Death Valley to Panamint City

Remnants of the Chris Wicht/Novak camp that burned down in 2006

Death Valley National Park website describes Panamint City as the “toughest, meanest, most hard-boiled little hellhole that ever passed for a civilized town.” - drivingline.com

Planning the Hike

For my first ever weekend-long backpacking trip, I wanted to choose somewhere not too far from home with interesting scenery. Death Valley is only a 2 hours drive from Las Vegas, and with the America is Beautiful pass, it granted us free entry to the park. The trailhead for an abandoned mining city (Panamint City) was just west of the valley.

A week before leaving, I got to test out my backpacking equipment at Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area. I decided to go with a Gregory Maven 55L Pack, as it was the most comfortable weighted pack I had tested out in REI.

View of the valley from Zabriskie point

Death Valley

We arrived at Death Valley in the late morning on Saturday. We had some time to kill before reaching the Panamint City trailhead, we decided to explore some of Death Valley’s scenic points. Some notable locations included Zabriskie point, Badwater Basin, and Artist’s Drive/Palette.

People who visit Death Valley usually make their way towards Badwater Basin. It’s noted for being 282 feet below sea level, making it the lowest point in North America. The salt flats, through a repeated freeze-thaw process via rainfall, push the salt layers into larger, hexagonal shapes.

Enlarged salt crystals formed by rain and evaporation

Artist’s Drive is a fun and scenic 9 mile drive on the way to the basin. This one-way windy road displays a collection of oxidized metals in the mountain, causing it to display various colors.

Later in the afternoon, we began to make our way towards Ballarat. This is the last town before heading out to the Panamint City trailhead marked at Chris Wicht/Novak's Camp.

Because I did not bring a High Ground Clearance vehicle as suggested, we parked a little ways from Ballarat. From there, we began our backpacking journey with a 2.5 mile trek to the campsite. We were able to make it to the camp with just enough sunlight to set up for the night.

Equipment at Chris Wicht Camp that once belonged to the saloon/pool that used to be here

Surprise Canyon

We started the next day off with a strong cup of coffee followed by a dried fruit and oatmeal breakfast, giving us plenty of energy to begin our hike. Shade from tall trees and the sound of running water made the start of the hike very relaxing.

One of the larger waterfalls we encountered during the hike

As we continued inwards, the path gradually narrowed down until we had no choice but to walk into the mountain’s spring. There were a few waterfalls I had to climb which were a little slippery but not too challenging.

Some vehicles did not make it all the way up the canyon. The trail is currently closed off to motorized vehicles. 

The creek slowly began to disappear the deeper we hiked into the canyon, turning the lush foliage into thick shrubbery. Often times the path got very thick that we would have to backtrack and take another route.

Walking through the Tunnel of Love

It got dry and rocky for a while, then we encountered more thicket, which lead into the Tunnel of Love. This section of the path was a refreshing enclosure with running water and tree branches to the sides and above our heads, providing coolness and shade.

The trail as we got closer to the city

Panamint City

Cabin we spent the night at in Panamint City

After another mile of vertical rocky stretch, we finally reached Panamint City, elevation of about 6,300ft. Including our breaks, it took us about 6 hours to reach this destination. We wandered through some abandoned concrete structures before setting up camp.

Center of the workshop/storeroom area

The main cabin (Panamint Hilton) was already occupied so we set up our tent in the secondary cabin (Hippie Overflow cabin). The cabins had beds for people to use, but we had a tent with us which was, preferably, much cleaner. Therefore, we just set up in front of the beds. I watched the sky get dark through the cabin’s window, as the wind whistling through the canyon died down into silence.

Watching the sun set from inside the cabin

We woke up early so we could explore what the rest of the abandoned mining city had to offer.

The city was scattered with smaller wood cabins, old mining facilities/equipment, abandoned vehicles, and cement structures, including the 19th century smoke stack.

Although the structures were well aged, they were maintained by volunteering hikers, which made things a little safer and cleaner. There were even a few caverns that looked like it went pretty deep into the mountain.

KATO diesel generator found in a workshop area

Once we poked our heads around the city for a bit, we started our trip going back down. The hike down the mountain was obviously not as strenuous as going up, so that was motivating. It definitely helped to have both hiking boots and water shoes available for various parts of the hike. We ate lunch at Chris Wicht camp and we were even lucky enough to get a ride back down to our car.

Iconic smelter smokestack of Panamint City built in the 1880s 

Read More

Denver, Colorado

Jared with Suntastic Yellow Sunflowers at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal trailhead

Last fall I spent a weekend in Denver, Colorado to fulfill a much needed decompression period in nature. Surrounding the city are plentiful hiking spots to choose from, and just by being in the heart of the city, you can tell that the city promotes an active lifestyle as joggers and cyclists filled the neighborhood. It was a very brief trip, and the destinations were impromptu, but I figured it was an experience worth sharing.

Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge

"Located just northeast of Denver, the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge is a 15,000-acre expanse of prairie, wetland and woodland habitat." - fws.gov

Painted Lady butterflies love to swarm the Rubber Rabbitbrushes

The visitor center gives you an idea of just how much history is packed in this location. Bison and Plains Indians inhabited the lands for many years before the US Army transformed it into a chemical weapons facility for WWII. After the war was over, the Federal government had an extensive environmental clean up, expanding the refuge and today being home to numerous plants and animals.

I wanted to start off with a simple yet scenic route not to far from the city, and the Wildlife Refuge turned out to the a very beautiful and lively spot that was easy to access.

This hungry little guy crossed out path just to get the greens on the other side

We arrived a few hours before sunset and began our walk at the trailhead, surrounded by expanding amounts of vivid Suntastic Yellow Sunflowers and Rubber Rabbitbrushes. The plants attracted many types of insects such as bees, fuzzy caterpillars, and collective groups of orange Painted Lady butterflies. 

Further along the path I got a better view of the plains which were scattered with dirt mounds and holes. These burrows are cozy homes for furry creatures such as prairie dogs and ferrets. I managed to see a few on my walk but they were pretty shy.

Black-Footed Ferret investigating us from The Ferret House

Deeper into the trail, I started to see a wider variety of animals. Rabbits and deer wandered around freely and seemed accustomed to human presence. In the distance were fenced off areas to protect the large Bison, reintroduced into the Refuge 10 years ago.

Cattails make a tall border around the lake

Soon the plants grew taller and the honking of the geese because more audible. A few blue lakes became visible in the clearing, turning gold as the sun started to set.

A deer and its young grazing by the lake

Mount Falcon - Turkey Trot Trail 

There were plenty of accessible day hikes to choose from, it was challenging to settle on just one. Mount Falcon is located west of Denver, only half an hour away from our Airbnb. Noted as a 3 mile loop, I figured it would be a fairly moderate trail.

Trailhead for the Turkey Trot Trail

The trailhead already began at a higher elevation. To the right, I could see a clear view of Red Rock Amphitheatre, which, in my opinion, is one of the most beautiful concert venues in the country. The trail had a tolerably steep incline, which made the uphill trek more exhausting that I had anticipated. Because of this, it was popular spot for Mountain Bikers, appearing to be a fun yet challenging workout.

Weeds along the trail path

Approaching the peak of the trail, we could see the view of the entire city, surrounded by mountains scattered with lush green trees and sculpted red geology. It was a rewarding sight to see while resting my sore calves.

View of Denver from the trail's peak

Denver is definitely a place I would recommend to anyone who loves the outdoors and I can’t wait to go back and explore some more. I can’t wait to make a Denver Part 2 post filled with more photography and adventure!

Read More

Burning Man 2017

"When workers of the DPW, our Department of Public Works, arrive in the Black Rock Desert, their first task is to locate the exact position of the Burning Man, for it is from this very spot that our entire city is surveyed" - burningman.org

I have to admit, I picked a fairly complex subject to write about as my first blog post. There is just so much going on, especially as a first timer, that it is difficult to summarize in a few paragraphs. For this trip, I had to purchase a special dust proof digital camera so that my DSLR would not get destroyed by the dust (that shit gets in literally everything), but with that, I was glad that I got to capture even a fraction of my experiences. 

The Flower Tower by Kevin Clark

The Event

"What is Burning Man exactly?" I'm sure you've asked this question before and heard a different response each time: A festival, a community, a city, a gathering of arts. According to the official Burning Man website, it is a week long event in which..

"Participants join in the effort to co-create Black Rock City, a temporary metropolis dedicated to art and community."

This year, over 70,000 participants inhabited Black Rock City, making it one of the most populated cities in Nevada, located 120 miles north of Reno. Everything on the dry lake bed (colloquially referred to as the Playa) is set up and taken apart by the Burning Man community. It's an imaginary mindscape brought to life by thousands of people, only existing for a week. The fact that it's hard to define makes it all the more special, meaning that even the boundaries and fluidity of the event exceeds words itself.

The Man

This is it, the prime effigy of Black Rock City. Following this year's event theme "Radical Ritual", the man was built under a giant pagoda-type shrine. Surrounding the Man are several smaller themed shrines.

"At the center of Black Rock City, 20 Shrines will inscribe a circle around the Man base, known this year as the Temple of the Golden Spike" -burningman.org

The spine of the Man stands tall at the dead center of the entire city. A radius extends out from the Man creating a 7 mile circumference surrounding the playa. 

Saturday after the sun sets, thousands of campers journey out to the center of the city to watch the Man burn. People, bikes, art cars and other mobile art create a giant sea of dynamic energy that encircles the Man. Preceding the burn, various fire spinning groups display their perplexing fire handling abilities. Then, with a flashy display of pyrotechnics, the burn begins. The scent of burnt wood and the heat of the flames travel through the crowd as the energy continues to escalate.

The Community

Whether you are stuck in a heat wave or being eaten by a giant wall of dust, the city's energy remains to be ceaseless. Hundreds of themed camps are scattered around the city, each having an inspiring amount of ingenuity in how they are crafted and presented.

The community follows the 10 Principles of Burning Man as a guideline displaying "a reflection of the community’s ethos and culture". 

A Pirate ship parked near our camp, attracting a crowd with catchy tunes and good booze.

A participant from the Fire Spinning competition showing off some flair.

Camps and individuals partake in a strong gifting culture; to give for the sake of giving and not expecting anything in return. These gifts can vary from theme camps providing music, alcohol (bars galore!), workshops, entertainment, or even people providing art or services.

One of my favorite camps was a coffee place under a giant dome shade structure in which I had the delight of enjoying a warm cup of freshly ground Honduran coffee while stretching and socializing in a large pile of pillows. 

Night time is when the city becomes increasingly dynamic. Just about every camp, structure, bike, and person is lit up with colorful lights. Out towards the main street, Esplanade, all you can see is a giant sea of rainbow lights, sound, and bikes going here, there, and every which way...it can get very intense. Which some nights I enjoy, but if I want to go somewhere a little quieter, I start peddling my way out to my favorite area...

BE ART by Jeff Schomberg

The Deep Playa

This area of the city is a lot more spacious and serene, with a strong sense of marvel. Scattered around the deep playa are art installations of various styles, most of which are hands on and interactive. 

Being a curious person, I enjoyed the thrill of cycling closer and closer towards a ball of light in the distance to discover...: 

An electronic tree with a live symphony, a speakeasy hidden behind a series of riddles, a ferris wheel of rowing skeletons, a Led Zeppelin screening with fresh popcorn (yum), and many..many more. 

Nearing the end of the week, a lot of the wooden installations are burned down, creating a visual experience for people to be mesmerized by the smoke and flames. 

There are many themes attached to the art installations, some of which can be very thought provoking and spiritual. 

Directly north of the Man lies The Temple, which is strongly believed to have the most emotionally intense atmosphere in the whole city. 

La Victrola is a 30-foot tall wood and steel sculpture celebrating the music of a bygone era.

Jared exploring the deep playa during clear daytime conditions.

As I approached the tightly interlocked wooden structure, I gazed at the many notes, posters, cards, photographs, and art, squeezed into a snug space. Each message had a strong emotional subject which would often mention something of a melancholic nature, such as lost loved ones or emotional baggage someone let go. Or even positive messages exclaiming personal accomplishments and words of encouragement for those going through a hard time. 

The Temple burns the night after the Man burns. Unlike the Man's burn, the Temple burn is very silent and somber. 

Interlocking timber pieces in formation become a Temple that is both cloud and spire; inverted pyramidal columns suggest the negative-space of a forest canopy, simultaneously supporting a vast pagoda-like 'cloud' framework which in turn supports a central spire.

The Next Year (and the next..)

If you read this far, chances are you are somewhat inspired to go sometime in the future. My suggestion, is to do an extensive amount of research as to what to bring and how to survive. There are a numerous amount of resources online (i.e.. burningman.org) and in some cases, local communities, that can provide you with the information that you need. It is just as beautiful at Burning Man as it is physically AND emotionally intense, therefore a lot of preparation is required. But to live and survive through an experience that cannot be found anywhere else in the world, I can tell you it's definitely worth it.

Our camp, "Mello Fellos", on TuTu-Tuesday, illustrated with Copic liners and markers. 

Read More