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| Circle of Burros |
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| Entering Blue Diamond Cactus Garden (The Crags) |
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| Trail from Wheeler Spring TH to Landmine Loop |
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| Hiking Landmine Loop |
Ahh! It was a beautiful day in the hills behind the small community of Blue Diamond, Nevada. It was no secret either! There were many bikers and a few hikers out on the trails. The burros were out, too! Ten hikers gathered at the Wheeler Springs Trailhead located on Blue Diamond Road between the old Oliver Ranch and the entrance to Blue Diamond; down by the Bird Sanctuary. We hiked through the gates, through some sand and swung right through the last gate. It is very important to close and fasten each gate after hiking through. The burros are not supposed to enjoy feasts of leaves in the dedicated bird sanctuary. Don't give them a chance!
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| Old Car |
We turned immediately left up the hill to join a trail lined by rocks. Soon, we veered left at a rusted barrel and bike chasis. This connected us with the Landmine Loop where we continued to the right.
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| Mama Burro and Baby |
We climbed over the small hill and saw the old car in the distance. It had graffiti on it but I Photoshopped it out! Also, there is a car hood standing up against it that I had not seen before.
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| Climbing up Sidewinder |
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| Along the Sidewinder Trail |
We saw about three burros off in the distance to the left against the hills and passed the big out-of-place snack rocks. Then, in the reddish brown dirt, there is a trail that turns to the left leading to a nearby hill. We climbed the hill until almost getting to a "corner" of the trail. Here, another trail turns to the left. That's Part I of our Sidewinder trail hike. This is a beautiful trail with gorgeous views of the Red Rock escarpment. It winds its way up the side of the hill. At one part, the trail is cut into the side of the hill which is kind of fun! After leaving the cut section, we saw another group of five burros watching us. See the first photo!
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| Stopping to Watch Burros |
Our trail circled around a rocky hill that I have suspicions about. I have seen a burro climbing that hill in the past. At the same time, this burro appeared to be defending it from me and a fellow hiker. Hmm. Burro outpost?
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| Hiking through Cactus Garden |
The Sidewinder continues around the outpost and heads up the neighboring hill into the Blue Diamond Cactus Garden. (aka The Crags)
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| The Downed Barrel still Lives |
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| Taking a Break in the Garden |
Needing a bit of shade on this oddly warm November day, we stayed within the rock alcove to take our break rather than going out onto the overlook just afterwards. This was the first of two equally high points of the hike. The second high point came after we zigzagged down the rocky terrain and climbed up onto the long ridge called Hurl Backdoor by the bikers. The ridge trail junctioned with an old friend of a trail that passes by the sandstone outcropping and out past the overlook junction. The steep descent began here as we took the trail down the north side of the canyon below. All the way to the wash, we were concentrating on our footing.
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| Exiting the Garden |
Right before the wash crossing, there is an unmarked trail that turns diagonally up to the left. It is small and vague at first. Look for it! This is the beginning of the Sidewinder Part II.
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| Passing the Sandstone Outcropping |
The trail circles around the hill to the left passing an unstacked stack of large square rocks. Soon, we were high above Blue Diamond connecting with an old abandoned road above the water tank.
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| Blue Diamond from Sidewinder Trail Above |
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| Narrow Sidewinder Trail |
About 15 feet up the old road, turn right onto an even more vague trail. Look for it! This trail is rarely used. See photo to right. We followed this Sidewinder Trail along the hill and eventually passed a wash with old dams built into it. The trail continues but when we saw the corner of the bird sanctuary fence about 50 feet away, we beelined down to the Landmine Loop and connected to the gate below. Through the gate, we followed the trail all the way back to the Wheeler Springs Trailhead. This is a very nice all trail 7 mile hike that can be done at any speed. We all enjoyed the weather today!
7 miles; 1100 feet elevation gain; 3.5 hours; average moving speed 1.8 mph
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| Following small Sidewinder Trail |
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| Three Old Livestock Dams |
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| Gate into Bird Sanctuary |
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