Dunes and Cinder Cones, Mohave National Preserve

With a hot miserable night at the foot of the Marble Mountains behind me I decided to relax a bit today. I had a relatively short drive to do, from Southern California to Pahrump, Nevada, a measly 162 miles through the heart of the Mohave Desert. Kelbaker Road cuts through the western Mohave National Preserve and provides the most direct route from Cadiz to Pahrump. Along the way I took in the Kelso Dunes and the Quaternary-Pleistocene Cima Volcanic Field. (June 11, 2012)

The Kelso Dunes rise about 200m out of the desert. I decided to walk to the crest of the dune field’s east end. When you leave your car you feel that the dunes are right there with nothing providing any sort of perspective. I was tempted to not even bring water, thinking it would be a short hike. Thankfully I thought better of it and put some food and water into my backpack and set off. Coincidentally a group of multitalented individuals from Joshua Tree departed the parking lot at the same time and we discussed life in Joshua Tree while we walked. Apparently people in Joshua Tree “do what’s needed to get by”. This group held more odd jobs then I have had in my life.

About an hour and fifteen minutes and a litre of water later, I was on the crest of the dune, sans Joshua Tree friends who turned back after 20 minutes. Wow, that was a lot of work. Here are the dunes from near the highway.

As I walked up toward the dunes I was amazed at the assortment of tracks left by animals in the sand. Here’s a selection.

This one was quite recognizable as the trail of a small Sidewinder, a type of rattlesnake that moves sideways.

As I gained elevation on the dune the views got more impressive. The perfectly smooth curvature of this ridge captivated me for some time.

Shortly after taking this picture I set off a small avalanche of sand down the lee side of the dune. The small avalanche spread to incorporate 25’ of the dune crest, moving to a depth of 3”. The moving sand made a sound reminiscent of a jet aircraft on approach to an airport. That peculiar sound you get when they open their flaps up. Until I realized what it was it was a bit disconcerting. The sound persisted for about 15 seconds, the duration of the avalanche. Apparently this is referred to as “Singing Sands” and is created by the moving sand vibrating as it moves over top the stationary sand below it. This effect is well known but is only produced by sand in some 30 dune fields worldwide. Very cool. I wish I could have recorded it for you. Here’s a view from the crest looking to the West.

 Here's the Wikipedia article if you want to read more about it.

Singing Sand Wikipedia Article

After the super cool experience I had at the Kelso Dunes I continued my voyage north eventually passing through the Cima Volcanic field. A bit of light off-roading and 45 minutes of hiking later I was on the summit of one of the cones. Here’s a view from the top of one of the cinder cones. You can see lava flows emanating from the volcanoes, merging and flowing off to the west.

I arrived in Pahrump in the late afternoon, checked into an RV resort and casino to do laundry and have a shower. Tomorrow I'm off to look at rocks in the Spring Range, here in Pahrump and then I'm off to Vegas and Frenchman Mountain. After that Utah!