The Journey is the destination
Nevada, often referred to as the “Silver State,” is located in the western United States. Renowned for its vast deserts and striking mountain ranges, the state boasts a diverse landscape that includes the arid Mojave Desert in the south and the forested Sierra Nevada mountains in the west. The state is famously home to Las Vegas, a vibrant city known for its bustling casinos, entertainment venues, and nightlife. Beyond the glitz of Las Vegas, Nevada offers rich history in its ghost towns, a legacy of the 19th-century mining boom. The state also features significant natural attractions, such as Lake Tahoe and Great Basin National Park, offering a wide range of outdoor activities. Nevada’s economy is driven by tourism, mining, and, increasingly, technology, making it a dynamic state with a blend of natural beauty and modern attractions.
The California Juniper ( Juniperus californica ) is a common tree found in California, western Arizona and southern Nevada at medium elevations between 2,460 – 5,250 ft. Commonly growing 10 and 26 feet in height, the grayish shredded bark Juniper may reach a maximum height or about 33 feet, although this height is rare. Growing up in California and frequently camping in the Mojave and High Sierra, the California Juniper has frequents my memory and photographs.
The Speckled Rattlesnake is fairly common pit viper found in southern California, southern Nevada, western Arizona and south-western Utah and down the Pacific coast into Baja California. A moderate size snake, this animal typically does not exceed 39 inches in length. As with most animals, the Speckled Rattlesnake is a master of disguise and commonly are colored to compliment the surrounding rock. This viper can range from pink, cream, tan or pale blues and grays. This feature I can personally attest to as I witnessed and entire Cub Scout Pack literally step over the specimen photographed below while hiking on a camping trip in the Valley of Fire State Park just outside of Las Vegas, Nevada.
The Joshua Tree was named for the biblical character by the Mormon Setters as they crossed the Mojave Desert in the mid 19th century. It is told that the tree reminded the early Mormon’s of Joshua who, much like the tree, held his hands up in prayer. From these humble beginnings, this tree and its undulating shadows have become of an icon of the desert southwest.
Joshua Trees are found in the desert southwest at elevations between 1300 and 5900 feet. A member of the Yucca family, the Joshua can live several hundred years and grow up to 30 feet tall and have a trunk up to 3 feet in diameter. The tree trunk contains many small fibers and does not contain growth rings as with typical trees. A top heavy branched tree it can develop an impressive and deep root system which can reach 31 feet deep.
During the spring months of February, March and April, white flowers signal be beginning of spring for the Joshua Tree. Flowering is dependent upon both an adequate amount of rain and a freeze. Once flowered, the Joshua Tree is dependent upon the Yucca month for pollination.
New trees can develop from the roots of existing tree from Rhizomes, however the Yucca moth is required to create new stands of trees from the seeds.
This yucca plant inspired a National Park in Southern CA, which is a favorite location to visit. The symbol of the high desert, the tree is the name sake of a famous Irish rock band, which is also a favorite.
Blown by wind, and ravaged by time, the Bristlecone pine tree is a silent sentinel of the White Mountains in eastern central California. Only growing high in subapline mountains, Bristlecone pine trees are among the oldest living organisms, reaching ages of 5000 years old, with on specimen being documented at 5,067 years old by Tom Harlan who aged the tree by ring count. That calculation confirms this one individual tree to be the oldest living non-clonal organism on the planet.
The Bristlecone pine groves are found between 5,600 and 11,200 ft of elevation on mountain slopes with dolomitic coils and can be reached using the White Mountain Road. This harsh alkaline soil gives the Bristlecone a competitive advantage because over plants and tree are unable to grow. The trees grow very slowly due cold temperatures, arid soil, wind and short growing seasons.
Reaching a maximum height of 49 ft with a truck diameter up to 12 ft, the Bristlecone pine maintains a bright orange or yellow. The stunted, twisted and gnarled trees contain deep fissures which expose deep orange bands of wood within the tree. The waxy needles are bunched in groups of five and form at the end of branches and also aid in water conservation. The Bristlecone wood is resistant to insects, fungi and other pests which may shorten its lifespan, due to the density of its wood and relatively high resin content. The harsh environment the tree grows in undoubtedly contributes. Unlike most trees which rot with age, the wood of this tree is contorted and eroded from sand, high winds, rain and ice. The age of these tree and harsh conditions cause the trees to twist and contort into other-worldly forms.
As with many species, the Bristlecone is uniquely qualified to thrive in its selected climate. The tree maintains a shallow highly branched root system which not only brings in water from the soil around it, but also anchors the tree the the side of the mountain. Its dense wood which protects from insects, also protects from the winds. Although the Bristlecone pine population is stable, it is being monitored as a species of Least Concern due to its slow rate of growth, low reproduction rate, harsh environment and environmental concerns.
The age of these trees is story of these gnarled trees. Although fantastic photographic subject, they are not particularly nice looking trees. They tend to be rather short, not very green and in some cases appear to be mostly dead or dying. However, they hold the top three on the list of oldest living trees and are aged about 1000 years over the fourth ranked tree. The third ranked tree, Prometheus, was cut down in by a graduate student in 1964 and the U.S Forest Service, because they did that sort of thing back then. Prometheus was 4844 years old on its death and due to its location in Baker Nevada could be a trip in the next few years. Over fifty years since the tree was killed, it is easy to second guess the decision with hind-sight and an environmental outlook that did not exist as much back then. Science is not always clean and neat.
The second tree on the list is Methuselah at 4849 years of age at was the oldest tree until 2012 when an older tree was found. The unidentified and unnamed oldest tree was 5,067 years old by Tom Harlan calculated its age in 2012. This tree was around before the oldest pyramid of Egypt, the Pyramid of Djoser which was built in the 27th century B.C.
One a personal note, I can not remember when I didn’t know about the old trees in the white mountains. I don’t remember my first visit, but I will never forget my last. The wonderful part of these trees, is that their small environments are so remote and high in the mountains. The trees are special and should be seen. Walked through. Appreciated. Unlike other large tree groves, such as the Redwoods of Yosemite, the Bristlecone pine groves of the White Mountains, CA, are not as visited. Which means that you can visit the trees and be alone without the throngs of people. Finally, when you are done and turn back towards the car, if you are in the White Mountains, you get some of the most amazing view of the Owens valley below you.
Two towns located in the hills above Mono Lake maintain, the Bodie and Aurora rivalry continues even now, long past their demise. Bodie, CA and Aurora, NV boomed with the gold rush of the 1870s and busted just years later when the gold ran out and faded into history. Miners, merchants, and people would undoubtedly moved either direction between the two cities and with good fortune would undoubtedly talk down the previous city. Such is human nature, but why would this rivalry continue long past the demise of both towns?
Bodie, CA is the crown jewel of ghost towns. Maintained in a state of arrested decay and located just 13 miles off the 395 highway outside of Bridgeport, CA, Bodie hosts over 100,000 visitors each year. The current site has some 100 structures, flush toilets, museum, guided tours, on-site staff, a website, Facebook presence and a gift shop. (I own two coffee mugs and three shirts) During a visit two Bodie, I over heard two fellow visitors joking about a StarBucks coffee located near the fire station. Bodie, justifiably is a popular place to visit, there are many people there when you visit.
By contrast, Aurora is a forgotten intersection of two roads. The town was raised long ago for its brick, and only two structures are not lost two the bush and those are unrecognizable monuments to the towns past. Few visitors will reach the town site of Aurora and those who do might be disappointed in what they find. By almost any measure there is no comparison in the quality of a visit to the two towns in modern times. So, why would there be an active effort on the part of those affiliated with Bodie to discourage visitor from driving to Aurora? Does the Bodie and Aurora rivalry continue to this day?
On a visit in June, 2016 I walked into the museum and spoke with one of the park staff / ranger to inquire about Aurora. I told the ranger I was planning to drive to Aurora and asked “How many miles is it to Aurora?”
The Ranger replied, “I think it is about 30 miles?”
I answered, “Well, I thought it was about 9 miles, but I don’t remember the source so I could be wrong.” I thanked him and moved on.
Perplexed a bit, I walked around the museum and studied a few exhibits. Once of the exhibits I saw was a hand written note / map, which noted that it was 6 miles to the Nevada border and Aurora was 10 miles past that point. I returned to the Ranger at the front desk and told him, “Apparently, we are both wrong you have a document which states it is 16 miles to Aurora.”
He replied, “Well, it can be a rough road and I heard the bridge is out.”
Again, I thanked him and walked off towards the jeep. Rough roads do not cause much concern, and a bridge being out is a binary concern. We can either pass or not pass and will not know until we get there. I loaded my family into the jeep, reset the trip odometer and sent off east towards Aurora. We followed the road and Bodie Creek North from Bodie and soon we reached a small bridge. As we drove over the bridge, I thought to myself, “Well so much from that bridge being out…”
As we continued down Bodie Creek there was another bridge, which was indeed out but immediately the obstacle was passable via the road to the right. The bypass simple dropped down a few feet, crossed Bodie Creek and up the other side. Not any issue with our Jeep JK. We continued down the road and made a right turn to climb the hill into Aurora. We soon reach an valley covered in sage brush with a wooden structure which appeared to be a head frame. A moment later we reached and intersection and another concrete structure which was the remains of a building. Surely, this must the Aurora.
Everything about the small valley was screaming Aurora. The map told me we found Aurora. Memories from my last visit 30 years prior told me it was Aurora. The structural remains told me we found Aurora. Everything told me that we found Aurora, except my trip odometer. Since my cell phone GPS is worthless with no Internet connection, the one piece of measuring equipment told me I was 5 miles off of my destination. After lunch we headed out again and soon found ourselves in the highlands above Mono Lake in extremely rough terrain. We finally reached mile 16 and knew that the distance measurement found in the Bodie Museum was flat out wrong and wrong in a big way!
We turned around and returned to the site we believed to be Aurora. Again we checked the maps, and everything appeared to match. We had an intersection with another road. We had a few limited structures. One further investigation, we began to see flattened buildings in the over growth of sage brush. Two structures became several. As I walked through the thigh high sage brush, I looked down and saw bricks! Bricks are the sure sign that we found Aurora!
So, how do we explain the differences in the distances. My memory, which is fallible, was 9 miles. The Ranger told me about 30, which I believed was way off. The map in the museum told me 16 miles, and my odometer measured 11.5. I reset my odometer and drove back to Bodie and duplicated my initial measurement of 11.5 miles and made a mental note of the dilemma. Why is the distance so wrong? I am willing the accept a slight variation in the mileage measurement of the jeep. I have 35″ tires on the 4×4 and the gears are changed to 5.13:1. The computer was changed to reflect these modifications. This could explain a slight variation but not 4 miles over 16 if the program parameters are not exact or correct.
When we returned to camp that night I checked the “Bodie State Historic Park” guide purchased when I arrived at Bodie and published and revised in 2010. On page one there is a town map with a reference to Aurora at a distance of 18 miles away!!! Great, another number for the distance between the two towns.
When I arrived home I opened up Google Earth and check my measurement for the Bodie to Aurora Trail. This measurement from Google Earth is 12.1 miles are more or less corroborates my measurement. So, why would California State Parks publish an erroneous value and lengthen the distance of the Road from Bodie to Aurora? Could the fact that California “lost” Aurora to and its revenue to Nevada when the area was surveyed in 1863 explain this behavior? Does the Bodie and Aurora rivalry between the two towns continue? Could it be that the mile distances site actually describe a longer route around the mountain to the north west of Aurora. Perhaps no one from California State Parks has checked?
I prefer to think of this is the last argument in the rivalry between two lost mining towns. An underhanded slight to history. The Bodie and Aurora rivalry continues…
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