Eastern Mojave Vegetation Tom Schweich
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Eastern Mojave Vegetation | Field Notes (Continued) |
| Tom Schweich |
 Topics in this Article: 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 Contents Literature Cited | When I first
read the field notes of Annie Alexander and Louise Kellogg, I was fascinated by the descriptions they wrote about the places they went and the plants and animals they found there. By publishing my field notes on the Internet I hope to follow a little bit in their tradition.
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| 2002
|  Mission San Miguel Other Articles: U. S. Highway 101: San Miguel Locations: San Miguel. |
Stopped in San Miguel on the way home. |
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| Thursday, April 18, 2002 | 
Entrance to Kern Canyon near Bakersfield
Locations: Kern River. |
Left home at 8:00 AM Thursday morning and, pushed by a tailwind, arrived in Bakersfield at Noon. After shopping, drive toward Highway 178. The day was overcast, but warm in Bakersfield, turning cooler as I progressed up the canyon.
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Lower Kern Canyon Locations: Kern River.
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In the lower canyon, I saw Dichelostemma, some lupines, and a Cryptantha. One location had many Fremontia in bloom. The Kern River was running, but without much vigor. At China Gardens there was a Collinsia with pairs of flowers rather than whorls.
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South Fork Valley Other Articles: CA Hwy 178: Isabella Lake Locations: Isabella Lake. |
Isabella Lake looks to be down about 30 feet from its maximum. Stopped at the Wildlife Viewing Area, where the stream flow was at most languid, and no wildlife was seen.
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Fremontia (Fremontodendron californicum) in South Fork Valley.
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Saw a few more Fremontia in bloom near Onyx. |
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Joshua trees along CA Highway 178 near Onyx
Other Articles: CA Hwy 178: 34000
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At one place on the north side of the highway, Digger Pines and Joshua Trees were growing together. There were irrigation ditches along side both sides of the highway and I could not safely stop. However, a little further down the road there was a place to pull off.
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Walker Pass on a windy Spring afternoon.
Other Articles: CA Hwy 178: at Walker Pass Locations: Walker Pass. |
Very windy at Walker Pass, and very dry also. |
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| Friday, April 19, 2002 |
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On Friday morning, we left Ridgecrest a few minutes after 6:00 AM, and rolled into Zzyzx a little after 8:30 AM. The morning dawned red with clouds. A cloud bank could be seen over the Sierras. The day cleared slowly with a cool north wind into the evening.
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Lauren Wright gave an overview of global tectonic events, noting Death Valley’s and Amargosa Valley’s position in each. The Rodinia supercontinent and the invalidation of the Amargosa aulacogen were two new concepts to me.
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Brian Brown talked about the early history of China Ranch. The legend of a Chinese man named Ah Foo, who farmed at China Ranch, seems to have some basis in fact.
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Jeff Lovitch talked about historic records of Gila Monsters in the eastern Mojave. He reviewed some records from the Providence Mountains. Rangers at Mitchell Caverns report occasional sightings along the trail to the caverns. Jeff favors occurrence of the Gila Monster in riparian areas where biphasic precipitation occurs.
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Warren and Schneider reported on their renewed archeological investigations at the outlet of Lake Mojave, now known as Silver Lake. They have found a horizon with artifacts whose minimum age is constrained by a cross-cutting Anodonta siphon.
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Friday night was clear and cool, but got a little warmer as the north wind stopped after dark, and was replaced by a warmer westerly flow.
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| Saturday, April 20, 2002 |
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This morning is beautiful: clear and cool, with a warm sun. Maybe it will warm up to 75-80 degrees today.
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I asked Emmett Harder if he knew any of the Dorr family, but he did not.
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Bob told us about the upcoming field trip. After reviewing marker beds in Pleistocene Lake Manix that are time and topography, we will review marker beds in Miocene sediments of the Barstow formation. The specific marker beds we will review are: |
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David Miller reviewed his work in the Dove Spring Formation, which he studied while developing a protocol for monitoring off-highway vehicle use. The fluvial environment indicates a relatively wet environment, as discussed in Quade, et al., 1996 and Benson, et al., 2002 who concluded that Las Vegas and the Great Basin was cooler and wetter until 8-9 kybp. This was related to the younger Dryas cold event.
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At Field Trip Stop 1-1, we are looking at mid-Pleistocene Lake Manix. Here tufa was deposited by blue-green algae on alluvial fan deposits in clear water (Photo 4).
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Agriculture in the Central Mojave. 
Climax vegetation on Harvard Hill. Other Articles: Interstate 15: 56798 Harvard Hill Locations: Harvard Hill.
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We then moved to Field Trip Stop 1-2, where we saw the brown platy limestone (BPL), with agate or chalcedony, which is one marker bed in Miocene Barstow Basin. Took Photos 5 and 6. Plants are Creosote Bush, Burroweed, and Desert Holly.
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US I-15 as seen from Harvard Hill.
Locations: Harvard Hill. |
Photo 7 shows I-15 from Harvard Hill. Collected stromatolites with plant fossils.
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While we waited for low-slung car consolidation, Fred Budinger told us about the Calico Early Man Site and some recent work.
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Field trip discussion of the Miocene Barstow Basin.
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Field Trip Stop 1-3. Parked cars in wash, walked up the hill to the silicified algal limestone. These were hard dark reddish-brown rocks over a softer brown-tan clastic rock. According to Bob Reynolds, the algal mats preserved here are the deep water facies of the MSL. The stromatolites interfinger with the andesite zone, and silicified very rapidly. The silica came from nearby volcanic rocks and, therefore, the silicified algal mats cannot be termed “biogenic.”
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Field Trip Stop 1-4 was at the drill pad on the north side of the east end of Daggett Ridge. Top of ridge has stromatolites. Resistent steeply dipping arkosic sandstone. Pink tuff is younger than the Strontium – Borate Layer (SBH) and may be mappable to the Peach Springs Tuff(?) at the Pink Lady Mine.
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View of Mojave Valley from Dagget Ridge
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Field Trip Stop 1-5, does the pink tuff correlate to the pink ash at Outlet Center Drive?
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| Sunday, April 21, 2002 |
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Field Trip Stop 2-2, Rogers Road at California Highway 14, and most northwestern edge of Mojave geologic province.
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Alan Schoenherr gave an overview of biological aspects of the Mojave. Creosote bush is a marker for hot desert. Joshua tree is a marker for the biological Mojave Desert. Top of grade between Coso Junction and Olancha has a few Joshua trees, and is typically taken as the northern boundary of the Mojave Desert. Winter rain: Mojave desert; Winter snow: Great basin; i.e., a climatological boundary of the Mojave desert that roughly corresponds with the biological boundary.
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Frank Monastero from China Lake: focus on evolution of Indian Wells Valley and the Coso geothermal field. Eagle Crags is a large rhyolitic center in the central Mojave. Correlated Cudahy Camp formation with rocks in eagle crags. Dates 15-17 ma (K-Ar), unique chemistry in basalts, implies 64 km offset, Garlock may be an intercontinental transform. Dove Spring Formation correlates to other rocks south of Garlock Fault in El Paso Mountains, 30-34 km offset between 15.7 ma and 10 ma. Remaining offset would precede Dove Springs time – hills are south of Garlock Fault and east of Randsburg. Ricardo “Group” includes the Dove Springs Formation (8-13 ma) and the Cudahy Camp Formation (15-20 ma) with a substantial hiatus between them.
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Field Trip Stop 2-5. Several drill holes and seismic reflection lines, published a hypothesis of a hot spot, turned out to be a thick sequence of sediments. Seismic reflection data show the Sierra Nevada Frontal Fault to be a low angle normal fault with some right lateral component. Indian Wells Valley is interpreted as a half-graben (Leeder and Gauthorp) with axial drainage.
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The White Hills deposits occur under the basalt flows, and White Hill, seen across the valley occurs in a window in the basalt flows. Duffield and Bacon (1980) write a paper about damning of the Owens River and diversion of its channel by the basalt flows.
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Creosote Bush rings on mountain side. |
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Joshua trees. | |
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| Monday April 22, 2002 | Locations: Sheep Tank.
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Don Lofgren and Malcolm McKenna, Phd UC, Chester Stock, coal mine near Colorado Camp, lot of red banded sediments, 10000 – 11000 feet in basin, tilted since to the north, began as lacustrine and became marine. Dibblee called it Goler Formation. Too thick to be a single formation. Rounded conglomerate pebbles coming from direction now known as “east,” as entire deposits have been rotated counterclockwise. Partial paleomagnetic study shows Paleocene age. Very few fossils, some petrified wood, one leaf locality across valley. Fossils found include palms, magnolias, avocados; near-coastal, river flowing west. Erosion period followed by 18 ma lapilli tuff, 17 ma andesite, 15 ma lava and feeder dike system, all formerly mapped as Pleistocene. Antiform in valley suggests compression, but no other evidence thereof. The Rand / Orocopia / Pelona Schist suggest viscous flow. Garlock Fault – early movement probably vertical. Goler Formation is the only terrestrial Paleocene deposit in California. Kinnick Fm = Cudahy Camp Fm. Marine in Goler Fm are clams, snails that are early Eocene (Penutian?). Fauna: sub-tropical, some South American: tuberculates (who lasted until late Eocene), 2-3 kinds of primitive South American ungulates, primates (pleisiatapus?): 4 kinds; marsupials; 2 turtles; fish; lizards (Randy Knightsen); invertebrates and root casts. Only window about this period in California. Black Mountain basalt is not the same as basalt near Red Rock Canyon. Basement of Goler Formation is seen to the south, in Permian ________ (fusilinids).
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Stop 3-2. Goler Formation, Laudate site near Sheep Tank, just west of El Paso Mountains Wilderness.
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| Tuesday, April 23, 2002 |
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A few high clouds this morning. Calm last night, and calm again at Mid Hills Campground this morning. After breakfast I drove down Wild Horse Canyon. There were three deer along the road. I noticed a few Purshia that were starting to bloom, but these were the only flowers I saw anywhere. As I came over the divide between Macedonia and Wild Horse Canyon, a very large bird flew in front of my car. It was dark brown, definitely not black, and flew with its feet hanging down. I suspect that it was an eagle.
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I stopped at the Salvia dorrii plot and collected data. The plants had no new stem growth, and I suspect that any leaves were left over from the last growth season. Stem die-back was fairly common. I resorted to testing the leaves to see if they fell off, or were still pliable. If the leaves were pliable, I assessed plant status as “3,” meaning vegetative growth. But if the leaves were not pliable and fell off, I assessed plant status as “2,” meaning dormant. Many of the plants look like little trees that have been coppiced. They have a caudex that flairs out into woody stems that look cut off.
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I partially exhumed one small Salvia dorrii to see how deep the woody caudex went. This plant was about 15 cm high and had about seven stems. The single caudex was 4-5 mm in diameter and extended from about 5 mm above ground to about 10 mm below the surface. Then roots spread out at about a 45° angle. I tried to be careful not to cut roots, replaced the dirt and watered the plant. It will be interesting to see how the plant survives the experience. Close examination of more mature Salvia dorrii with caudex diameters of 1-2 cm showed that stem splitting has already occurred.
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From the plot, I drove into Lobo Point. Checking on the plants there, the Menodora scoparia had no stems as it was eaten down to within a couple of inches of the ground. The Symphoricarpos longiflorus had no leaves. There were no flowers on any of the plants.
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Drove over to Wild Horse Mesa. Hiked up to my experimental plots. No plants had any leaves. I believe this may be the first time I have observed this. Some of last year’s seed capsules still had seeds in them.
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Since the Swertia albomarginata were dormant, I thought perhaps of the possibility of transplanting them to the Bay Area for study. I selected dormant plants that had no green leaves showing. I dug the plants to a depth of 9-12 inches. I wrapped the roots in tissue (the only packing material at hand), dampened them with water, and placed the wrapped plants in a plastic bag.
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From my plots I climbed up to the saddle north of the mesa, and then turned north onto the spur of welded tuff north of Wild Horse Mesa. I was looking for Agave desertii that I had seen there once before. I found them at the narrow upper end of the spur. There was one stalk from last year, and three rosettes about 3 feet away. No others were found.
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I dropped off the spur and walked the ridge to Winkler’s Cabin. Checked the log book, and then added my entry. The previous entry was from April 18th, five days previous.
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Toured down Wild Horse Canyon Road, stopped at Hole-in-the-Wall to check voice mail, and then up Black Canyon Road. Noticed that there is a sign offering 40 acre parcels from the Gold Valley Ranch. Tried to find the Mid Hills RAWS weather station out in Lanfair Valley, but I don’t think it’s there, and the advertised latitude and longitude is incorrect.
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| Wednesday, April 24, 2002. |
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Saw the deer at the windmill, as I was leaving Mid Hills Campground. Drove down Macedonia Canyon, then through Kelso to Interstate 40, and home.
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| Thursday, April 25, 2002 |
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Today I planted the Swertia albomarginata. I was very shocked to find that the rosettes had grown while placed in the wet tissue. Each plant had green leaves, the largest being ¼ inch long.
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| Sunday, June 2, Alameda to Elko | 
Donner Pass Other Articles: Interstate 80: 24000 Locations: Donner Pass.
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I left the house at 7:00 AM, stopped at Starbucks for a cup of coffee, and hit the highway, joining the leftover drunks and the early birds. Was over Donner Pass by 10:30 AM, and stopped here for the view of Donner Lake. Too hazy for a photo, but looking up toward Donner Pass was clear. Turns out that Interstate 80 does not cross the Sierra summit at Donner Pass, but at a smaller pass called Euer Saddle. Overhead, there were a pair of pelicans circling to gain altitude for their flight to the west.
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Truckee River near Mystic siding, California
Other Articles: FAQ: Mystic Interstate 80: Mystic Locations: Truckee River.
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While driving down the east side along the Truckee River, I was looking for a place to pull over for a nice photo. This, of course, can be a bit hair-raising with Lincoln Navigators on your bumper at 80 miles per hour. Anyway I did find this spot that came complete with a fisherman.
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Stopped in Reno to get gas. Also, I had again forgotten to bring a hat, so I went to K-Mart, two exits up US Hwy 395 from I-80. Hats are in the Men's department in the east end of the store, not in the Sporting Goods section in the west end.
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Truckee River near Wadsworth. Other Articles: Interstate 80: 30200 Locations: Truckee River. |
From Reno to Wadsworth, I-80 continues to follow the course of the Truckee River. The landscape is a bit different here, as just a few feet from the river is desert, just as though the water wasn't there.
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I stopped in Lovelock, Nevada for lunch. There is a nice tree-shaded park behind the city hall (or county offices, I don't remember which), restrooms, and a Safeway market nearby.
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Rye Patch Reservoir. Other Articles: Interstate 80: Rye Patch Reservoir Locations: Rye Patch Reservoir. |
Rye Patch Reservoir is quite close to the highway between Lovelock and Winnemucca. There are a few restrooms and a few trees for shaded places to picnic. There are also some campsites. Otherwise, the water is quite green and not too attractive.
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I stopped in Winnemucca only to fill up with gas. |
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Looking south toward Beowawe from US I-80.
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In an older marketing brochure published by Southern Pacific, I once saw a photo of the Beowawe Geyser erupting. Of course, I had not planned to stop on this trip, and thought maybe I could exit the freeway and find the geysers by following the wisps of steam.
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Looking upstream (east) up the Humboldt River at Beowawe.
Locations: Beowawe. |
The town of Beowawe consists of a bar, a meeting hall, a branch library, and a few houses. No sign of the geysers. After I returned from the trip, I learned that the geysers no longer function, victums of geothermal exploration. I also learned that they are a few miles west of the town.
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View east from summit on dirt road.
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Maps show a "major street" heading southeast from Exit 271 of US I-80 to Nevada Highway 278. I took this exit and headed down a dirt road into a canyon. Then I came to a fork in the road. The lower fork continued down the canyon and a small sign said, "Lead Mine Road." I took the upper, unnamed road that looked like it would turn to the east.
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Looking down into Palisade, NV.
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The dirt road climbed up over a low pass and descended into the valley I would later learn was Pine Valley.
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Calochortus growing alongside the road.
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About half way dowm from the summit to Pine Valley, I saw this single Calochortus. The flower seemed to be quite deep relative to its width.
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Railroad bridge over Humboldt River at Palisade.
Locations: Palisade.
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The dirt road came into Palisade. I could see the name on the map, but I had no idea that this was once an important railroad junction. Of what was once a good-sized town, now only a single large building remains, with the usual junk laying about. I found the Cemetery, also good-sized, by accident. Tried several locations for photographs, none good, before taking this one.
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From Palisade, I drove north on NV Highway 278, looking for possible routes into the canyon of the Humboldt River to the west. Ultimately, I ended up in Carlin, driving through town before getting back on US I-80, heading east for Elko.
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| ElkoI arrived in Elko at about 5:00 PM, taking the Business I-80 exit and driving past the airport before realizing I was on Idaho Street, the main street of town. My hotel, the Holiday Inn Express was at the east end of town, still on Idaho Street. |
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| Monday, June 3, Elko, Lamoille Canyon |
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Well, when I checked in to the Holiday Inn, I asked about a good place to eat. They sent me to "the best place in town." The meal was pretty good, but after several hours I was pretty uncomfortable, at three hours I was praying for relief, and at four hours blowing chunks. | Needless to say I was feeling a little punk the next morning. For breakfast I had 8 dry Cherios and a sip of water, followed by a nap to rest up from the exertion. | Literature Cited: |
Somewhat bummed, I fortified myself with 8 more dry Cherios and another sip of water, and struggled out to the Northeastern Nevada Museum. This is a pretty good museum, with fine displays about Nevada ranching and mining history. Also, Jack Wanamaker, a famous taxidermist, donated his personal collection and funds to house his collection in a new wing of the museum. I also purchased the Ruby Mountain Flora (Anderson, et al., 1988) and The Ruby Mountains, A Visitor's Guide (Hyslop, 1999) at the museum.
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Literature Cited: Other Articles: Nevada Highway 227: Elko Summit Locations: Ruby Mountains.
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I drove south of town and found the U. S. Forest Service office. Here I purchased the map for the Ruby Mountains Ranger District of the Humboldt - Toiyabe National Forest.
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View of Elko from Elko Summit Other Articles: Nevada Highway 227: Elko Summit Locations: Elko.
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Driving southeast on Nevada Highway 227, an excellent view of the Ruby Mountains and of Elko can be had from Elko Summit.
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I drove through Lamoille just to see what was there. The town was much smaller that I had expected. I found the Post Office and Presbyterian Church, but otherwise the sights of town must be hidden back in the trees.
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So I headed up Lamoille Canyon. Somewhere, I can’t find it now, I read that the most recent glacial moraine is highly visible, as one drives toward the canyon. At the edge of the moraine a fine pasture turns to hummocky sagebrush-covered terrain. This is about a mile below the mouth of the canyon and easy to find.
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View up Lamoille Canyon. 
View down Lamoille Canyon Locations: Lamoille Canyon.
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About mid-way up Lamoille Canyon, the canyon narrows and affords excellent views both up and down the canyon. Still benefitting from my previous night's adventures, I took these pictures and immediately got back into the car to sit down.
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I continued driving up to Road's End, verified that the road indeed ended, and turned around, heading back down the canyon.
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Upper reaches of Lamoille Canyon.
Locations: Lamoille Canyon. |
In the upper third of the canyon, vegetation was just beginning to come out, where I stopped to take this photograph. The Beaver ponds were in 4-5 levels, though I saw no signs of beavers. While I was here, the Forest Service crew arrived to re-install the interpretive signs that had been removed for the winter. This is one sign that I was visiting very early in the season.
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I had intended to eat a few bites of lunch at the Terraces picnic ground, but it was closed, probably because it was still early in the season. Looking at the terrain, I would assume the the "terraces" name was applied because of terraces of thin soil and vegetation upon bare rock in this area.
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Instead I ate lunch in Thomas Canyon Campground. This is pretty nice, but more oriented to RVs and trailers than to tents, as most of the campsites had a layer of gravel everywhere. For lunch, I had about two dozen Cherios in three bites of yoghurt.
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Ready for a nap, I headed back to town, took a nap, ate about 3 bites of dinner, and retired early.
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| Tuesday, June 4, Elko, Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge | 
View of Ruby Mountains from US I-80. Other Articles: Interstate 80: Exit 321 Locations: Halleck.
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After a hearty breakfast of Cherios (with a little milk), I headed east on I-80 to Exit 321 at Halleck. There is nothing at Halleck, and this photo "View of Ruby Mountains from US I-80" was taken from the center of it.
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On its way to Ruby Valley, NV Hwy 229 follows Secret Creek through Secret Canyon into Secret Valley before passing over Secret Pass. This is one of those unusual canyons that penetrates well into a drainage on the other side of a ridge. Cedar Canyon in the eastern Mojave in a similar canyon. It extends from the west side of the ridge, penetrates the ridge line, extending well into the east side, and capturing east side drainage, while the actual divide is a very subtle geomorphic feature.
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Canyon on east side of Ruby Mountains
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I think this may be Colonel Moore Canyon because I seem to remember stopping and backing up to this spot just before I passed Ruby Valley School.
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Settlement of Ruby Valley Locations: Ruby Valley.
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After passing through the community of Ruby Valley, I took this photo looking back to the northeast. The peaks in the distance are the East Humboldt Range, which appears to be a northeastern extension of the Ruby Mountains.
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View northeast of Ruby Mountains from Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge.
Other Articles: Nevada County Route 788: Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge |
I drove out into Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge on two of the dikes. I would recommend driving straight to the Refuge headquarters and picking up a brochure with map.
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Coyote at Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge.
Other Articles: Nevada County Route 788: Ruby Lake National Wildlife Refuge |
When I drove out on the Brown Dike to the eastern side of the Refuge I saw this coyote who, while keeping an eye on me, did not seem to be particularly concerned.
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Gallagher State Fish Hatchery in Ruby Valley
Other Articles: Nevada County Route 788: 63000
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View of the Gallagher State fish hatchery from the access road to Brown dike. The next clump of trees up the road is the location of Refuge headquarters.
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I stopped at the South Ruby Campground for a bite of lunch. It's an OK campground in the lower edges of the Pinyon-Juniper woodland. Many of the sites have been spread with gravel, so I did not see a lot of tent sites.
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Harrison Pass Road. 
Looking West from Harrison Pass. 
Looking north along Ruby Crest from Harrison Pass.
Wind-clipped vegetation in Harrison Pass.
Other Articles: Nevada County Route 718: Harrison Pass 90000 Nevada County Route 788: 50000 Locations: Harrison Pass.
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My plan was to drive over Harrison Pass on my way back to Elko. | However the red sign up the road states that the road is closed for reconstruction. I drove up the road anyway to see how far I could get. The was open as far as Harrison Pass, where it was closed. I drove a short distance south of Harrison Pass along a 4WD road. The vegetation here has an "alpine" appearance being very low-growing. However, the species were more typical of moderate elevations in desert mountains: sagebrush, Castilleja, buckwheats, Ericameria, etc. Since I could not get over the Ruby Mountains at Harrison Pass, I resolved to continue south and cross at Overland Pass. | 
Cows along Nevada County Route 788. Other Articles: Nevada County Route 788: 80000
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This is open cattle range, and these cattle seemed to know where they were headed, south right along the edge of the road.
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Sign showing route of Pony Express trail at south end of Ruby Mountains.
Other Articles: Nevada County Route 006: 10000 Nevada County Route 788: 90000
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Overland Pass was the route of the Pony Express for the short period of its existence.
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Wild horses in Overland Pass
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At Overland Pass, I saw three wild horses. |
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Having come through Overland Pass, I turned north on what the map said was the Elko Hamilton Stage Road, but the sign said it was the Bald Mountain Mine Road.
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Smith Creek drainage, west side central Ruby Mountains.
Other Articles: Nevada Highway 228: 37000
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This photo is looking east to the Smith Creek drainage of the Ruby Mountains
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I stopped at Zunino-Jiggs Reservoir (county park) to pee. It looks like one could also camp here.
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Larkspur (Delphinium) near Twin Bridges.
Other Articles: Field Notes: 20020605050 Nevada Highway 228: Twin Bridges
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I turned off the highway following the sign to Twin Bridges. The bridges are over Huntington Creek. This dirt road rejoins Nevada Highway 228 near Jiggs. There was one broad canyon with many of these Larkspurs (Delphinium) growing in them.
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At this point I was getting ready for my afternoon nap, so I headed back to the motel in Elko.
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| Wednesday, June 5, Elko to Alameda |
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Wednesday, June 5th, was clear and warm. Nearly all clouds had left the sky. I headed south over Elko Summit, nearly to Spring Creek, where I turned south again on Nevada Highway 28.
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View south of Smith Creek and Mound Valley.
Other Articles: Field Notes: 20020604230 Nevada Highway 228: 38000 Locations: Huntington Creek.
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Past the Zunino-Jiggs Reservoir I noticed a lot of cow poop on the road. Stopped just north of Jiggs specifically to take this photograph, of a view I noticed yesterday. The dirt road in the foreground follows Huntington Creek to Twin Bridges. This is the other end of the road where I saw the Larkspurs yesterday. After taking the photograph and driving down to the ranch, I saw the ranchers herding a few cows back into their fields. I assumed that a few of their cows had escaped from pastures in the night.
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Traffic jam in Jiggs, Nevada. Other Articles: Nevada Highway 228: Jiggs Locations: Jiggs.
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As I came around the bend into Jiggs, it became readily apparent why the road was littered with cow poop. The cowboys were using the road to move cows from pasture to pasture. I waited here a few minutes while they finished herding the cows into a field at right, then continued on my way. My car, of course, had a nice aromatic layer of cow poop in the wheel wells and on the rocker panels.
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View of Diamond Mountains across Huntington Valley.
Other Articles: Nevada County Route 719: 35000
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From Jiggs, I drove 20-30 miles along the edge of Huntington Valley. At about the 15 mile point the road crossed from the east to the west side of the valley. Huntington Creek was a small, but lively creek at this point. There were even a few ducks in the creek. Just south of this crossing the road climbed up on the bajada, and split into the road heading east to Railroad Pass and the road heading south.
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Western Blue Flag (Iris missouriensis) in spring at head of Huntington Creek.
Spring on Huntington Creek with Western Blue Flag (Iris missouriensis).
Other Articles: Nevada County Route 719: 50000
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Near the south end of Huntington Valley, on the west side, a spur comes out of the Diamond Mountains. At the base of this spur is a large spring where I stopped for a time. I have checked Nevada state maps, and USGS quadrangles, and the spring has no name, but I would call it "Huntington Creek Spring" for its size clearly makes it the headwaters of Huntington Creek. My GPS receives indicates that the location of this spring is 11S 0605647 4427501, elevation 1851 meters. There were many of the Western Blue Flag iris that I had seen in wet places throughout all of this part of Nevada. I wanted to collect the Iris, so I dug up a shovel-full. It soon became readily aparent that separating the iris rhizome from the rest of the roots and mud would be near impossible. So I stuck the shovel of Nevada spring vegetation in a plastic bag, and threw it in the back of my car. It now occupies a wet spot in my front yard.
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Allium sp. | At this spring mound was the small Allium I have been seeing frequently. This collection is from dry ground on the edge of the spring vegetation. | 
This bull was really unhappy about my presence.
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When I pulled up to the spring, there were a few cows at the other end, about 100 yards away. One of them seemed to have been a bull, who started bellowing, pawing the earth and heading my way. Honking my car horn, shouting and waving my arms seemed to slow him down a bit, but he never stopped expressing his displeasure at my presence. | The photograph is a composite of two photographs I took of him. I tried to cut out a photo of the bull when he wasn't surrounded by the dust made by pawing the earth, and paste it over the photo of him in the dust. It's a bit obvious that something has been done to the photo. I think the biggest problem is the complexity of the mask I had to make to copy his image. |
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The next three collections were made in sagebrush, above and south of the spring. This is on the east side of the Diamond Mountains, east of the northern Diamond Peak. There are two Diamond Peaks in the Diamond Mountains. At this location there is a ridge that comes down to the road. There is also an Astragalus, and a phlox, but most of the vegetation is sagebrush.
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Allium collected among sagebrush.
296 |
Allium sp. | |
297 |
Delphinium, blue, same as those seen near Twin Bridges. |
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298 |
Lupine, yellow. | | 
Antelope crosses the road.
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The divide between Huntington Valley and Newark Valley is quite subtle, having mostly the appearance of a broad highland. This lone Antelope crossed the road in front of me, not appearing to be in any kind of hurry.
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Placer US Incorporated Bald Mountain Project
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The Bald Mountain Mine must be huge when seen close up. |
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At the very north end of Newark Valley, a small dirt road heads up into Big Canyon. The next three collections were made in a disturbed area at the mouth of the canyon.
| | Other Articles: Nevada County Route 719: 85000 Locations: Big Canyon. 299 |
Lepidium? Basal leaves finely divided, cauline leaves perfoliate.
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300 |
Sphaeralcea | |
301 |
Crucifer. | | 
Newark Valley and the Diamond Mountains. 
Spring and Buck Mountain across Newark Valley
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From Big Canyon, I pretty much drove straight south through Newark Valley to US Highway 50, turning east to Eureka.
| | Literature Cited: Locations: Eureka. |
I stopped in Eureka for an hour or so. Visited the museum, and looked at the historic buildings. Drove up to Ruby Hill where the road was blocked by a locked gate.
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Looking east on U. S. Highway 50.
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After leaving Eureka and passing west through Devil's Gate, I stopped at this small summit north of the Twin Spring Hills to take an illustrative photo of America's Loneliest Highway. However, I have to say that after driving south from Elko to Eureka, US Highway 50 doesn't seem so lonely. This photo looks across Antelope Valley to the Mountain Boy Range. Diamond Peak in the Diamond Mountains in the background.
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Petroglyphs at Hickison Petroglyph Recreation Area.
North end of Big Smoky Valley from Hickison Summit.
Sagebrush, Pinyon and Juniper at Hickison Summit
Locations: Hickison Petroglyph Recreation Area.
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I stopped Hickison Petroglyph Recreation Area for a bite of lunch. This could be an alternative camping location, if one does not want to stay in motels in either Austin or Eureka.
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After passing through Austin, I turned southwest on Nevada Highway 772. This is an excellent highway, and seems like it might have been an earlier route of US Highway 50.
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Looking east across the Reese River Valley.
Locations: Reese River Valley. |
I stopped at a rise in the road to take this photo of the Reese River Valley. Now this highway is lonely. Austin is approximately at the intersection of the highway and the Toiyabe Range in the distance.
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View east across Smith Creek Valley.
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The next valley is Smith Creek Valley. The highway had come around the left (north) side of Iron Mountain through (yet another) Railroad Pass.
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Eastgate in Nevada 772 with Desatoya Mountains in background.
Locations: Eastgate.
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After coming though the Desatoya Mountains through Eastgate, I stopped to take this photo looking back. The afternoon light (about 4:00 pm) really lights up the mountains.
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Sand Mountain, as seen from US. Highway 50
Other Articles: Singing and Booming Sand Dunes: Sand Mountain, Nevada U. S. Highway 50: Sand Mountain Locations: Sand Mountain.
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I stopped briefly to take this photo of Sand Mountain. |
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I pulled into Fallon about 5 o'clock. The wind was blowing, the dust was rising, and I'm thinking, "I'll just drive home from here." It took about 4 1/2 hours as I got home about 9:30 PM.
| | Literature Cited: Other Articles: Nevada County Route 718: Harrison Pass Locations: Harrison Pass. Huntington Creek.
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Looked up Egan's (1977, 302) description of Fremont's passage through Ruby Mountain territory. Fremont split his party into two groups at Whitton or Mound Spring, and "… the two parties left Whitton or Mound Springs early in the morning on November 5, 1845. Captain Fremont and his men took a course … to the south of Franklin Lake. From there they headed into Ruby Valley southeast of present Elko, Nevada, and they appear to have crossed the Ruby Mountains by Harrison Pass. By November 8 the fast-moving party reached either present Twin or Huntington Creek, a tributary of the Humboldt River."
| | Literature Cited: Locations: Eureka. Big Smoky Valley.
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"The days moved on as the small party crossed the rough ground of Ruby Pass and descended into Diamond Valley, where they stopped overnight on November 11 at Connor Spring … Keeping a southwestern course, the men passed to the south of today's Eureka, Nevada, drifted around the northern slopes of the Monitor Range and then crossed the Toquima Range into Big Smoky Valley (Egan, 1977, 303)."
| | Literature Cited:
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Ned Kern of the Walker party kept his own journal. "Early on the morning of November 7, the snow was falling only lightly, and Walker gave the order to move out. They headed across sagebrush flats, struck the foothills, and began to move upward into the Ruby Mountains. The climb was steep and rrocky, and long before they reached Secret Pass, the men were very nearly blinded by a wind-driven blizzard. Down from the pass and the high country, they came to a good valley where there were groves of aspen and cottonwoods. Here they made camp on a small stream that Walker called Walnut creek because once one of his trappers had brought a twig from such a tree he had found at the head of the creek (Egan, 1977, 304)."
| | Literature Cited:
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"Two days beyond this camp the men arrived at some hot springs near present Elko, Nevada. Here, where Walnut Creek joined the Humboldt River, they met a party of Shoshoni Indians who told them about three different emigrant parties that had passed by during the fall. From this point on, the journey was one of following the Humboldt River … (Egan, 1977, 304)."
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| Saturday August 17, 2002 |  Point Edith Salt Marsh
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Laura Hansen of the Contra Costa Mosquito & Vector Control District (Jeez … I hope I have this right) led a CNPS field trip to the Point Edith complex near Martinez. We had get special permission to enter through the Tesoro Petroleum Refinery, and parked at the end of the road. Topographic maps show this place to be called Hastings, on Hastings Slough. Laura told us there was formerly a marina here.
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We were given a very nice plant list of Species List and Common Names for Peyton Slough, Peyton Levee, and Point Edith Complex. Unfortunately, I don’t know who wrote it. I did not take very good notes; and now I am disappointed that I don't have good notes. I’m going to reproduce the plant list here. If you recognize the list, or know the author please let me know.
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Plants that I found particularly interesting were: |
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Atriplex triangularis Willd. Spearscale. Primarily because I think of Atriplex as a desert plant.
| |  Cordylanthus mollis at Port Edith salt marsh. 
Cordylanthus mollis at Port Edith salt marsh.
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Cordylanthus mollis A. Gray ssp. mollis. Soft Birds-Beak. To see Laura’s plots in this plant was the primary purpose of this field trip. I was also interested to see this plant, because of also seeing Cordylanthus parviflorus in the eastern Mojave.
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Cuscuta salina Engelm. Dodder. The dodder was in bloom, something new to me.
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Limonium californicum (Boiss.) A. A. Heller. Western Marsh Rosemary. A new species to me, it’s pretty in the fall, with a lavender haze of flowers. Since this trip, I have also seen this species in the salt marshes at Alameda. | I once had a rather difficult conversation with my mother because she thought I should recognize "the plumbago they plant along the freeways." Well, now, having seen this species, and then seeing something very similar planted horticulturally, I can now say that I recognize the plumbago planted along the freeways. |
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Scirpus cernuusVahl. Low Bulrush. Also known as “Fiber-Optic Grass” and sold commonly in nurseries. It looks like it will stay quite small, so I thought I would take a chance and put it in the bog.
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| Species List and Common Names for Peyton Slough, Peyton Levee, Pt Edith Complex
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| Friday August 30, 2002 |
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We left Alameda about 9:15 AM. Not my usual butt-crack-of-dawn because Cheryl worked the night before and I was trying to be somewhat kind about it. Made the Bakersfield grocery, gas and lunch stop and pressed on over Tehachapi Pass. The traffic seemed really slow. Too many holiday drivers out on this day before the Labor Day holiday. It must have been about Six or so when we pulled into the Mid Hills campground. The thermometer said 94°F. We left the rain fly off of the tent in hopes that the tent would stay a little bit cooler in the night.
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| Saturday August 31, 2002 |
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This morning we got an early start and went down to check the Salvia dorrii plot near Lobo Point. Very dry, no plants put out leaves. All I could do is walk through the plot and shake my head.
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We drove into Lobo Point and took a little break. Then drove over to Wild Horse Mesa. Cheryl waited by the car, while I walked up to the Swertia albomarginata plot. None of my plants had leaves. And I saw no Swertia albomarginata anywhere with leaves.
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Walked up to my plot at Pinto Mountain. I suppose just to make sure Iwouldn’t find what I did not expect to find.
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We took a long leisurely lunch, and read a book for a while. Then I walked up onto the hill east of the campground looking for the RAWS weather station.
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| Sunday September 1, 2002 |
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We got up early, packed up and headed out. Drove down Macedonia Canyon, through Kelso, and then to Baker. After gassing up we drove through Barstow and then north on 395 to Inyokern. I had thought to drive through Nine Mile Canyon and Kennedy Meadows to Johnsondale.
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We asked a couple of Highway Patrolmen about the road. One of them knew the road and told us that a recent fire would leave the road smoky and covered with ashes. We decided instead to use Walker Pass.
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Stopped for lunch at the Weldon School. At bit warm, but the shade of the trees and the breeze was nice.
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From Isabella, we took CA Hwy 155 north to Wofford Heights, and then west over Greenhorn Pass to Glennville. From Wofford Heights to Greenhorn Pass is very steep, uphill for us. The descent to Glennville is more gentle, but still a winding mountainside road.
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From Glennville we wound around visiting such lovely spots as Balance Rock, Sugarloaf, and California Hot Springs, until we stopped for the day in Porterville.
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| Monday, September 2, 2002 | Locations: Mineral King.
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This morning we left Porterville fairly early and, stopping for ice and supplies in Lindsey, we appeared at the entrance of Sequoia National Park. Having paid our entrance fee, and checking out the information center we drove into Mineral King. I can’t recommend this for a day trip. The road is 21 miles of very slow mountainside driving. Once at Mineral King, we found the area quite beautiful. We hiked a little bit. On one little terrace by the river, I found many Gentiana calycosa in bloom. We had lunch by the river, then began the long slow drive out.
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The Generals Highway climbs over 3000 feet from the Kaweah River to the Giant Forest Village, in a series of impressive switchbacks, and around sharp ridges.
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We took a walk in the Generals Meadow, had a snack and then headed for our hotel, Wuksachi Lodge.
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| Tuesday September 3, 2002 |  Balancing Rock  Moro Rock  View west from Moro Rock.
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This morning, after a leisurely breakfast we drove to Moro Rock and climbed that. Very impressive view, and certainly capable of invoking one’s fear of heights.
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Thereafter, we drove to Crescent Meadow, and walked that loop, including Tharp’s Log and Huckleberry Meadow.
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| Wednesday, September 4, 2002 |
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This morning, we checked out of our hotel and drove into Kings Canyon. This is another long winding road into a deep canyon. However, the road is much better than the Mineral King Road.
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In Kings Canyon, it was clearly end of the season. No crowds, and even few cars. The canyon is deep somewhat like Yosemite Valley. Most of Kings Canyon National Park is wilderness, and only this one road cherry stems into the park.
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We left Grant Grove Village, about 5:00 PM, stopped for dinner at Andersen’s in Santa Nella and arrived at home about 9:30 PM.
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Purpus’ 6285 and 7089. Clokey collections: 5558, 5559, and 7243 from Charleston Park, Spring Mountains, 7799 from Griffith’s Mine, Spring Mountains, and 8613 from Pine Canyon, Spring Mountains. Alexander and Kellogg 759 and 1714.
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| Sunday, September 22, 2002 |
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This Sunday afternoon I went into the marshes of Alameda, looking primarily for Limonium californicum. I had seen this species at the Point Edith Complex recently, and was looking for it
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304 | |
