mile Canyon in the northern portion of the Hot Creek range. Its a wonderful trail and one where we'd camped in in 2009 while it downpoured on us all night long and then turned white on our way out and over the pass.
Anyway...back to 2011: We pushed up the beautiful trail and past yet more old kilns. Its always more challenging to find room for a bunch of trucks rather than a couple and in a canyon no less. But we came upon what appeared to have been a hunting camp in a wide portion of the canyon on the opposite side of the flowing creek on a nice wide grassy meadow plenty big enough for all of us.
With no more firewood the guys were concerned about how we were going to make a campfire. But dead sage brush is super for campfires as well as cooking coals so we all went about collecting the dried sage! And it was yet another wonderful evening of special culinary treats...of course after nice hot refreshing showers!
The French guys pulled out the absolutely over the top, best I've ever had foie gras! And with homemade raspberry jelly no less! I can't begin to explain how good that foie gras was only to reiterate it was the best I've ever eaten anywhere at any price in my life. Crazy good.
I laid out an Alaskan sockeye filet I caught last year and then smoked right before the trip. And of course it was another night for rounds of fresh margaritas! With another incredible day behind us and most of the group intact it was cause to celebrate! Again!
Alvaro made a huge batch of Venezuelan Arepas made with fresh masa and pan fried. Again we ate nothing less than stellar food on this trip! And of course we had salsa, great cheese, crackers, chips and probably more that I forgot than remembered!
It was another great night's rest listening to the gurgling stream surrounded by the dark of night only a place so remote could afford.
Friday June 17th:
Today Sean whipped up a fantastic breakfast for all in exchange for dinner fare. And the French guys were on their third day IIRC of providing freshly made crepes for us too! Gary was immersed in work related e-mails and voice messages so he was going to have to depart our group a couple days early. We said our good byes and good lucks and he was off to Sonoma.
After breakfast we wandered up the trail and over the top of Six Mile Summit. Never wanting to pass up checking out one of those faint dotted red trail lines on the Benchmark map we tried to find a trail that would lead us up and over the northern flank of 9,825' Mahogany Peak. And although the trail looked promising from our Six Mile Canyon trail it, upon further explore by Alvaro, just fizzled out. But no worries because there was another more established trail just down a mile or two that should lead us up to where that trail used to go. In fact the trail we did find was yet another uber spectacular high mountain not too frequently travelled trail. Imagine our surprise, although in retrospect not so because we were elevated considerably higher than Gary was as he exited through the valley below us and to the north, when we heard Gary chime in on the 2m!
We continued along the ridge top until dropping down into Cow Canyon with a nice view of the northern stretch of the Monitor Mountain range including Table Top Wilderness, Barley Creek, etc.
We rolled down to Hot Creek Valley onto Hot Creek Road and headed north for Six Mile Canyon in the northern portion of the Hot Creek range. Its a wonderful trail and one where we'd camped in in 2009 while it downpoured on us all night long and then turned white on our way out and over the pass.
Anyway...back to 2011: We pushed up the beautiful trail and past yet more old kilns. Its always more challenging to find room for a bunch of trucks rather than a couple and in a canyon no less. But we came upon what appeared to have been a hunting camp in a wide portion of the canyon on the opposite side of the flowing creek on a nice wide grassy meadow plenty big enough for all of us.
With no more firewood the guys were concerned about how we were going to make a campfire. But dead sage brush is super for campfires as well as cooking coals so we all went about collecting the dried sage! And it was yet another wonderful evening of special culinary treats...of course after nice hot refreshing showers!
The French guys pulled out the absolutely over the top, best I've ever had foie gras! And with homemade raspberry jelly no less! I can't begin to explain how good that foie gras was only to reiterate it was the best I've ever eaten anywhere at any price in my life. Crazy good.
I laid out an Alaskan sockeye filet I caught last year and then smoked right before the trip. And of course it was another night for rounds of fresh margaritas! With another incredible day behind us and most of the group intact it was cause to celebrate! Again!
Alvaro made a huge batch of Venezuelan Arepas made with fresh masa and pan fried. Again we ate nothing less than stellar food on this trip! And of course we had salsa, great cheese, crackers, chips and probably more that I forgot than remembered!
It was another great night's rest listening to the gurgling stream surrounded by the dark of night only a place so remote could afford.
Friday June 17th:
Today Sean whipped up a fantastic breakfast for all in exchange for dinner fare. And the French guys were on their third day IIRC of providing freshly made crepes for us too! Gary was immersed in work related e-mails and voice messages so he was going to have to depart our group a couple days early. We said our good byes and good lucks and he was off to Sonoma.
After breakfast we wandered up the trail and over the top of Six Mile Summit. Never wanting to pass up checking out one of those faint dotted red trail lines on the Benchmark map we tried to find a trail that would lead us up and over the northern flank of 9,825' Mahogany Peak. And although the trail looked promising from our Six Mile Canyon trail it, upon further explore by Alvaro, just fizzled out. But no worries because there was another more established trail just down a mile or two that should lead us up to where that trail used to go. In fact the trail we did find was yet another uber spectacular high mountain not too frequently travelled trail. Imagine our surprise, although in retrospect not so because we were elevated considerably higher than Gary was as he exited through the valley below us and to the north, when we heard Gary chime in on the 2m!
We continued along the ridge top until dropping down into Cow Canyon with a nice view of the northern stretch of the Monitor Mountain range including Table Top Wilderness, Barley Creek, etc.
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- Thread starter
- #29
Pic one: Our camp in Six Mile Canyon
Pics two and three: On the northern flank of Mahogany Peak
Pics two and three: On the northern flank of Mahogany Peak
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- #30
Pic one: Onur and Peter
Pics two and three: Cow Canyon's namesake!
Pics two and three: Cow Canyon's namesake!
Cruiserdrew
On the way there
Great write up. So sorry I missed Wednesday-Sunday. Great pics and write up.
40 is still dead and not even looked at yet.
40 is still dead and not even looked at yet.
- Thread starter
- #32
Once we got down to Little Fish Lake Valley we had to, before getting our compasses directed back in a southernly direction towards Four Mile Canyon Trail, had to drive north through cattle country continually opening and closing fence gates all the way. Thanks Onur and Peter for closing all those gates!
Once we got far enough north to catch a cross-over trail of Seven Mile Wash, we were in fast mode down the high speed section of trail that would lead us to a trail on the north side of Little Fish Lake, which BTW wasn't so little this year. It was fun trying to keep Alvaro in my dust trail and from passing me at any and all opportunities .
From Little Fish Lake we turned back toward and into the Hot Creek range into Pott Hole Valley and further to Four Mile Canyon trail. I had not been up this particular trail before but it looked interesting from the Hot Creek Ranch side so I figured: Why not!
Oh boy what an overgrown trail. Even by MY standards. You know its bad when the brush sounds like scraping fingernails on a chalkboard...only its not a chalkboard easily erased! Is your Land Cruiser! And you ESPECIALLY know its bad when the glass is getting scraped! I really did feel bad (no really...I did actually feel bad about this 
) for Sean and his never before pinstriped perfectly waxed 80. I wish someone would have recorded all the chatter from the 2m over that stretch of trail! I can't even imagine driving/riding an ATV or quad through there. We kept pushing along thinking anytime we'd come into a clearing and have all the extreme bushwacking behind us. Nope...nada chance.
In fact, thanks to Sean and his 18V cordless DeWalt Sawzall, he was able to quickly cut through a somewhat large Pinyon Pine that had flopped across the trail saving us all from the manual labor of cutting through with hand saws. Yet another "have to have" for my "list". Damn good idea in lieu of carrying a chainsaw! Great thinking there Sean!
We finally got through the worst of the trail over-growth and came to two more charcoal kilns. These were brick based but then natural stone veneered. Even though these two were apart of the original contractor from Eureka's 15 kilns they had a much different appearance. It was great to see the different variants of kilns in just this one area!
We dropped back down to Hot Creek Valley exiting the Hot Creek mountain range just north of the Hot Creek Ranch, which by the way, is a live and working ranch. We got to kick the Land Cruisers into 4 high and 4th gear and fast forwarded our way across a high speed run to Hwy 6. We did find a nice but small herd of Pronghorns out in the middle that seemed to toying with us as they raced along side and eventually crossed our path and left us in their dust! Always great to see these beautiful creatures!
Once back on, what became a rare stretch of pavement for this trip, terra concrete we headed east on Hwy 6 off to explore the Lunar Craters. For whatever reason I've never detoured off of Hwy 6 to check them out heretofore. However a few weeks earlier Tim France aka NVProspector led a group of folks including Dave and Yosh aka adventureduo, from SoCal who later posted a nice trip report with photos linked from Expedition Portal (The Adventure Duo: Nevada Overland - Rhyolite to Tonopah) that peaked my curiosity about this, yet another, unique landscape in Nevada.
The craters are remnants of bygone imploded volcanic calderas. Easy Chair Crater really does, especially from a distance, look just like an easy chair! The largest crater aptly named "Lunar Crater" is 4,000' in diameter and 400-500' feet deep! It would have been nice to have explored more of the Lunar Crater Scenic Byway but we still had a fair piece of road and trail to cover before getting to our camp. And we were starting to ration fuel.
More about the craters here:
Nevada Magazine | Nevada Magazine Issues | lunar crater
CVO Website - Nevada Volcanoes and Volcanics
Speaking of fuel. Most either forget or just don't know about Nevada's wild land expanse. To do this portion of the trip right, after refueling in Tonopah, and without going to/fro Ely for refueling (about 110-miles roundtrip from Currant Nevada) you really need a minimum of 50-gallons of fuel for our Land Cruisers! And 60-gallons would allow further explore around the crater land as well as further explore farther north in the White Pine mountain range.
We were hoping to find gas in either Lockes or Currant which turned out to be a complete waste of dream time as there's no gas there...just like years past. From Currant our camp spot was only about another 15-20 miles. We rolled east on Hwy 6 from Currant to the FS turnoff, at Currant Creek, that would lead us up the eastern flank of the very Colorado like White Pine Mountains to our camp spot at White River Campground.
Once we got far enough north to catch a cross-over trail of Seven Mile Wash, we were in fast mode down the high speed section of trail that would lead us to a trail on the north side of Little Fish Lake, which BTW wasn't so little this year
. It was fun trying to keep Alvaro in my dust trail and from passing me at any and all opportunities . From Little Fish Lake we turned back toward and into the Hot Creek range into Pott Hole Valley and further to Four Mile Canyon trail. I had not been up this particular trail before but it looked interesting from the Hot Creek Ranch side so I figured: Why not!
Oh boy what an overgrown trail. Even by MY standards
. You know its bad when the brush sounds like scraping fingernails on a chalkboard...only its not a chalkboard easily erased! Is your Land Cruiser! And you ESPECIALLY know its bad when the glass is getting scraped! I really did feel bad (no really...I did actually feel bad about this ) for Sean and his never before pinstriped perfectly waxed 80. I wish someone would have recorded all the chatter from the 2m over that stretch of trail! I can't even imagine driving/riding an ATV or quad through there. We kept pushing along thinking anytime we'd come into a clearing and have all the extreme bushwacking behind us. Nope...nada chance. In fact, thanks to Sean and his 18V cordless DeWalt Sawzall, he was able to quickly cut through a somewhat large Pinyon Pine that had flopped across the trail saving us all from the manual labor of cutting through with hand saws. Yet another "have to have" for my "list". Damn good idea in lieu of carrying a chainsaw! Great thinking there Sean!
We finally got through the worst of the trail over-growth and came to two more charcoal kilns. These were brick based but then natural stone veneered. Even though these two were apart of the original contractor from Eureka's 15 kilns they had a much different appearance. It was great to see the different variants of kilns in just this one area!
We dropped back down to Hot Creek Valley exiting the Hot Creek mountain range just north of the Hot Creek Ranch, which by the way, is a live and working ranch. We got to kick the Land Cruisers into 4 high and 4th gear and fast forwarded our way across a high speed run to Hwy 6. We did find a nice but small herd of Pronghorns out in the middle that seemed to toying with us as they raced along side and eventually crossed our path and left us in their dust! Always great to see these beautiful creatures!
Once back on, what became a rare stretch of pavement for this trip, terra concrete we headed east on Hwy 6 off to explore the Lunar Craters. For whatever reason I've never detoured off of Hwy 6 to check them out heretofore. However a few weeks earlier Tim France aka NVProspector led a group of folks including Dave and Yosh aka adventureduo, from SoCal who later posted a nice trip report with photos linked from Expedition Portal (The Adventure Duo: Nevada Overland - Rhyolite to Tonopah) that peaked my curiosity about this, yet another, unique landscape in Nevada.
The craters are remnants of bygone imploded volcanic calderas. Easy Chair Crater really does, especially from a distance, look just like an easy chair! The largest crater aptly named "Lunar Crater" is 4,000' in diameter and 400-500' feet deep! It would have been nice to have explored more of the Lunar Crater Scenic Byway but we still had a fair piece of road and trail to cover before getting to our camp. And we were starting to ration fuel.
More about the craters here:
Nevada Magazine | Nevada Magazine Issues | lunar crater
CVO Website - Nevada Volcanoes and Volcanics
Speaking of fuel. Most either forget or just don't know about Nevada's wild land expanse. To do this portion of the trip right, after refueling in Tonopah, and without going to/fro Ely for refueling (about 110-miles roundtrip from Currant Nevada) you really need a minimum of 50-gallons of fuel for our Land Cruisers! And 60-gallons would allow further explore around the crater land as well as further explore farther north in the White Pine mountain range.
We were hoping to find gas in either Lockes or Currant which turned out to be a complete waste of dream time as there's no gas there...just like years past. From Currant our camp spot was only about another 15-20 miles. We rolled east on Hwy 6 from Currant to the FS turnoff, at Currant Creek, that would lead us up the eastern flank of the very Colorado like White Pine Mountains to our camp spot at White River Campground.
- Thread starter
- #33
Four Mile Canyon kilns
- Thread starter
- #34
First pic: Four Mile Canyon trail and kilns
Second pic: Sean's previously unmolested 80
Third pic: Easy Chair Crater trailhead looking east towards the aptly named Pancake mountain range
Second pic: Sean's previously unmolested 80
Third pic: Easy Chair Crater trailhead looking east towards the aptly named Pancake mountain range
- Thread starter
- #35
Pic one: The gang walking up to the rim of Easy Chair Crater
Pic two: Steve setting up for a group shot
Pic three: Looking south from the rim of Easy Chair Crater out to Lunar Crater
Pic two: Steve setting up for a group shot
Pic three: Looking south from the rim of Easy Chair Crater out to Lunar Crater
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- #36
Pic one: Alvaro blasting up to Lunar Crater parking area
Pic two: The main Lunar Crater (this is the one that's 4,000' across and 400-500' deep!
Pic three: Peter getting a souvenir shot
Pic two: The main Lunar Crater (this is the one that's 4,000' across and 400-500' deep!
Pic three: Peter getting a souvenir shot
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- #37
Pic one: James
Pics two and three: Easy Chair Crater (taken from Lunar Crater rim)
Pics two and three: Easy Chair Crater (taken from Lunar Crater rim)
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- #38
It was great to get to White River Campground. It was Friday, the campground is just barely big enough for our group and I was concerned, given its relatively close proximity to Ely and Eureka and the somewhat popular Hamilton and Treasure City ghost mine areas we might be out of luck. But we found the little campground uninhabited.
The drive from Hwy 6 along the east side of the White Pine range is stellar. Big snow fields and possibly small glaciers fill in the high vertical couloirs in the White Pine Mountains. This area is particularly lush with tall grass vegetation very reminiscent of many Colorado alpine trails!
This was the night for Tom to make his crab cakes...and he did. And tasty fine they were! I had made a batch of venison Andouille sausage that I smoked before the trip and along with chunks of fresh pineapple thrown over the hot coals we had our appetizers set once again.
I also had 5-racks of lamb that we portioned into single bone 'lamb-pops', dusted with a cornucopia of spices and ate like starved cavemen. And it was yet another great sleeping night, after another tough long day of playing Nevada explorers, with that oh so wonderful sound of the fast moving White River just twenty feet away!
The photos below were taken and provided by Steve White
Tom cooking his wonderfully tasty crab cakes!
The drive from Hwy 6 along the east side of the White Pine range is stellar. Big snow fields and possibly small glaciers fill in the high vertical couloirs in the White Pine Mountains. This area is particularly lush with tall grass vegetation very reminiscent of many Colorado alpine trails!
This was the night for Tom to make his crab cakes...and he did. And tasty fine they were! I had made a batch of venison Andouille sausage that I smoked before the trip and along with chunks of fresh pineapple thrown over the hot coals we had our appetizers set once again.
I also had 5-racks of lamb that we portioned into single bone 'lamb-pops', dusted with a cornucopia of spices and ate like starved cavemen
. And it was yet another great sleeping night, after another tough long day of playing Nevada explorers, with that oh so wonderful sound of the fast moving White River just twenty feet away!The photos below were taken and provided by Steve White
Tom cooking his wonderfully tasty crab cakes!
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- #39
Epic adventure indeed. Always worth the trip out west to see my buds.
Keep the story flowing Dan....it's not as if you have anything else to do....
Many, many thanks to you Onur for bringing all those delicio custom made burritos for all our lunches for those first few days! They were a real treat!!!
Photos courtesy of Steve White!
Pic one: Me, the bumper bar and that oh so wonderful Del Maguey Single Village Chichicapa Mezcal
Pic two: Sean Pritchard
Pic three: Seasoned lamb loli-pops ready for the grill
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Great Read, really enjoy your writings. "Word Smith" comes to mind.