near Lake Mead, Nevada
|
Gold Butte National Monument near Lake Mead, Nevada |
November 8, 2016
Last year at about this time, Gary and I spent the night here in Mesquite on our way to Utah, but had no time for local sightseeing. Today, local friend Steve will guide us south of town to a remote wonderland of rock art and fantastic formations.
Down the New Gold Butte Byway
Along this route we pass by the ranch of the low-life Cliven Bundy,
who has been much in the news for his hassles with the BLM over persistent refusals
to pay the standard grazing fees, among other matters.
Turning off the pavement at the Whitney Pockets Campground, Steve aims
his Jeep westward to a well-marked trailhead.
Getting started on a petroglyph hunt
(It's the camera that's crooked, not the lettering)
Pineapple Cactus
Mouse ears?
Within a few short minutes, some good stuff appears.
Petroglyphs ahead!
First Rock
Just past that panel is a beautifully hued set of arches:
This is why I go hiking
View from the other side
More etchings
A triple arch
Lines & Colors
The principal attraction is up ahead, in the high rocks I guess.
This is exciting
Steve guides Gary and me up toward an imposing cliff.
It seems like a dead-end...
.., but no
A doorway has been provided
While the others are scrambling through the opening, there is time to photograph the most colorful rock I ever saw:
Amazing
Gary negotiates the wormhole
Looking back from the tunnel entrance
It's all-new scenery over here
Just before rounding the corner, Steve points out an object several feet above us:
The famous Falling Man
Is he really falling, or is he actually flying?
This is easily the prettiest petroglyph site in my experience.
The wormhole is out of sight at left-center
Ancient art
Ancient man
Actually, I'm five years more ancient than Gary; but we're trying to hang in there.
Steve patiently awaits us slowpokes
Heading for the next attraction
Most of the arches are pink
Much of the rest is orange
Spiny Saltbush
Desert Marigold
More arches
Heading back to the car
A different 4WD road takes us to the next location, which actually is but a mile or two from the first one. I don't know what we are actually going to see.
Starting off cross-country
We must be headed for another petroglyph site.
I see a likely cliff up ahead
A jughandle-type arch
Oh, my! This is the special panel that I had read about and had wanted to find.
Parade of Sheep ⇔
Many blogs refer to this as the 21 Goats Panel, but that desigation is erroneous on two counts. There are but 18 animal figures in the horizontal line. Others are nearby, but there are well over 30 in the entire scene. In any case, the animals depicted are not goats; they are bighorn sheep. So let's tell it as it is; in fact, BLM documentation does just that by referring to this site as the Sheep Panel.
⇔
More Saltbushes
More Marigolds
That's it for this spot. On to the next adventure!
Steve has to return home by mid-afternoon to meet some friends
who are driving in from faraway Chico, but we'll cram in as much
activity as possible.
Next, we detour to a local anomaly — a sinkhole that developed about 25 years ago due to the area's decreasing water table:
Devils Throat is about 100 feet deep
An Emirates airliner out of Las Vegas
Yet another slow road takes us to a unique spot that is fairly
well-documented online, yet visited by very few.
Approaching Little Finland
The objective is a big mound of Aztec sandstone featuring some
other-worldly formations. Circling around to the west
and north through Mud Wash gets us to the most interesting section.
The heart of Little Finland
Of course, the name of this place bears no actual relationship to a
Scandinavian country. It is derived from the plethora of thin fins
of rock, and it might be better spelled as Little-Fin Land.
Other popular monikers are Devils Fire and Hobgoblin
Playground. There is no "correct" name, as no reference to
this feature appears on official maps.
A 30-foot cliff is in the way
Although Steve never has climbed around here, Gary and I must get up there for some photographs. The problem is the high wall that is unclimbable for as far as we can see it.
A wonderland of arches and hobgoblins
We traipse down through the wash toward Red Bluff Spring, searching for a good place to get up onto the slab.
No luck yet
After a few hundred yards, I see a ramp up the cliff that I would attempt if I were alone; but shortly afterwards, Gary and I find a safer way up onto the plateau.
Looking west
It is unfortunate that time constraints limit our exploration to a small
fraction of this place. As it is, there are many photo-ops nearby.
The Spectacles
A great color combination
The 'official' parking lot is in view
Prickly Pear Cactus
Fire of the Devil
Looking northwest
We had best not try Steve's patience. Being a good friend of his imminent guest, I know that Garth could absorb a bit of inconvenience. There is way too much to do here, though; so I might as well save most of it for another day.
Fallen boulder
Rather than retrace our route, however, I suggest that the two of us exit the rock to the north, which I am quite sure is feasible; so we head in that direction.
Gary follows me northward
Looking back, to the south
Jaws
Is that one of the Founding Fathers over on the far right?
It does prove easy to get down at the northern end of the sandstone
slab, by clambering through a barbed-wire fence. This route
takes us well north of our starting point, however; so the walk ends up
being rather longer than if we had retraced our steps. We are able
to get some interesting additional photographs, though.
The pavement is just behind the orange rocks
Returning to the Whitney Pockets area, we enjoy the paved byway back to town, arriving in advance of Steve's deadline.
Heading home
§: What an outstanding adventure this was!
The scenic beauty and variety encountered today were
mind-boggling. Many of the area's attractions were missed,
however, which means that I must return. Next time, I might even
camp out at Whitney Pockets.
| Scenery |  |
| Difficulty |  |
| Adventure | |
| Solitude |  |
ADDENDUM
It is most unfortunate that the joy of today's wonderful outing was
virtually extinguished by the results of the evening's presidential
election. It appears that those of us who care must strive even
more diligently now to enjoy our country's natural wonders before they
are annihilated. The new administration already has announced its
intention to obliterate the best idea that this or any other nation ever
had — namely, the preservation of its wild and scenic lands.
On the other hand, just 45 days after today's outing, this region was upgraded to Gold Butte National Monument. Wonderful! Until they try to get rid of it.
