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brianinca

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Spring break for my wife this year worked for a trip across the Mojave. I'd done it with buddies RIGHT before we met, back in 2019, and her being a geology nerd, I've been wanting to take the trip with her ever since.

Did the real deal old road this time, starting from Ft Mohave through the Dead Mountains. WAY more "wheeling" oriented that way, instead of the maintenance / line roads between Ft Piute and Laughlin like my first trip. Like, sorry honey, I didn't remember it being this rowdy!

Casebier's book and an outstanding map, both sourced by my wife (geography nerd, too), made driving the "Old Government Road" a lot more interesting, and more authentic, than just Google Maps or OnX. We also turned up the comfort to 11 with the Jeep trailer, a mildly updated M101 A3.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4386


Our passenger side Roam got ripped off by wind folding it up in Needles, easy enough fix with the sheetmetal folks I know at work. The flowers on the first leg definitely made up for the night time arrival and early morning launch! So much green was a little disorienting, but it was gorgeous in all the best ways the desert can be.

Found a good camping spot in the Joshua forest north of the road, but WOW was it chilly at 4400'! Electric heater in the tent, for the win!
Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator PXL_20230407_013824680


The queensize mattress and bed beat all Hell out of the cot I used last time, and the tent rooms from Roam are very well done. The new portable fridge made life way better, had ice for backup but never again otherwise.

Joshua trees are stabby, BTW.

The flowering and fruiting Joshua trees were SUPER cool, definitely a high point of the water situation this year.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4397


Since marrying a woman from Arizona has updated my cactus knowledge, it was really neat to see some of the less common varieties called out by the book, with the incredible geology of the Mojave for backdrop. Pancake cactus!!

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_0848


Dropping into the wash was not what I expected, and my wife was not happy at how steep it was - but Tigger and JT did fine, and we had our excitement for the day (her picture, with her emphasis).

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4433


We hit as many of the springs as we could, Rock Springs and such, and enjoyed the evidence of history alongside the spectacular views.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_0864


We did the obligatory mailbox stop, it's a nice SoCal tradition.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4488


We made it right close the the lava tubes in time to find a nice spot with a fire ring off a side road, up a wash. Lower down, well protected from wind, and close to our morning visit to start the day, worked out great.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4503


First, and I mean FIRST, time we saw ANYONE on the road was at the lava tubes, and the parking lot was full of 4x4's. My wife has a thing about volcanos, she's been across the world to visit them, and the field of cinder cones was tall grass for her.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_0884


Soda Lake was off limits, and that was kind of a bummer, so we bombed up North to Baker and hooked it to the Rasor OHV area to get to the Mojave River for the final leg through Afton Canyon. I knew this would be my wife's favorite part of the trip, and I wasn't wrong.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_0898


Great cactus flowers, too!

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4579


The water crossing was a cakewalk because the railroad company has graveled everything for their use, so it wasn't the usual drama - fine by me!

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


We lucked out with great weather for the trip, not a total shutout from the flooding, and a much more enjoyable experience with the book's descriptions and details.

My wife is hot to show me the Sonoran deserts in Arizona she loves so much, but we'll head to Sequoia National Forest this summer first. The grandkids from LA need a chance to do some real car camping at high altitude! California is a fantastic place to play around!
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Beemer533

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Looks like a great time! How long was the trip once you started?
 

GOT FLOYD

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Spring break for my wife this year worked for a trip across the Mojave. I'd done it with buddies RIGHT before we met, back in 2019, and her being a geology nerd, I've been wanting to take the trip with her ever since.

Did the real deal old road this time, starting from Ft Mohave through the Dead Mountains. WAY more "wheeling" oriented that way, instead of the maintenance / line roads between Ft Piute and Laughlin like my first trip. Like, sorry honey, I didn't remember it being this rowdy!

Casebier's book and an outstanding map, both sourced by my wife (geography nerd, too), made driving the "Old Government Road" a lot more interesting, and more authentic, than just Google Maps or OnX. We also turned up the comfort to 11 with the Jeep trailer, a mildly updated M101 A3.

IMG_4386.jpg


Our passenger side Roam got ripped off by wind folding it up in Needles, easy enough fix with the sheetmetal folks I know at work. The flowers on the first leg definitely made up for the night time arrival and early morning launch! So much green was a little disorienting, but it was gorgeous in all the best ways the desert can be.

Found a good camping spot in the Joshua forest north of the road, but WOW was it chilly at 4400'! Electric heater in the tent, for the win!
PXL_20230407_013824680.jpg


The queensize mattress and bed beat all Hell out of the cot I used last time, and the tent rooms from Roam are very well done. The new portable fridge made life way better, had ice for backup but never again otherwise.

Joshua trees are stabby, BTW.

The flowering and fruiting Joshua trees were SUPER cool, definitely a high point of the water situation this year.

IMG_4397.jpg


Since marrying a woman from Arizona has updated my cactus knowledge, it was really neat to see some of the less common varieties called out by the book, with the incredible geology of the Mojave for backdrop. Pancake cactus!!

IMG_0848.jpg


Dropping into the wash was not what I expected, and my wife was not happy at how steep it was - but Tigger and JT did fine, and we had our excitement for the day (her picture, with her emphasis).

IMG_4433.jpg


We hit as many of the springs as we could, Rock Springs and such, and enjoyed the evidence of history alongside the spectacular views.

IMG_0864.jpg


We did the obligatory mailbox stop, it's a nice SoCal tradition.

IMG_4488.jpg


We made it right close the the lava tubes in time to find a nice spot with a fire ring off a side road, up a wash. Lower down, well protected from wind, and close to our morning visit to start the day, worked out great.

IMG_4503.jpg


First, and I mean FIRST, time we saw ANYONE on the road was at the lava tubes, and the parking lot was full of 4x4's. My wife has a thing about volcanos, she's been across the world to visit them, and the field of cinder cones was tall grass for her.

IMG_0884.jpg


Soda Lake was off limits, and that was kind of a bummer, so we bombed up North to Baker and hooked it to the Rasor OHV area to get to the Mojave River for the final leg through Afton Canyon. I knew this would be my wife's favorite part of the trip, and I wasn't wrong.

IMG_0898.jpg


Great cactus flowers, too!

IMG_4579.jpg


The water crossing was a cakewalk because the railroad company has graveled everything for their use, so it wasn't the usual drama - fine by me!

IMG_4585.jpg


We lucked out with great weather for the trip, not a total shutout from the flooding, and a much more enjoyable experience with the book's descriptions and details.

My wife is hot to show me the Sonoran deserts in Arizona she loves so much, but we'll head to Sequoia National Forest this summer first. The grandkids from LA need a chance to do some real car camping at high altitude! California is a fantastic place to play around!
[/QUOT
Spring break for my wife this year worked for a trip across the Mojave. I'd done it with buddies RIGHT before we met, back in 2019, and her being a geology nerd, I've been wanting to take the trip with her ever since.

Did the real deal old road this time, starting from Ft Mohave through the Dead Mountains. WAY more "wheeling" oriented that way, instead of the maintenance / line roads between Ft Piute and Laughlin like my first trip. Like, sorry honey, I didn't remember it being this rowdy!

Casebier's book and an outstanding map, both sourced by my wife (geography nerd, too), made driving the "Old Government Road" a lot more interesting, and more authentic, than just Google Maps or OnX. We also turned up the comfort to 11 with the Jeep trailer, a mildly updated M101 A3.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


Our passenger side Roam got ripped off by wind folding it up in Needles, easy enough fix with the sheetmetal folks I know at work. The flowers on the first leg definitely made up for the night time arrival and early morning launch! So much green was a little disorienting, but it was gorgeous in all the best ways the desert can be.

Found a good camping spot in the Joshua forest north of the road, but WOW was it chilly at 4400'! Electric heater in the tent, for the win!
Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


The queensize mattress and bed beat all Hell out of the cot I used last time, and the tent rooms from Roam are very well done. The new portable fridge made life way better, had ice for backup but never again otherwise.

Joshua trees are stabby, BTW.

The flowering and fruiting Joshua trees were SUPER cool, definitely a high point of the water situation this year.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


Since marrying a woman from Arizona has updated my cactus knowledge, it was really neat to see some of the less common varieties called out by the book, with the incredible geology of the Mojave for backdrop. Pancake cactus!!

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


Dropping into the wash was not what I expected, and my wife was not happy at how steep it was - but Tigger and JT did fine, and we had our excitement for the day (her picture, with her emphasis).

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


We hit as many of the springs as we could, Rock Springs and such, and enjoyed the evidence of history alongside the spectacular views.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


We did the obligatory mailbox stop, it's a nice SoCal tradition.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


We made it right close the the lava tubes in time to find a nice spot with a fire ring off a side road, up a wash. Lower down, well protected from wind, and close to our morning visit to start the day, worked out great.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


First, and I mean FIRST, time we saw ANYONE on the road was at the lava tubes, and the parking lot was full of 4x4's. My wife has a thing about volcanos, she's been across the world to visit them, and the field of cinder cones was tall grass for her.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


Soda Lake was off limits, and that was kind of a bummer, so we bombed up North to Baker and hooked it to the Rasor OHV area to get to the Mojave River for the final leg through Afton Canyon. I knew this would be my wife's favorite part of the trip, and I wasn't wrong.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


Great cactus flowers, too!

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


The water crossing was a cakewalk because the railroad company has graveled everything for their use, so it wasn't the usual drama - fine by me!

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


We lucked out with great weather for the trip, not a total shutout from the flooding, and a much more enjoyable experience with the book's descriptions and details.

My wife is hot to show me the Sonoran deserts in Arizona she loves so much, but we'll head to Sequoia National Forest this summer first. The grandkids from LA need a chance to do some real car camping at high altitude! California is a fantastic place to play around!
God Bless you two. Pictures are incredible and thank you for sharing!
 

yoda13

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Enjoyed the pics and story!
 

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brianinca

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We came down almost 400 miles to a KOA north of Needles that got us right on the border, hopped over to AZ for cheap gas, then up to NV to use the Avi Resort jumping off point, right down the road - "drive toward the power lines, but not past them!"

I didn't turn on the route track on OnX for the first 4 miles from the Needles Fwy, but it was 164 miles after that to exit at the Afton Canyon road. We had detours galore from the flooding, but it was still a lot of fun.

We did it in a relaxed three days, if we'd looped in the South visit to Hole in the Wall, and Mitchell Caverns, it would have been a slightly more aggressive four days, but with the closure confusion we decided to stay North and chill.

Looks like a great time! How long was the trip once you started?
 

Bocephus!

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Spring break for my wife this year worked for a trip across the Mojave. I'd done it with buddies RIGHT before we met, back in 2019, and her being a geology nerd, I've been wanting to take the trip with her ever since.

Did the real deal old road this time, starting from Ft Mohave through the Dead Mountains. WAY more "wheeling" oriented that way, instead of the maintenance / line roads between Ft Piute and Laughlin like my first trip. Like, sorry honey, I didn't remember it being this rowdy!

Casebier's book and an outstanding map, both sourced by my wife (geography nerd, too), made driving the "Old Government Road" a lot more interesting, and more authentic, than just Google Maps or OnX. We also turned up the comfort to 11 with the Jeep trailer, a mildly updated M101 A3.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


Our passenger side Roam got ripped off by wind folding it up in Needles, easy enough fix with the sheetmetal folks I know at work. The flowers on the first leg definitely made up for the night time arrival and early morning launch! So much green was a little disorienting, but it was gorgeous in all the best ways the desert can be.

Found a good camping spot in the Joshua forest north of the road, but WOW was it chilly at 4400'! Electric heater in the tent, for the win!
Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


The queensize mattress and bed beat all Hell out of the cot I used last time, and the tent rooms from Roam are very well done. The new portable fridge made life way better, had ice for backup but never again otherwise.

Joshua trees are stabby, BTW.

The flowering and fruiting Joshua trees were SUPER cool, definitely a high point of the water situation this year.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


Since marrying a woman from Arizona has updated my cactus knowledge, it was really neat to see some of the less common varieties called out by the book, with the incredible geology of the Mojave for backdrop. Pancake cactus!!

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


Dropping into the wash was not what I expected, and my wife was not happy at how steep it was - but Tigger and JT did fine, and we had our excitement for the day (her picture, with her emphasis).

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


We hit as many of the springs as we could, Rock Springs and such, and enjoyed the evidence of history alongside the spectacular views.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


We did the obligatory mailbox stop, it's a nice SoCal tradition.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


We made it right close the the lava tubes in time to find a nice spot with a fire ring off a side road, up a wash. Lower down, well protected from wind, and close to our morning visit to start the day, worked out great.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


First, and I mean FIRST, time we saw ANYONE on the road was at the lava tubes, and the parking lot was full of 4x4's. My wife has a thing about volcanos, she's been across the world to visit them, and the field of cinder cones was tall grass for her.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


Soda Lake was off limits, and that was kind of a bummer, so we bombed up North to Baker and hooked it to the Rasor OHV area to get to the Mojave River for the final leg through Afton Canyon. I knew this would be my wife's favorite part of the trip, and I wasn't wrong.

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


Great cactus flowers, too!

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


The water crossing was a cakewalk because the railroad company has graveled everything for their use, so it wasn't the usual drama - fine by me!

Jeep Gladiator Trip Across Mojave Road - East to West in our Gladiator IMG_4585


We lucked out with great weather for the trip, not a total shutout from the flooding, and a much more enjoyable experience with the book's descriptions and details.

My wife is hot to show me the Sonoran deserts in Arizona she loves so much, but we'll head to Sequoia National Forest this summer first. The grandkids from LA need a chance to do some real car camping at high altitude! California is a fantastic place to play around!
[/QUO
We came down almost 400 miles to a KOA north of Needles that got us right on the border, hopped over to AZ for cheap gas, then up to NV to use the Avi Resort jumping off point, right down the road - "drive toward the power lines, but not past them!"

I didn't turn on the route track on OnX for the first 4 miles from the Needles Fwy, but it was 164 miles after that to exit at the Afton Canyon road. We had detours galore from the flooding, but it was still a lot of fun.

We did it in a relaxed three days, if we'd looped in the South visit to Hole in the Wall, and Mitchell Caverns, it would have been a slightly more aggressive four days, but with the closure confusion we decided to stay North and chill.
looks Awsome!
 
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brianinca

brianinca

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sanderson

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Thanks for sharing your awesome trip across Mojave Road, and it's great to hear that you finally got to experience it with your geology nerd wife! I love traveling and discovering new places too. By the way, I recently came across some interesting information about Chicago. Apparently, the Safety Index is 65 there. It's always good to stay informed about safety when exploring new destinations. Anyway, back to your Mojave adventure. It sounds like you had quite the off-roading experience this time! Kudos to your wife for sourcing the book and map, and making the journey even more authentic. Thanks for sharing your experience, and happy travels!
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