Five Burros (with Eye of Sauron) - 11/3/25

Eye of Sauron rock Formation

Four of five burros in the Shade

Changing colors on Landmine Loop

Starting out the Mustang Loop from Late Night TH

The "Eye of Sauron" is a symbol of the Dark Lord's power and his all-seeing vigilance from Tolkien's Lord of the Rings, but it can be interpreted both metaphorically and literally. In the books, it represents Sauron's will and awareness, projected to those who come near the One Ring and used as an emblem on his forces' armor and banners. In contrast, the films visually depict it as a literal, fiery eye atop the tower of Barad-dûr, a more literal interpretation of the symbolic concept. AI-Overview  For more interesting fantasy about the Eye of Sauron search on Google. The "Eye of Sauron" that is found within the cliffs near Late Night Trailhead, needs an addition of a lot of imagination. But, it's fun anyway!

Diving into the Cactus Slalom

Nice joshua tree on the Cactus Slalom

Susan hikes up the Cactus Slalom

Climbing one of the Rusty Bucket Trails

Three and a half Wanderers left Late Night Trailhead to the right of the kiosk and hiked out the Mustang Loop. When the trail met a point on the Black Velvet Road, we crossed the road and joined a trail that used to lead to Rubber Ducky Yucca. (Surprise folks! All the ducks on the Joshua tree have been removed in the last few days.) So, we hiked down past the naked yucca and continued down the Cactus Slalom Trail passing the trail ramp that leads up to the left. Hiking between the large boulders that stick up in the "middle of nowhere," we eventually reached a trail that turned up to the right. This unnamed trail can be called one of the Rusty Bucket Trails. There are at least four trails that take hikers up to the top of the hill where the Eye of Sauron is located.

Amora on the Trail (Eye of Sauron hill in background)

Amora would like to share the Rock

A wider view of Eye of Sauron

 All of these Rusty Bucket Trails are interesting and fun to hike. When we reached the plateau on the top of the Rusty Bucket, we hiked to our right to the foot of the rocky cliffs above. Since I had Amora, Sue and I decided to stay at the base while Susan hiked up the steep hill and get photos of the rock formation, Eye of Sauron, photo to the left. Other photos of her excursion are seen in the collage below. We waited about twenty minutes and watched as Susan climbed up in a diagonal from left to right. The rock formation as seen from the bottom appeared like a cave with two "eyes" above it. To get the photos that she got, you have to lay down on the ground! Good job, Susan! A round of applause!

Susan's pics from the Eye and her Return

Five Burros

A break on the Rocks

Group Photo

Susan returned to Sue, Amora and I and we all returned to the trail we had left. Hiking east on the trail, we passed the Lawn Mower Trail on the right and another Rusty Bucket Trail coming in on the left. Our trail reached the small peak at the eastern end of the hill and started zigzagging down toward a canyon below. We crossed the wash and heard a snort! Yes, the Five Burros hike (previously named Four Burros) came through with four burros in the shade above with one burro gracefully walking in from the left of the cliffs. The sun was in such a bad location that none of us were sure that we got the pic. But, Sue, managed to get a couple of good shots. Later, I got all five burros from a different angle.

Hiking out of Rusty Bucket to Landmine Loop

Crossing the Black Velvet Wash

Black Velvet wash with fall Colors

Windy Peak Wash

After taking a break on the bedrock of the wash, we hiked down the trail turning left at a trail junction. This trail led us down to cross the Black Velvet / Windy Peak Wash at a beautiful bedrock crossing. Next, we turned left on the Landmine Loop. It had been a few years since I had hiked this section of the Landmine Loop. Along the wide wash, the desert willows were all yellow from the change of seasons. We came to another trail junction and turned left. This was a mistake that we had to later correct. We should have continued until the next left turn. We fixed this mistake by a little bushwhacking but, eventually, we ended up on the Cactus Slalom Trail again heading back toward the Rubber Ducky Yucca that isn't there anymore. After hiking between the large solo boulders, we found the ramp trail up and connected with the Mustang Loop to go back to the trailhead. This was a beautiful and fun hike but it was a bit too long for my dog. She slept for two days after that! 😅😥

Stats: 6.7 miles; 825' gain; 4.25 hours

Cactus Slalom Trail

Cactus Slalom Trail heading toward Trailhead

Connecting with the Mustang Loop