My Journey

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

At this point in our travels we had spent nearly two weeks hanging out.....in or near the Virgin Mountains. There were still places that I'd wanted to explore, Black Butte I wanted to climb for the views of Lake Mead , and Finland for it's incredible rock formations, but I also had the desire to move on, so I put the both of them on the list for another trip, but I wasn't about to put my climb of Virgin Peak (8,071') on that same list.....



Once again we drove down that rough road.....and once again we parked the Jeep at that abandoned corral (note the blue skies).....



And we hiked up that same canyon looking for the stone cairn that marked the trailhead.....after 3 more miles and no sight of it, we just turned to the west and headed up one of the many rather steep ridges that led to the spine of the mountain.....



It was a cool, blustery day.....clouds passed quickly over the ridge.....







And of course the higher we climbed the colder it got.....and the cold winds from the northwest increased significantly.....





We found ourselves hiking right up into the clouds.....

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

At some point along that climb we encountered snow flurries.....initially intermittent.....but that was to change.....





Flurries and strong wind weren't quite enough to deter our climb.....we scrambled around those rocks that day.....I was determined to summit.....





We didn't stay long that day.....my hands and ears were frozen solid and all I could think was that we needed to get down.....my summit pictures were an afterthought which were actually taken on a false summit as we were on our way down.....





It was late in the day when we finally made our summit.....30 minutes past what I had said was our turnaround (get down) time. By the time we made it back to the canyon floor it was full on snowing.....





Just as we walked out of the canyon the skies began to clear.....



.....and we caught the sun setting across the valley floor. We drove that rough road home that night as we watched the full moon rising.....and we had finally achieved our goal of climbing the highest peak in the Virgin Mountains.....

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

The following day we returned to Mesquite, Nevada.....now our third trip into this small town. We loaded up with groceries and fuel, grabbed a last hot shower, as we now had yet another trip planned for the backcountry of southern Nevada. Just to the west of the Virgin Mountains, across the expansive desert valley.....divided by Interstate 15, lie the Mormon Mountains.....and this was our next planned destination.....there was yet one more mountain to be climbed.....

We once again found ourselves driving on yet another one of those deserted, rough BLM roads.....



Once camp was set up, I detached the Jeep and we then drove further west and up into the Mormon Mountains in search of an unmarked trailhead.....



Our goal for the day was the summit of Davidson Peak (5,276').....I thought that I had sufficient route information prior to our ascent of this peak.....I knew to hug the ridgeline but for some unknown reason I kept getting pulled into the canyon.....



I'd read that there were several stone cairns marking the route.....I found several stone cairns as we gained elevation so we continued on this route.....



At some point I realized that we couldn't be on the correct route.....so we attempted to look for a way out.....just a small opening in the cliffs was all we needed.....



I never found that opening and soon enough we found ourselves right back into the center of the canyon.....we climbed up and over massive boulders hoping that further up the canyon we might find a way out.....



That never happened.....nor did the summit of Davidson Peak.....on that particular day.....



Back at the camper we gave it deep thought.....



.....and decided that we needed to go back.....



We had quickly fallen in love with the Mormon Mountains of southern Nevada.....and were in no hurry to leave.....

 

[AbleGuy]

I feel compelled to comment on this picture of yours. This one really got my attention, because it’s one of the most artful photographs you’ve posted here. It is almost like an impressionistic painting. I hope this is one you get enlarged and hang on the wall of your cabin when you return from your travels. It’s simply an incredibly evocative photograph!

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

AbleGuy.....I'm with you as I too liked that picture quite a bit. Isn't it funny (surprising) that I post all of these pictures of the magnificent places that I get to explore yet my best picture of this trip is the one of my dog sitting in the front seat of a truck in a car wash ? Thank you & good idea.....



With an impending storm in the forecast, we wasted no time in making a second attempt of Davidson Peak (5,276').....the next day we were right back at it.....



On this attempt we stayed clear of the canyon and hiked directly up the ridge.....staying just above those massive walls that had penned us in the day before.....



Here too I found stone cairns.....one thing always to realize is that people build these things all over the place.....sometimes they can be as much of a hindrance as they are a tool.....





The stone here was volcanic.....the edges were sharp and I noticed fairly quickly that the dogs were struggling with climbing on this stuff.....but we climbed on.....



Clearly we were well above the canyon floor this time.....other than the sharp edged stone, things were looking promising.....





At some point the winds increased.....clouds moved in.....the wind always seems to be an issue during our winter visits in the southwest.....





By the time we reached the summit that day, Tanner was bleeding from 3 of his paws. Both of the dogs were walking so carefully.....every step looked to be a challenge for my best friends..... wasn't feeling so good about myself right then.....

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

With bloody paws, increasing winds, dropping temperatures, and cloudy skies we descended down the desolate mountain ridge as quickly as we could.....needing to prepare for the impending storm.....







As we headed back to our campsite the skies began to change once again.....



And soon they were blue.....







This was the calm before the storm.....





.....as a storm did indeed eventually come.....which is always a welcomed event in this part of the world.....

 

[Riversdad]

The following day we returned to Mesquite, Nevada.....now our third trip into this small town. We loaded up with groceries and fuel, grabbed a last hot shower, as we now had yet another trip planned for the backcountry of southern Nevada. Just to the west of the Virgin Mountains, across the expansive desert valley.....divided by Interstate 15, lie the Mormon Mountains.....and this was our next planned destination.....there was yet one more mountain to be climbed.....

We once again found ourselves driving on yet another one of those deserted, rough BLM roads.....

View attachment 757204

Once camp was set up, I detached the Jeep and we then drove further west and up into the Mormon Mountains in search of an unmarked trailhead.....

View attachment 757207

Our goal for the day was the summit of Davidson Peak (5,276').....I thought that I had sufficient route information prior to our ascent of this peak.....I knew to hug the ridgeline but for some unknown reason I kept getting pulled into the canyon.....

View attachment 757208

I'd read that there were several stone cairns marking the route.....I found several stone cairns as we gained elevation so we continued on this route.....

View attachment 757209

At some point I realized that we couldn't be on the correct route.....so we attempted to look for a way out.....just a small opening in the cliffs was all we needed.....

View attachment 757210

I never found that opening and soon enough we found ourselves right back into the center of the canyon.....we climbed up and over massive boulders hoping that further up the canyon we might find a way out.....

View attachment 757211

That never happened.....nor did the summit of Davidson Peak.....on that particular day.....

View attachment 757212

Back at the camper we gave it deep thought.....

View attachment 757213

.....and decided that we needed to go back.....

View attachment 757214

We had quickly fallen in love with the Mormon Mountains of southern Nevada.....and were in no hurry to leave.....

View attachment 757215

Tired dogs, are happy dogs. How much lifting are you doing to get them over some of these rocks? Can't be easy with your bum hip.

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

Riversdad.....the big boulders are definitely our most challenging obstacle. Tanner can navigate them with ease.....Trapper is an entirely different story.....but we seem to make do.....or we just simply turn around. Pain has just become a part of living. Everyday in the mountains is a good day.....no, actually a great day !



December 21, 2022.....The Winter Solstice.....

We were up early this morning and went for a long walk in the dark.....it was fabulous to say the least.....only the morning wind we could hear.....but I'm definitely looking forward to the longer days & shorter nights.....cause we just love to see what we can see.....


To Know The Dark.....Wendell Berry.....

"To go in the dark with a light is to know the light.

To know the dark, go dark. Go without sight,

and find that the dark, too, blooms and sings,

and is traveled by dark feet and dark wings."

 

[4x4tripping]

Beautiful pictures!

Thanks for let us readers travelling with you!

Surfy

 

[chet6.7]

“How glorious a greeting the sun gives the mountains!” – John Muir

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

4x4tripping.....I'm always grateful for the feedback.....it's my pleasure to share.....thank you.....

chet6.7.....?.....



We spent five days exploring in the Mormon Mountains.....the rains that were expected finally came the evening of our second day camped in the southern Nevada desert.....





The sound of the rain on the campers' roof had this calming effect on the three of us.....it certainly was the perfect time for a good book.....



Maybe it rained all night.....fortunately I have no idea about that.....in the morning we headed out for a walk along that rough road.....I clearly recall the clean, crisp air that always seem to follow the rains.....



Our walk brought us to the base of this small mountain.....I didn't think it had been named.....





Probably to nobodys' surprise, we decided to climb it.....we climbed up its' north slope.....clearly there's no better way to start the day.....





Due to the proximity of this mountain.....the way it sat alone in the middle of the desert.....well, it just gave us incredible 360 degree views of the entire valley.....



And we weren't the only ones that had observed these sensational views.....signs of Bighorn Sheep were abundant along our route.....

 

[YukonMontanaTannerTrapper]

I snapped a photo of Tanner as I often do on what I thought was the highpoint of this little unnamed mountain.....



Later that day I was messing around on the ap onX Hunt and realized that there's actually a higher point further to the west along the ridgeline so we returned to climb that little mountain again.....



It was quite a bit easier this time as we hiked up a well graded road.....3.2 miles with roughly 600' of elevation gain.....



The topographic maps call this Radio Tower (3,390').....I'm assuming that there was a radio tower here at some point in time.....fortunately if there was a radio tower here, it's now long gone.....





On the return to the camper we checked out this deserted cabin (?).....it looked like a place I might live with a few improvements of course.....





And that's how we spent 5 days exploring in the Mormon Mountains.....

 

[tgil]

Merry Christmas, Tanner, Trapper and that Jerry guy too!

Sent from my SM-G975U using Tapatalk

 

[vintageracer]

Jerry,

That Montana weather sure has been hard on your cabin shown in the pics above while you have been traveling this season.

You can always "Build Back Better" next time!

 

[Ace Brown]

As I’ve said before i no longer get notifications on my subscribed threads. So here i am catching up again on Christmas Day. Surprised to see Jerry almost current. But I have been following My Journey about as long as Jerry has been banging it out. Every time i see “to see what we can see” my interest perks up. Like the dogs when they hear “walk”.

My walking is very limited right now. Spinal stenosis is really getting worse. I went snowshoeing last Sunday and only went three miles. Today i drove up to Grand Mesa again hoping to XC ski. By the time i git there i was hurting way too bad. Never got the skis on. Looks like ill be seeing a back surgeon real soon.

Jerry I’ve noticed several summit pictures with just Tanner. Where is Trapper?

Merry Christmas to Jerry and pups. Also all the followers. Many have been on here for several years.

Ace


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