Interpretive Hiking (continued)
I thought I could squeeze everything about Joshua Tree National Park in two posts (check out Part I and Part II if you want!). Turns out, I was very wrong. In this post, we will focus on the Lost Horse Mine, Mastodon Peak, and Pinto Basin. These are not the main attractions at Joshua Tree National Park and offer unique hiking opportunities. Mastodon Peak in particular is very interpretive, and is located around Cottonwood Spring. Let’s jump right into it!
Lost Horse Mine
Before this trip, we wanted to hike Lost Horse Mine. However, we got lost at Wonderland of Rocks and Barker Dam for a good portion of the day. We’re so grateful to only live 2.5hr away because we can always come back for a quick trip!
The road to the Lost Horse Mine trailhead is unpaved, but our little Corolla (who we nicknamed LBK for Little Black Kitty) was a trooper. The hike to get to the mine isn’t long, but it does gradually incline. There wasn’t a lot of shade, so we packed plenty of water and applied a lot of sunscreen. Once we got there, we were treated to a great bit of history on the mine. The main portion was fenced off, so to get the following shot I stuck my camera against the fence. In addition, I zoomed in and cropped out the corners of the fencing to get a clean photograph.
A part of the mining facility was not fenced, and we walked right up to it and examined the machinery. What a unique opportunity to be that close to a mine that is over a hundred years old and out in the middle of the desert!
Lost Horse Mine is very remote. The next image was shot from the hill behind the mine, with the trail in view. In addition, there are a couple of people walking on the trail to give this image a sense of scale. I don’t often include people in my landscape photography. However, I like the humanistic element they bring to this photograph.
Mastodon Peak
I’m always amazed at just how many different types of landscapes there are in Joshua Tree. It’s not just a desert landscape. Greenery and water can also be found at different areas of the park. For this next shot, I wanted to get some of the rock formations to contrast the green from the palm trees and other vegetation. However, there was so much green that I would have had to back up too much to get this shot.
Not a lot of people venture to the southern entrance of Joshua Tree where Cottonwood Springs is located. So imagine our surprised when we ran into two of our friends from our graduate school days on the trail! Talk about a small world! In this next photograph, there was a lone Ocotillo plant next to where we ran into our buddies. This particular plant had a lot of animal visitors and it was mesmerizing to see all of the activity around the plant!
No post about Joshua Tree would be complete without an example of the unique rock formations. This next photograph captured my eye as the sun was right behind this rock and gave it a nice glow. When framing this shot, I wanted the rock formation to look towering, so I placed the peak at the upper third of the viewfinder.
To get to the top of Mastodon Peak, we had to do a little bit of rock scrambling. Once we got to the top, we enjoyed a quick snack with this as our view:
This view is a hard one to beat. No one else around and the sun was just starting to set. I love using the Rule of Thirds to try and convey the vastness of the landscape. However, there’s no real substitution for actually seeing it for yourself!
Pinto Basin
On our way out of Joshua Tree, we stopped by Pinto Basin during blue hour and enjoyed a quick dinner. There’s something surreal about being out in nature with no one else around that is truly humbling. There weren’t even sheep, and other small animals were not out yet. Being surrounded by absolute silence is a rarity in our busy lives, and it’s times like these that I really appreciate just being one with nature.
To get this shot, I set up my tripod since the sun was going down fast. I wanted to get the landscape as detailed as possible and used my phone to control the camera’s shutter. I love the different hues in the sky and the color change in the foreground as a result of blue hour.
Final Thoughts
This will be the final post for now about Joshua Tree. I’ve got another one lined up outlining some astrophotography, but I would like to get a few more shots before writing that post.
A Bit of History of Lost Horse Mine and Mastodon Peak
Here’s part 3 of some history behind Joshua Tree National Park related to the locations in this post!
Lost Horse Mine – a cowboy named Johnny Lang moved into the area in 1890, and one night his horses disappeared. Lang tracked them down to what is known today as Keys Ranch. Keys told Lang that his horses weren’t there and to leave the area. Lang and his father later bought the rights to the mine for $1000 and named it Lost Horse. They started to mine gold and silver and between 1894-1931 they mined over $5 million (in today’s market) worth of minerals.
Mastodon Peak – Cottonwood Spring was once the only reliable source of water for Native Americans and miners. The miners who came through the area from 1870-1900s are responsible for planting the fan palms and cottonwood trees. If you hike further, you might see the remnants of some mining operations near Lost Palms and Winona Mill. On the trail is Mastodon Mine, where miners initially found quartz, and eventually gold. However, a fault in the primary vein caused most of the gold to be lost.
As usual, comments, conversations, feedback, and messages are always welcome!
Pingback: Tribute to Joshua Tree National Park - Baking Priority