Eastern Mojave Vegetation Trench Canyon Road  
 

Tom Schweich  

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Literature Cited 		  There really isn't a road called "Trench Canyon Road." However, there is a little road that goes from Dobie Meadows Road, through Trench Canyon, past Larkin Lake and into Alkali Valley to Forest Road 058 at the power line.

If I were to drive through Trench Canyon again, I think I would do it from southwest to northeast. That would avoid having to climb the dune at the southwest end of Trench Canyon.

 

Other Articles: Dobie Meadows Road: at road through Trench Cyn  

 Junction: Dobie Meadows Road
  • Turn right, west, to Lime Kiln, Kirkwood Spring, and Cottonwood Canyon Road.
  • Turn left, east, to California Highway 167.
Full Size Image West of Trench Canyon.

Other Articles: Field Notes: 20060923380  

 Drainage Divide

Literature Cited:
- Dohrenwend, J. C., 1982. Full Size Image Trench Canyon from the southwest.

Other Articles: Field Notes: 20060923370

Locations: Trench Canyon.  

 Drainage Divide: Trench Canyon to the Northeast

Literature Cited:
- Russell, Isreal C., 1889.    

 Russell (1889, p. 272) describes a trip through Trench Canyon thus:
Riding southward we traverse the long, deep pass that attracted our attention from the hills above, connecting Aurora and Mono Valleys. From the particular form of this straight, narrow gorge we name it Trench Caņon. Advancing, we observe that the ancient beaches seen about Aurora Valley extend entirely through, as parallel horizontal lines on each side of the trough, at an elevation of about 200 feet, and are marked in places with tufa deposits. At the south end of Trench Caņon the bottom rises to within eighty feet of the highest ancient beaches, and shows evidences of having been eroded by the currents that once set through it. The terraces on either side of the caņon, where it opens out into Mono Valley, are more strongly defined and more numerous than at any other locality thus far seen during our ride (Russell, 1889, p. 272)
      Bottom of Trench Canyon
      Drainage Divide: Trench Canyon to the West
Full Size Image Pollywogs, dead pollywogs, and yellow jackets at Larkin Lake.

Other Articles: Field Notes: 23-Sep-06 at Larkin Lake  

 In the center of Larkin Lake, a hole has been scooped out, and resulting depression contained some very green water. There were pollywogs in the water, some of which had front and back legs. But many had died. The yellow jackets were swarming to eat the dead pollywogs.

Later, having returned home, I reviewed the collections of frogs at the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology (MVZ). There are four species of frogs that have been collected in Mono County. They are:

  1. Great Basin Spadefoot Toad (Spea intermontana).
  2. Mountain Leopard Frog (Rana pipiens).
  3. Mountain Yellow-legged Frog (Rana muscosa).
  4. Pacific Tree Frog (Pseudacris regilla).
Of the four species, it seems more likely that the species I found at Larkin Lake is the Great Basin Spadefoot Toad. The true frogs (Rana sp.) and the tree frog (Pseudacris regilla) have been collected in the Sierra Nevada of Mono County, or at the Sierra front, but not out in the Great Basin of Mono County.
Full Size Image Mud hole in Larkin Lake.

Other Articles: Field Notes: 23-Sep-06 at Larkin Lake  
Full Size Image Larkin Lake from the south edge.

Other Articles: Field Notes: 20060923350

Locations: Larkin Lake.  

 Road skirts the edge of Larkin Lake
Full Size Image California State Border near Larkin Lake

Other Articles: Field Notes: 20060923340  

 California above.
Nevada below.
 

Other Articles: Forest Road 058: at Power Line Rd Power Line Road: 86870  

 Junction: Forest Road 058, Forest Road 058 and the Power Line Road are actually separated by about 1/4 mile in thi area.
  • Turn left, north, for the Power Line Road to Mount Hicks, Aurora, and other points north.
  • Go straight, east, for Alkali Lake.
  • Turn right, south, to exit Alkali Valley, and to Nevada State Route 359.
     

Literature Cited

  A list of all literature cited by this web site can be found in the Bibliography.
 
Dohrenwend, J. C. 1982. Map Showing Late Cenozoic Faults in the Walker Lake 1° By 2° Quadrangle, Nevada - California. Miscellaneous Field Studies Map MF-1382-D. Washington, DC: United States Geological Survey, 1982. {TAS-map}

Location records referred to by this literature:

 
Russell, Isreal C. 1889. Quaternary history of Mono Valley, California. Eighth Annual Report of the U. S. Geological Survey. Washington, DC: United States Geological Survery, 1889. {TAS}

Location records referred to by this literature:

If you have a question or a comment you may write to me at: tas4@schweich.com I sometimes post interesting questions in my FAQ, but I never disclose your full name or address.  

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Date and time this article was prepared: 6/30/2008 10:46:46 AM