Back to China Ranch and On to Shoshone

The drive down China Ranch Road into and through the China Ranch Wash is dramatic. Limited turn-around for any RV pulling a car or trailer. Small RVs can probably find parking at the main parking lot.

No cell coverage! You must be self-reliant in the desert. Perhaps a quarter of the continental United States does not have cell phone service. You can read about my practicing with a satellite terminal that provides voice calls here: https://southwestrockhounding.com/sat-fi2-and-spot-x/

China Ranch Road from Thomas Farley on Vimeo.


Here’s the shorter video for those with shorter attention spans:

 

 
 
 
 
 
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China Ranch Road to the China Ranch Date Farm at Instagram speed. The real time, four minute video called China Ranch Road’ is now at Vimeo and YouTube. I have no part in any YouTube ads, I have no ads at my website and nothing to sell. #geologistonboard#tecopa#chinaranch#inyocounty#roadtrip#palms#mojavedesert #armogosavalley

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More from the BLM trails starting at the China Ranch Date Farm parking lot. The Ranch and the Nature Conservancy have contributed mightily toward sustaining this area. #tecopa#natureconservancy #areaofcriticalenvironmentalconcern #mesquite#tonopahandtidewaterrailroad #chinaranchdatefarm #inyocounty#

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Back at China Ranch. Armagosa Tiver, mesquite bosque, old railroad bed. #roadtrip#geology #rocks#river#armagosa#inyocounty#mesquite#tecopa#mojavedesert#oasis#palmtrees#datepalms

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Kit Carson approved! Bread is great as well as the date shakes which are more ice cream than date. Despite the lush appearance of the trees, mesquite will tear you apart with its thorns and it is impossible to cross. Still, good cover for birds and pretty to look at from a distance. The drive down the road is terrific fun and worth doing several times. Also, walk through the palm trees themselves. Bring cash in small bills. Free admission so please buy something to support the ranch. Thank you. #tecopa#chinaranchdatefarm #inyocounty#roadtrip#

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Museum building closed, rock tour open. #geology #quartz #rockhound #rocks#roadtrip

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The Shoshone Museum Rock Display outside the Museum in Shoshone, California. Other nice but unlabeled rocks nearby as well. #geolgy #geologyrocks #geologistonboard #rocks#minerals#roadtrip#shoshone#tecopa#inyocounty#deathvalleyregion#museums#rockgarden#

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In Shoshone. Details to follow. Beautiful day on the desert. #shoshone#deathvalley#roadtrip#inyocounty #geolgy

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Nye and Inyo County

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Some of the drive in to the China Ranch Date Farm. Dash cam failed to record what may have been a gray fox crossing the road. I’ll get that camera figured out today. #chinaranchdatefarm #tecopa#geology roadtrip#inyocounty#nopahrange#roadtrip

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Out in Inyo County, California today. This is a working date palm farm with a gift shop and a kitchen that makes baked goods and date shakes. Only a few miles from Immigrant a Pass in the South Nopah Range. #inyocounty#roadtrip#palmtrees#desertoasis #oasis#mojavedesert#tecopa#deathvalley

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Gift shop at the farm. The parking lot is a trailhead for many hikes. We were the only ones there during our visit, the ranch is usually bustling with customers. #roadtrip#palmtrees#oasis#desert#armagosavalley #tecopa#deathvalley

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At the Museum. Open after an 11 week shutdown ordered by our beloved governor. Some hands on exhibits still not operating, again, by order of a state government that knows what is best for us. #pahrump #roadtrip#nevada#rocks#yuccamountainproject #radiation#nyecounty#history#

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Tuff. Learn it, live it, love it. #geology #roadtrip #geology rocks#volcanics #pahrump#museums#nyecounty#nevada#yuccamountainproject #rocks #tuff#

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The quixotic town of Blue Diamond, named after the hill of the same name. Gypsum mine nearby. At the far south end of the Red Rock National Conservation Area. #gypsum#clarkcounty#bluediamondnevada #roadtrip

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Back To The Nopah Range

Back to the Nopah Range. I was at Emigrant Pass on the Old Spanish Trail in Inyo County, California. Flew my drone for the first time in two years. Forgot the controls. Soft crash landing. Military controlled air space? It might be due to China Lake in Riverside County. That’s a Naval Air Station. But at least fity miles away. I spent some time later trying to read this map:

I thought land maps were complicated! Here are two versions of my doomed flight.

The first is video that Dji did automatically with their online editing footage. They added sound as well. Which means they probably compressed the file and then Youtube compressed it some more.

The second video is the original raw footage, looking dark on a dreary day.

Both videos are pixelated but the original shows well on my monitor. I bought some video editing software yesterday to see how it might lighten the darkness in the film. Some other stills from the North Nopah WA also below.

Watch for NOTAMs. Notice to Airmen. Real pilots and us drone operators.

A thin granite marker from the early 1920’s stands watch over the Old Spanish Trail in the background, now paved and not marked by the ruts of wagon wheels.

Broken yet intact. Why I don’t have to find gemstones or gold to love rockhounding. As my geologist friend RC said, “This is where sand comes from!”

Thought this was chert but it is not. More like deeply stained shale. Leached out from the soil mound uphill. Two hundred yards from here is shale in road cuts which yield partial trilobite specimens. That shale cleaves into shingle like pieces with a brick hammer. The stuff here simply falls apart into powder.

Just because it is black and craggy doesn’t mean that it is volcanic. These mountains fooled me when I first came here. These are actually limestone boulders, the entire area is made up of marine rocks. Check Macrostrat.org for the geology in any given area. Here’s a screenshot from their app.

How do you know if something is igneous? Generally, nothing igneous or volcanic will react to a bit of acid. Unless the rock has calcite encrusted on it. Which is everywhere in the southwest. Test different parts of a rock to be sure. Never approach a geologist with an ID question if you haven’t done an acid test. That’s the first test they will expect you to have done.

Here’s a photo of some acid bottles I made up for field work. 10% hydrochloric acid although you can use toilet bowl cleaning fluid in a pinch if it has HCI. That will probably be blue and not clear. A dropper bottle contained inside another bottle is a great way to carry an acid bottle anywhere.

Here’s the overall collecting area. This is about twenty minutes from Tecopa, California which has a must stop, the China Ranch Date Farm. They let you wander through their commercial palm tree orchard. And they serve date shakes. Really. Be prepared to wait in line for those.

You have arrived at the ranch.

And a view of the ranch in the distance. Most vehicles will have no problem with this road.

 
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